Details

The monument includes a bowl barrow situated approximately 780m east of Bar
Pasture Farm. The barrow has been covered and protected by later deposits of
marine clay and peat, from which the mound emerges. It is visible as a slight
gravel rise, which measures 28m in diameter and 0.3m high. The deeper lying
remains of the barrow are preserved underneath the Fen deposits and include
two encircling ditches separated by a slight bank. The two ditches, which
were dug to supply earth in the construction and enlargement of the mound,
have become infilled over the years, but survive as buried features. By
comparison with examples excavated elsewhere in the region, they are thought
to measure 4m wide. The bank is believed to measure 1m wide. The barrow is
situated on a gravel peninsula along the prehistoric Fen edge, a location
that, with its mixture of wetter and drier grounds and easy access along the
waterways, attracted prehistoric activity. The monument is part of a difuse
barrow landscape at Thorney and Eye, other elements of which are subject to
separate schedulings.

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

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 barrow 780m east of Bar Pasture Farm is well preserved, having been
protected by overlying deposits of peat and clay, and will contain a wealth
of information relating to the barrow's construction, the manner and duration
of its use, as well as ritual and domestic activity on the site. Buried soils
underneath the mound will retain valuable archaeological evidence concerning
landuse in the area prior to the construction of the barrow, while organic
deposits preserved in the ditch will shed light on environmental conditions
(eg climate, flora and fauna) since the construction of the barrow. The
monument is part of a diffuse barrow landscape at Eye and Thorney.

Source: Historic England