Gould’s Hill Barrows

Nearest town:
Dorchester (4km NE)
OS reference:
SY664867
OS sheet:
194
Latitude:
50° 40' 42.15 N
Longitude:
2° 28' 32.18 W
Added to TMA by

Images

Image of Gould’s Hill Barrows by formicaant

The bell / disc hybrid from the south rampart of Maiden Castle,shot with a very long lens borrowed from a friend.

Image credit: Mike Rowland 03/06/10
formicaant
formicaant Jun 5, 2010
Image of Gould’s Hill Barrows by formicaant

One of the bowl barrows from Maiden Castle looking south.

Image credit: Mike Rowland 03/06/10
formicaant
formicaant Jun 5, 2010
Image of Gould’s Hill Barrows by formicaant

A small barrow on the other side of the Weymouth road.

Image credit: Mike Rowland 01/02/10
formicaant
formicaant Feb 2, 2010
Image of Gould’s Hill Barrows by formicaant

The north of the barrow, note the length of the outer bank.

Image credit: Mike Rowland 01/04/07
formicaant
formicaant Feb 2, 2010
Image of Gould’s Hill Barrows by formicaant

The large bell / disc hybrid from Ridge hill.

Image credit: Mike Rowland 01/04/07
formicaant
formicaant Feb 2, 2010
Image of Gould’s Hill Barrows by formicaant

These three bowl barrows are just to the east of the hybrid bell/disc barrow.

Image credit: Mike Rowland 24/08/09
formicaant
formicaant Aug 24, 2009
Image of Gould’s Hill Barrows by formicaant

This small bowl barrow is just across the road from the main group. It’s only really visible at this time of the year.

Image credit: Mike Rowland 27/12/2007.
formicaant
formicaant Dec 27, 2007
Image of Gould’s Hill Barrows by formicaant

The bell / disc hybrid barrow in the group, looking north to Maiden Castle.

Image credit: Mike Rowland 01/04/2007.
formicaant
formicaant Jul 27, 2007
Image of Gould’s Hill Barrows by formicaant

The barrow, berm, ditch and outer bank, southern edge.

Image credit: Mike Rowland 31/05/2007.
formicaant
formicaant May 31, 2007
Image of Gould’s Hill Barrows by formicaant

The north side of the barrow, in the immediate foreground a low bank shows where a later field boundary cuts through the original ditch and bank.

Image credit: Mike Rowland 31/05/2007.
formicaant
formicaant May 31, 2007

Articles

Gould’s Hill Barrows

texlahoma
texlahoma Sep 14, 2012

This is an interesting site in that it offers such a clear view of Maiden Castle and the surrounding landscape. I’ve only ever seen these barrows from maiden castle in the past so this reverse view (for me) is very welcome indeed. It’s also an interesting place as it joins up Maiden Castle right across to The Hellstone via Black Down and the Hardy monument, across to Hampton Down. This is a must do walk for the future!

Gould’s Hill Barrows

formicaant
formicaant May 31, 2007

I decided to have a closer look at the first barrow in this group. It’s a very unusual example, possibly unique, as it is a large bell barrow with a very wide platform or berm, a deep ditch and a two foot high surrounding bank. This has much more in common with disc type barrows which more normally contain a small mound within the banks. L.V.Grinsell picks this barrow out as being particularly unusual in his book. I have seen this barrow mentioned in other books, such as Dorset’s Archaeology by Peter Stanier as a unique example of a bell/disc barrow.

Gould’s Hill Barrows

formicaant
formicaant Apr 1, 2007

There are five barrows in this group , which is part of the Dorset ridgeway chain, including Bronkham hill, Bincombe and Came. These barrows overlook Maiden Castle. I am keeping a close eye on the three middle round barrows in this group as they have been ploughed at least once in the last 5 years. According to magic they are scheduled ancient monuments, but I’m not sure who to inform about deliberate damage. They are very easy to see as they are on a “b” road from Weymouth, with a layby right next to them. I have counted the barrows from west to east , the first being the most westerly.The first of this group is a large disc barrow with pronounced outer bank and ditch, the eastern part of the ditch is now only apparent as a crop mark, having long been ploughed out.

Sites within 20km of Gould’s Hill Barrows

Like all websites everywhere, we use cookies.