A bowl barrow, 50 to 60ft. in diameter and
approx 6ft high, was excavated by Mr J Blake of New House Farm, Shocklach, who discovered an oak plank at a depth of about 7ft, possibly part of a trunk coffin. It is suggested that the barrow covers an inhumation burial of E.B.A. date. (1)
The barrow at SJ 45454834 is oval in shape, 20.0 m. E - W, and 16.0 m. N-S. This shape is probably due to ploughing. It is 1.5 m. high, and grass covered with no ditch. (2)
I parked by the eponymous meadow farm and followed the Bishop Bennett's way footpath south, a nice if a little muddy path lined by a stream and trees. The path branches, turn right ignoring the stile in front of you, twenty yards on and the barrow can be seen through the trees lining the path. Now the pointlessly hard bit, cross the boggy line that could in heavy weather be a stream, jump the fence and there's the barrow. Pointless ? well where the path starts by the farm house don't go down it, just enter the field to the right and there's the barrow again at the back of the field.
Luckily this barrow doesn't have a load of trees on it, it's as bare as...... as a grassy mound can be.
I later find out it was a bowl barrow, you can't tell just by looking at it. I stand on top of the barrow which is kept free of crops, and the grass kept short. I walk round the barrow photographing it as best I can. But then it starts to rain, it's about time as well as it's been thundering for a good couple of hours now. I precariously take cover under another tree right behind the barrow and ready my camera for another picture only to miss a long vertical streak of lightning by about two seconds. I stand at the ready in case by some miracle it does it again and I can capture it on film, but all's it will give me is a glimmer of sheet lightning, it's not like I'd be quick enough anyway, some dark and stormy pics will do instead.
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