Details

The monument includes two long barrows which are situated towards the top
of the east-facing slope into Scamridge Slack. They lie on the southern
dip slopes of the Tabular Hills.
Originally both barrows had mounds of earth and stone which would have
tapered in width and height from east to west. The mound would have been
constructed with material from flanking quarry ditches and in front of the
eastern, higher end of the mound, there would have been a forecourt area
where rituals relating to the use of the monument would have taken place.
Over the years, ploughing has levelled both barrow mounds and filled in
the quarry ditches so that they are no longer visible as earthworks,
although the quarry ditches will survive below the ground surface as
subsoil features. Traces of the activities which took place in the
forecourt area will also survive below the ground surface as pits,
post-holes or hearths, although nothing is visible above the ground.
Both the barrows can be seen on aerial photographs in which the quarry
ditches show up as cropmarks. From the photographs it can be seen that the
northern barrow, known as Rob Howe on early editions of the Ordnance
Survey maps, is oriented ENE to WSW and the southern barrow, which is
about 130m to the south, is oriented east to west. The northern barrow is
about 43m long and about 18m wide at the western end and 26m wide at the
eastern end, including the buried quarry ditches. The southern barrow is
about 25m long and about 16m wide, including the buried quarry ditches.
The barrows lie in an area where there is a concentration of Neolithic
monuments, including further long barrows, which is surrounded by many
other prehistoric burial monuments and a network of prehistoric land
boundaries. A north-south fence passes the eastern end of the monument,
crossing the forecourt area of the northern barrow; all fence posts are
excluded from the scheduling, althought the ground beneath them is
included.

MAP EXTRACT
The site of the monument is shown on the attached map extract.
It includes a 5 metre boundary around the archaeological features,
considered to be essential for the monument's support and preservation.

Source: Historic England

Reasons for Scheduling

Long barrows were constructed as earthen or drystone mounds with flanking
ditches and acted as funerary monuments during the Early and Middle Neolithic
periods (3400-2400 BC). They represent the burial places of Britain's early
farming communities and, as such, are amongst the oldest field monuments
surviving visibly in the present landscape. Where investigated, long barrows
appear to have been used for communal burial, often with only parts of the
human remains having been selected for interment. Certain sites provide
evidence for several phases of funerary monument preceding the barrow and,
consequently, it is probable that long barrows acted as important ritual sites
for local communities over a considerable period of time. Some 500 examples of
long barrows and long cairns, their counterparts in the uplands, are recorded
nationally. As one of the few types of Neolithic structure to survive as
earthworks, and due to their comparative rarity, their considerable age and
their longevity as a monument type, all long barrows are considered to be
nationally important.

Despite levelling by ploughing, the two long barrows 630m and 690m north
east of Scamridge Farm have surviving archaeological deposits which will
preserve significant information about their date, original form and the
rituals associated with their use. Important environmental evidence which
can be used to determine the contemporary environment will also survive
within the buried ditches.
The barrows are among a group of at least four long barrows in this area
which are situated within less than 1km of each other. This is a much
greater concentration than anywhere else on the North York Moors and
Tabular Hills and provides valuable insight into Neolithic ritual and
funerary activity. The area also has many other prehistoric burial
monuments, dating from the Bronze Age and Iron Age, as well as a complex
network of prehistoric land boundaries. The relationships between these
monuments and the Neolithic long barrows are important for understanding
the development and use of the landscape for different purposes during the
prehistoric period.

Source: Historic England

Sources

Books and journals
Spratt, D A , 'Prehistoric and Roman Archaeology in North East Yorkshire' in Prehistoric and Roman Archaeology of North East Yorkshire, , Vol. 87, (1993)
Other
SF 1677/451, (1979)
SF 1677/454, (1979)
Title: 1st Edition 6" Ordnance Survey sheet 92
Source Date: 1854
Author:
Publisher:
Surveyor:

Source: Historic England