Amesbury Bowl Barrow

Round Barrow(s)
SU131420

Nearest town:

Amesbury (2km E)

OS reference:

SU131420

OS sheet:

184

Latitude:

51° 10' 35.47 N

Longitude:

1° 48' 45.29 W

Added to TMA by

Rhiannon

Images (5)
Fieldnotes (2)
Miscellaneous (2)
Topics (1)

Images

Image of Amesbury Bowl Barrow (Round Barrow) by thesweetcheat

Looking northwest across Amesbury 40 bowl barrow. The Avenue is below, The Cursus is further away before the trees.

Image credit: A. Brookes (25.11.2017)

thesweetcheat Dec 29, 2017

Amesbury 40 bowl barrow (see miscellaneous post), looking WSW towards Stonehenge.

Image credit: A. Brookes (25.11.2017)

thesweetcheat Dec 29, 2017

Image of Amesbury Bowl Barrow (Round Barrow) by Chance

Bowl barrow, what bowl barrow? The road widening has cut away the southern section leaving little to see. Stonehenge and Fargo plantation can be seen in the distance.

Image credit: Chance - March 2008

Chance Jul 16, 2008

View showing the cutting made for the enlarged A303 in 1960. The barrow’s position near Stonehenge would indicate some importance to the resident. A C14 date of 1670 bc +/- 90 has been recorded.

Image credit: Chance - March 2008

Chance Jul 16, 2008

Overall view of the barrow looking towards the A303. This shows how reduced the barrow has become since excavation by Paul Ashbee in 1960.

Image credit: Chance - March 2008

Chance Jul 16, 2008

Articles

Amesbury Bowl Barrow

Round Barrow(s)

CARL Jun 15, 2010

Did a ‘drive by visit’ on 12.6.10 as there was no where convenient to park. Despite driving as slow as possible on this busy road I couldn’t see anything to be honest. Perhaps you need to get closer?

Amesbury Bowl Barrow

Round Barrow(s)

Chance Jul 16, 2008

Field Notes

Amesbury Bowl Barrow – SU 13140 42040 – March 2008

Ordnance Survey Explorer Map 130 – Scale 1:25000
Salisbury & Stonehenge inc. Wilton & Market Lavington.
ISBN 978-0-319-23599-7

Not much to see of Scheduled Monument SM10303, a flattened Bowl barrow. It was almost completely excavated in 1960 by Paul Ashbee, when the A303 was widened for the dual carriageway. A C14 date of 1670 bc +/- 90 was recorded.
When Sir R.C. Hoare first opened it, he recorded finding a primary cremation with shale and amber cones, along with various beads. See, The Ancient History of Wiltshire Vol 1, page 159.

If you take the “permissive path” from the Stonehenge car park, to the New King Barrows you will walk right over it. The path runs parallel to the A344, in the field boundary to Stonehenge Bottom. Gates are provided for access and it is a lot safer than trying to walk along side the road.

For additional information, see SMR Number SU14SW761 at https://history.wiltshire.gov.uk/smr/

Chance

Amesbury Bowl Barrow

Round Barrow(s)

thesweetcheat Dec 29, 2017

A little to the northwest there is a better preserved bowl barrow, Amesbury 40 (SU 13027 42384). It’s situated on a crest just to the south of the Avenue, about midway between New King Barrows and Stonehenge.

Colt Hoare excavated in the 19th century and found “a primary inhumation, a ‘drinking cup’ and a bone pin”.

Amesbury Bowl Barrow

Round Barrow(s)

Rhiannon Apr 4, 2003

I’ve taken the name from Castleden’s ‘Neolithic Britain’ though the barrow isn’t exactly in Amesbury. It’s right next to the A303 between Stonehenge and the New King’s Barrows. It’s probably very obvious though when you’re on the 303 at this point you’re probably either gawping at Stonehenge or concentrating on the traffic. It’s been excavated twice, in the early 1800s and in 1960. A fire had been lit on the surface of the land before the mound was raised. Worked flints and animal bones and pottery sherds were found in the core of the mound – these came from an earlier era than the late neolithic mortuary structure discovered, and were maybe deliberately incorporated. Grave goods included shale beads and buttons and amber beads. Maybe I’m just a magpie, but I like to know about these personal artefacts, because I know I’d be the proud owner of such rare and carefully made things too.