Details

The monument includes a burial cairn of Bronze Age date situated on the summit
of Hart Heugh with extensive views in all directions. The cairn is oval in
shape and survives as a turf covered mound 4m by 2m and stands 0.3m high. The
centre of the cairn has been disturbed, probably the result of an unrecorded
investigation in the 19th or early 20th century. Over the centre of the
prehistoric cairn is a smaller stone cairn of relatively recent date.

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

Round cairns are prehistoric funerary monuments dating to the Bronze Age
(c.2000-700 BC). They were constructed as stone mounds covering single or
multiple burials. These burials may be placed within the mound in stone-lined
compartments called cists. In some cases the cairn was surrounded by a ditch.
Often occupying prominent locations, cairns are a major visual element in the
modern landscape. They are a relatively common feature of the uplands and are
the stone equivalent of the earthen round barrows of the lowlands. Their
considerable variation in form and longevity as a monument type provide
important information on the diversity of beliefs and social organisation
amongst early prehistoric communities. They are particularly representative of
their period and a substantial proportion of surviving examples are considered
worthy of protection.

Despite some disturbance to the Bronze Age round cairn on the summit of Hart
Heugh it survives in reasonable condition and retains significant
archaeological deposits. It is one of a group of broadly contemporary
prehistoric monuments located on Hart Heugh and forms part of a wider
archaeological landscape in the Cheviot Hills. It will contribute to any study
of burial practices during this period.

Source: Historic England