Details

The monument, which is in four separate areas of protection, includes a
group of four bowl barrows 600m south west of Buildings Farm, located on
former heathland at the western edge of the Good Sands upland region of
north-west Norfolk.

The bowl barrows lie between 70m and 130m apart, with the group as a whole
occupying an area with maximum dimensions of approximately 250m east-west
by 130m north south. The barrow at the south west edge of the group is
visible as a circular mound measuring approximately 28m in diameter and
standing 0.4m high. The bowl barrow to the north west measures 26m in
diameter and stands 0.4m high. The barrow at the the centre of the group
measures 33m in diameter and stands 0.6m high and the fourth barrow, which
lies about 100m to the east, is visible as a mound measuring about 30m in
diameter and 0.3m high.

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 four bowl barrows 600m south west of Buildings Farm survive well as a
series of earthwork and buried remains. The monument will preserve
archaeological information concerning the construction and date of the
barrows. Evidence for the local environment at the time of construction
will be contained in buried soils beneath the mounds. The association of
the four barrows gives added interest and importance, and will contribute
to an understanding of the character and development of the prehistoric
landscape.

Source: Historic England

Sources

Other
Norfolk SMR, NF1982, (2002)

Source: Historic England