The Modern Antiquarian. Stone Circles, Ancient Sites, Neolithic Monuments, Ancient Monuments, Prehistoric Sites, Megalithic MysteriesThe Modern Antiquarian

     

Blake Low

Round Barrow(s)

Nearest Town:Leek (11km WSW)
OS Ref (GB):   SK0877258850 / Sheet: 119
Latitude:53° 7' 34.93" N
Longitude:   1° 52' 8.02" W

Added by CARL


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Fieldnotes

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An easily accessible site on the North-Eastern edge of the Staffordshire Moorlands village of Warslow, Blake Low is a somewhat truncated low oval mound scheduled as a Bronze Age Bowl Barrow.

The site is located to the North-East of the village pub "The Greyhound" and there is some on-street parking between the pub and the concessionary footpath that leads to the site (parking at the pub is limited). A short distance to the South of "The Greyhound" you will see a farm sign reading "The Warslow Herd - Gap Farm" at the end of a farm lane. The footpath follows the lane and across the farmyard of Gap Farm (the one nearest to the road), the path then continues along the lane towards a second farm before turning sharply right along a farm track. Immediately to the left you will see a field enclosed by a wooden fence. This field is almost entirely filled by the barrow. The footpath continues South to the B5053 Warslow to Longnor road. A large South Devon bull was in that field next to Blake Low when I visited and the farm dog was not very friendly!

Blake Low was opened by Carrington on February 23rd 1850. He describes the barrow as an earthen mound 20 yards across and 2ft deep in the trench cut through it. On the natural ground surface near the centre of the barrow a deposit of bones (a cremation?) and charcoal was found over which stones had been heaped. A neat, flint spearhead 2 1/4 inches long and an oval flint instrument 2 inches by 1 1/4 inches which was broken were found accompanying the deposit of bones. Carrington cut several trenches through Blake Low but made no further finds.

Blake Low survives as a slightly truncated (construction of a barn post-1957 levelled the western extremities of the barrow) oval earthen mound with Max. dimensions of 25m by 22m and upto 1.1m high. The central, sub-oval pit can be seen on top of the mound. The close proximity of the farm buildings and the wooden fence enclosing the site give Blake Low something of a 'hemmed in' appearance.

Blake Low is marked on OS Landranger 119 and OS Explorer OL24 by a Tumulus label and earthwork symbol.

Scheduled Ancient Monument No=1008969. Scheduled as Blake Low bowl barrow. NMR = SK05 NE7, R.S.M. No. = 22411, S.M.R. No. = 00146.

Site visited= 17th April 2013.
BrownEdger Posted by BrownEdger
28th May 2013ce
Edited 24th August 2014ce