Details

The monument includes a bowl barrow located on the crest of a low hill 990m
south west of Cranhouse Farm. The barrow is visible as a low earthen mound
which stands to a height of about 0.5m, and covers a roughly circular area
with a maximum diameter of 39m. The mound, which has been spread by
cultivation, is thought to overlie a buried ditch which originally encircled
it and from which earth was quarried during the construction of the barrow.

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.

Although the bowl barrow 990m south west of Cranhouse Farm has been reduced in
height and spread by ploughing the remains of the mound, the soils buried
beneath the mound and the fill of the buried ditch surrounding it will retain
archaeological information concerning its construction and the manner and
duration of its use, together with evidence for the local environment. The
proximity of this barrow to a number of other barrows in this part of the
Breckland region give it additional interest. Together these barrows give some
evidence of the character, development and density of the prehistoric
population in this area.

Source: Historic England