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Overton Hill

Barrow / Cairn Cemetery

<b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by postmanImage © Chris Bickerton
Extensive group of a dozen or so large Bronze Age round barrows, stretching along Overton Hill from a massive, isolated barrow (Avebury 30) at the north to the Seofon barrow group straddling the A4 near the Sanctuary at the south. They are accessible from the Ridgeway.
Also known as:
  • Sevenbarrow Hill
  • Seofon Beorgas
  • Seofon Barrows

Nearest Town:Marlborough (7km ENE)
OS Ref (GB):   SU118679 / Sheet: 173
Latitude:51° 24' 34.14" N
Longitude:   1° 49' 49.16" W


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Photographs:<b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by Meic <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by Meic <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by Meic <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by Meic <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by Meic <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by Meic <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by Meic <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by Meic <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by Meic <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by Meic <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by Meic <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by Meic <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by Meic <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by Meic <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by Meic <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by Meic <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by Meic <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by Meic <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by Meic <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by Meic <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by Meic <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by A R Cane <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by thesweetcheat <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by thesweetcheat <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by thesweetcheat <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by thesweetcheat <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by thesweetcheat <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by thesweetcheat <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by thesweetcheat <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by thesweetcheat <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by thesweetcheat <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by thesweetcheat <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by thesweetcheat <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by thesweetcheat <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by thesweetcheat <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by thesweetcheat <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by thesweetcheat <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by thesweetcheat <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by thesweetcheat <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by thesweetcheat <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by postman <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by postman <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by postman <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by postman <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by postman <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by postman <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by postman <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by postman <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by thesweetcheat <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by thesweetcheat <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by thesweetcheat <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by thesweetcheat <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by thesweetcheat <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by thesweetcheat <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by thesweetcheat <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by Meic <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by Meic <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by texlahoma <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by thesweetcheat <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by thesweetcheat <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by thesweetcheat <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by thesweetcheat <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by thesweetcheat <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by The Eternal <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by The Eternal <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by The Eternal <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by The Eternal <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by The Eternal <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by Chance <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by Chance <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by Chance <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by thesweetcheat <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by thesweetcheat <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by thesweetcheat <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by thesweetcheat <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by A R Cane <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by A R Cane <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by A R Cane <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by A R Cane <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by photobabe <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by photobabe <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by Vicster <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by Vicster <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by Vicster <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by photobabe <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by moss <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by moss <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by moss <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by moss <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by photobabe <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by photobabe <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by photobabe <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by photobabe <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by photobabe <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by Zeb <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by Lubin <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by Moth <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by notjamesbond <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by Cursuswalker <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by Moth <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by Moth <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by Chris Collyer <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by Chris Collyer <b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by BOBO Maps / Plans / Diagrams:<b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by nix Artistic / Interpretive:<b>Overton Hill</b>Posted by Chance

Fieldnotes

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Very easy to spot when visiting the Sanctuary. Barrows are often better seen from a distance against the skyline rather than close up. Although it is good to visit a few barrows up close and personal to better appreciate what you are looking at from a distance - or am I talking rubbish again? Posted by CARL
17th June 2010ce

What a lovely collection of round barrows, and a shame about the A4 spoiling the peace, and separating them. They are by The Ridgeway, which leads you up the hill to more tranquil surroundings, and the promise of a journey through history. The hairy old mounds, with a head of long grass, speak of the past, and I wonder about the scenes in the days when these monuments were being constructed. The Sanctuary is their neighbour, and leads the eye to nearby Avebury, and Silbury Hill, to which these sites are inexorably linked. The Eternal Posted by The Eternal
9th August 2009ce

This was on a hot summers day in August this year, well a couple of them... Having seen various Barrows on the sky-line and hill sides in the distance from Avebury ring itself... Curiosity (among other things) drove me to seek out and explore these exquisit and ancient features...
I was not disappointed as hiking in the heat along the Ridgeway we came across those barrows, visible more from the Avenue of Stones, that I have affectionally named 'The Gang of Four" as there are four of them in close proximity to each other...
With their twisted outer ring of sentinel-like trees (so shaped due to the wind?) and other magical things and relics found, like the remains of magical cigarette like objects which I guessed weren't quite so old, I found myself transported to another time and place.
Incidentally, I also noticed that Avebury itself with its hard to miss Stone Circles and ring, was not visible from here, nor was the equally hard to miss Silbury Hill... or anything for that matter, even though we were quite high up. Interesting, we thought. All of it was hidden by series of natural banks, hills and and hollows, and probably deliberately. So with this in mind we sought out the other Barrows that could be seen from the Avebury Ring itself.. and sure enough found them a little further down (up?) northward along the Ridgway.
Crossing the harevested cornfields in the undulating counyryside we got to these Barrows.. two of them, or so we thought.. standing out magestically from the hill side. One covered in trees and one 'bald' one... (rather it was covered in nettles). On exploring the Tree covered mound, it was like entering a fairyland with the eerie sculpted trees adorning its form. From here we could see another barrow much further down the hill side.... and also (finally) Avebury Ring itself...
On leaving these mounds, tramping through the crisp cut, corn stubble we chanced to turn back and saw, to our astonishment, what looked like a third mound next to these two we had just explored.. how could we have missed THAT? we thought... how indeed...
photobabe Posted by photobabe
20th August 2005ce
Edited 14th April 2014ce

Sunday 27 July 2003
The barrows stand dignified and proud next to the busy A4 and the sunny Sunday afternoon bike-bustle of the Ridgeway. The three barrows featured in most pictures seem clearly to be the 'tip of the iceberg' here.

Julian remarks in TMA there were once maybe 12, and as you look on it's easy to believe and visualise. Given the relatively short distance to an 'outlying' barrow to the north and the interestingly-shaped 'tumuli' nearby, I'd not be surprised if it was more.
Moth Posted by Moth
5th August 2003ce
Edited 6th August 2003ce

This place feels like the beginning and the end and the middle all at once.

Me and the little millstones stood atop the highest barrow and tried to count all the sacred sites we could see. I reckoned maybe 9, but Rupie said deifinitely12. And Cleo said 11.

From here it's easy to see the line of East Kennett Longbarrow with its camoflage clothing of trees.
Jane Posted by Jane
26th July 2002ce

Miscellaneous

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In "Abury: A Temple of the British Druids" 1743, Stuckley observes that Overton Hill is part of a ridge known as Hakpen (Hackpen Hill), a place-name he broke into 2 parts; Hack which he claimed had a Semitic root meaning "Snake" and pen deriving from the ancient British word for head. Snakehead Hill? Perhaps supporting the serpent like shape he observed in the avenues leading from Avebury. He went on to associate this "megalithic serpent" as Kneph (The Graeco-Egyption form of the creator god Khnum) the winged-serpent whos image is replicated the world over in ancient culture. faerygirl Posted by faerygirl
12th July 2010ce

Links

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A visit to Overton Hill Barrow Cemetery on UTube


A visit to Overton Hill Barrow Cemetery at the bottom of the Ridgeway,over looking The Sanctuary.

Early September 2009
Chance Posted by Chance
22nd September 2009ce