Hillforts & Barrows

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Sanctuary S
Sanctuary Sep 16, 2012 15:08:57
Replying to thesweetcheat

thesweetcheat wrote:
juamei wrote:
I've always assumed its a case of barrows are built on a lot of hills, some of which were later use for hillforts. Builders of hillforts respected the burial mounds of their ancestors so built around them and left them in situ. Which is kinda boring, but seems the most likely to me.
I'd be inclined to agree, from what I've seen. There are several forts that I've visited that have barrows inside the ramparts, eg Farmington in Glos (very reduced long barrow), Foel Fenlli and Penycloddiau (Clwydian Hills) and most recently Sully Island (near Cardiff). All of these are typical sites for IA defensive/status enclosures, I reckon they just respected the barrows and didn't want to damage them, but still wanted to use the site.
I agree with you Alken regards the respect angle. The very site itself had 'meaning' to it other than the obvious defensive use.

R Resonox
Resonox Sep 16, 2012 15:27:53
Replying to Sanctuary

Just as an aside to the conversation...I was up Chanctonbury Ring today...there are several tumuli/barrow mounds around the outer limits of the "fort" boundary. ..All of an almost identical diameter...though they vary in height due to ploughing out etc. Considering how many people must have inhabited the fort during its life, why such a relatively few number of mounds....were only "important" people interred so close to the area...and if so, where did the others get buried (I am making a great assumption that these are actual graves I know).


Strangely enough..just by the triangulation stone there is a cleared area...right sized for a tumulus.......it looks like some aftermath of excavation work....this would be the highest point on the hill too. I used to have a link which transferred present day maps into "ancient" maps...and showed intersting sites etc...but have since lost this.