Bowl barrow 470m north of Brendon Hill Farm

Reasons for Designation

Exmoor is the most easterly of the three main upland areas in the south western peninsula of England. In contrast to the others, Dartmoor and Bodmin Moor, there has been no history of antiquarian research and little excavation of its monuments. However, detailed survey work by the Royal Commission on the Historical Monuments of England has confirmed a comparable richness of archaeological remains, with evidence of human exploitation and occupation from the Mesolithic period to the present day. Many of the field monuments surviving on Exmoor date from the later prehistoric period. Examples include stone settings, stone alignments, standing stones, and burial mounds (`barrows'). Bowl barrows, the most numerous form of round barrow, are funerary monuments dating to the Late Neolithic period to the Late Bronze Age, with most examples belonging to the period 2400-1500BC. 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. Over 370 bowl barrows, varying in diameter from 2m to 35m, have been recorded on Exmoor. Many of these are found on or close to the summits of the three east-west ridges which cross the moor - the southern escarpment, the central ridge, and the northern ridge - whilst individual barrows and groups may also be found on lower lying ground and hillslopes. Those which occupy prominent locations form a major visual element in the modern landscape. 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 superficial disturbance to the top of the mound, the bowl barrow 470m north of Brendon Hill Farm survives comparatively well and will contain archaeological deposits and environmental evidence relating to the monument and the landscape in which it was constructed. Additionally, it is one of a number of round barrows which occupy prominent positions on or near a well-defined course along the Brendon Hills sometimes referred to as the Brendon Hills Ridgeway.

Details

The monument includes a prehistoric bowl barrow located in an area known as King's Brompton Common on the summit of a broad ridge which extends along the Brendon Hills region of Exmoor. The bowl barrow is formed by a near-circular earthen mound, the top of which has a slightly square profile. The mound is 14m in diameter and is approximately 0.7m high. In keeping with other bowl barrows in the region, the mound is surrounded by a ditch from which material was quarried for its construction and, although no longer visible at ground level, the ditch will survive as a buried feature up to 2m wide.

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.

Legacy

The contents of this record have been generated from a legacy data system.

Legacy System number:

35585

Legacy System:

RSM

Sources

Books and journals
Grinsell, L V, Proceedings of Somerset Archaelogical & Natural History Society in Somerset Barrows, Vol. 113, (1969), 28

End of official list entry

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