Details

The monument includes two bowl barrows aligned broadly NNW-SSE on the crest of
Ridge Hill. Both barrows have been reduced in size by past ploughing. The
northern barrow has a mound, now elongated but formerly 8m in diameter, and
0.5m high. The second barrow, approximately 30m to the south west, is now
visible only as a slight rise in the ground surface but was formerly 13m in
diameter and 0.6m high. Both mounds are surrounded by quarry ditches from
which material to construct them was derived. These have become infilled over
the years and now survive as buried features approximately 2m wide. The
barrows lie within a wider area of prehistoric field system which is not
included in the scheduling.
All fence posts are excluded from the scheduling, although the ground beneath
these features is included.

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 bowl barrows on Ridge Hill 770m south of Revels Farm will contain
archaeological deposits providing information about Bronze Age burial
practices, economy and environment.

Source: Historic England

Sources

Books and journals
Grinsell, L V, 'Procs Dorset Natural History and Archaeological Soc.' in Dorset Barrows, (1959), 97

Source: Historic England