Details

The monument includes two small Bronze Age barrows located on the north west
facing slope at the tip of Galley Hill, a large promontory of the middle chalk
to the north of Luton. The barrows are placed to command wide views (or to be
widely visible) across the Chiltern plateau which rises from the escarpment at
Barton Le Clay some 2.5km to the north, and to overlook the Icknield Way (a
prehistoric trackway which skirts the foot of the hill). The barrows are
separated by a distance of c.14m. The south eastern barrow is circular in
plan, measuring approximately 12m in diameter and 1.2m in height, extending
out in a slightly domed profile from the slope. The north western barrow is
less clearly defined, measuring c.11m across and 0.6m high. Neither barrow
retains any trace of a surrounding ditch, and both mounds are thought to have
been constructed in the same manner as a similar pair (not included in the
scheduling) located on the summit of the hill some 100m to the south. These
were fully excavated in 1961-2 when it was found that the central graves had
been covered with turves and soil stripped from the surrounding hillside. The
larger of these two barrows was adapted for further burials later in the
Bronze Age, and saw extensive reuse in both in the late Roman periods, when 18
burials were inserted in the barrow, and in the medieval period, when the
mound may well have supported a gallows (hence Galley Hill). Six probable
victims of execution were interred in shallow graves on the west side of the
mound.
There are no indications of excavation at the two barrows on the northern
slope of Galley Hill.

MAP EXTRACT
The site of the monument is shown on the attached map extract.
It includes a 2 metre boundary around the archaeological features,
considered to be essential for the monument's support and preservation.

Source: Historic England

Reasons for Scheduling

Bowl barrows, the most numerous form of round barrow, are funerary monuments
dating from the Late Neolithic period to the Late Bronze Age, with most
examples belonging to the period 2400-1500 BC. They were constructed as
earthen or rubble mounds, sometimes ditched, which covered single or multiple
burials. They occur either in isolation or grouped as cemeteries and often
acted as a focus for burials in later periods. Often superficially similar,
although differing widely in size, they exhibit regional variations in form
and a diversity of burial practices. There are over 10,000 surviving bowl
barrows recorded nationally (many more have already been destroyed), occurring
across most of lowland Britain. Often occupying prominent locations, they are
a major historic element in the modern landscape and their considerable
variation of form and longevity as a monument type provide important
information on the diversity of beliefs and social organisations amongst early
prehistoric communities. They are particularly representative of their period
and a substantial proportion of surviving examples are considered worthy of
protection.

The two barrows on the north west side of Galley Hill survive well and will
retain significant archaeological information. The mounds, and the areas which
they overlie, will contain burials and other deposits related to their
construction and attendant ritual activity, and will provide evidence for the
duration, or repetitive nature, of their use. The area between the barrows is
of particular interest, since excavations at comparable sites have
demonstrated the likelihood of further burials in such locations.
These barrows form part of a particularly interesting distribution of funerary
monuments which follows the Chiltern Ridge from Buckinghamshire to
Hertfordshire, and includes the well known Five Knolls barrow cemetery near
Dunstable, which is visible from Galley Hill. The study of these sites will
provide valuable information regarding the continuity and evolution of
prehistoric funerary practices in the area, and contribute to research into
the distribution of prehistoric settlement.

Source: Historic England

Sources

Books and journals
Dyer, J, 'Archaeological Journal' in Barrows of the Chilterns, (1961), 1-24
Dyer, J, 'Beds Arch Journal' in Excavation of Two Barrows on Galley Hill Streatley, , Vol. 9, (1974), 13-33
Dyer, J, 'Archaeological Journal' in Barrows of the Chilterns, (1961), 1-24
Stevenson, M, 'Herts Arch J.' in Bronze Age Funerary Deposits in the Royston Area, , Vol. 9, (1986), 8-14
Other
Herts SMR entries, 4152-3 Bowl Barrows in Turlhangers Wood, Aldbury,
Herts SMR entry, 4152-3 barrows in Turlhanger Wood, Albury,
MPP schedule entry 27133, Went, D, Bowl barrow on Bacombe Hill, (1995)
MPP schedule entry 27133, Went, D, Bowl barrow on Bacombe Hill, (1995)
MPP schedule entry 27133, Went, D, Bowl barrow on Bacombe Hill, (1995)
MPP schedule entry 27133, Went, D, Bowl barrow on Bacombe Hill, (1995)
MPP schedule entry 27133, Went, D, Bowl barrow on Bacombe Hill, (1995)
MPP schedule entry 27133, Went, D, Bowl barrow on Bacombe Hill, (1995)
MPP schedule entry 27194, Went, D, Bowl Barrow 540m South East of Dairy Farm, (1996)
MPP schedule entry 27194, Went, D, Bowl Barrow 540m South East of Dairy Farm, (1996)

Source: Historic England