Scheduled Monument: Bowl Barrow 50M South Of Summit Of Sponds Hill (1007395)

EXTRACT FROM ENGLISH HERITAGE'S RECORD OF SCHEDULED MONUMENTS MONUMENT: Bowl barrow 50m south of summit of Sponds Hill PARISH: LYME HANDLEY DISTRICT: MACCLESFIELD COUNTY: CHESHIRE NATIONAL MONUMENT NO: 22572 NATIONAL GRID REFERENCE(S): SJ96998024 DESCRIPTION OF THE MONUMENT The monument is a bowl barrow located 50m south of the summit of Sponds Hill. It includes a flat-topped turf-covered oval mound of earth and stones up to 1m high with maximum dimensions of 19.5m by 16m. A post and wire fence adjacent to the barrow's eastern side is excluded from the scheduling, although the ground beneath it is included. ASSESSMENT OF IMPORTANCE 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. Despite past surface disturbance by metal detectors and motorbike scramblers, the bowl barrow 50m south of the summit of Sponds Hill survives reasonably well. It is not known to have been excavated and will therefore retain undisturbed archaeological deposits within the mound and upon the old landsurface beneath. SCHEDULING HISTORY Monument included in the Schedule on 30th May 1958 as part of: COUNTY/NUMBER: Cheshire 55 NAME: Two Round Barrows on Sponds Hill The reference of this monument is now: NATIONAL MONUMENT NUMBER: 22572 NAME: Bowl barrow 50m south of summit of Sponds Hill SCHEDULING REVISED ON 21st October 1993