Details

The monument includes a round barrow situated on a gentle south east facing
slope at the north edge of the North Yorks Moors.
In 1934 the barrow had a mound up to 16m in diameter but it has since been
further levelled by ploughing. Although it is no longer visible as an
earthwork it will retain archaeological remains below ground.
The barrow lies in an area rich in prehistoric monuments including further
barrows with which it is associated and which are the subject of separate
schedulings.

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.

Despite disturbance by ploughing the round barrow on Dunsley Moor, 800m south
west of Skelder Cottage will retain archaeological remains such as evidence
for earlier land use beneath the plough soil.
Together with other burial monuments in the area this barrow is thought to
represent a territorial marker. Similar monument groups are known across the
west and central areas of the North York Moors and provide valuable insight
into burial practice and land division for social and ritual purposes.

Source: Historic England

Sources

Books and journals
Smith, M J B, Excavated Bronze Age Burial Mounds of Durham and N' land., (1994), 85
Other
Charlesworth, D, AM7, (1962)

Source: Historic England