Details

The monument includes one of two Prehistoric round cairns situated on the
crest of a low spur in the Withey Brook valley on eastern Bodmin Moor. The
monument is located near other broadly contemporary cairns, settlement sites
and field systems bordering this valley.
The round cairn survives as a turf-covered circular mound of earth and rubble,
11m in diameter and up to 0.4m high. A similar, though slightly larger, cairn
is centred 50m to the south west.

MAP EXTRACT
The site of the monument is shown on the attached map extract.
It includes a 2 metre boundary around the archaeological features,
considered to be essential for the monument's support and preservation.

Source: Historic England

Reasons for Scheduling

Bodmin Moor, the largest of the Cornish granite uplands, has long been
recognised to have exceptional preservation of archaeological remains. The
Moor has been the subject of detailed archaeological survey and is one of the
best recorded upland landscapes in England. The extensive relict landscapes of
prehistoric, medieval and post-medieval date provide direct evidence for human
exploitation of the Moor from the earliest prehistoric period onwards. The
well-preserved and often visible relationship between settlement sites, field
systems, ceremonial and funerary monuments as well as later industrial remains
provides significant insights into successive changes in the pattern of land
use through time. Round cairns are funerary monuments covering single or
multiple burials and dating to the Bronze Age (c.2000-700 BC). They were
constructed as mounds of earth and stone rubble up to 40m in external diameter
but usually considerably smaller; a kerb of edge-set stones sometimes bounds
the edges of the mound. Burials were placed in small pits, or on occasion
within a box-like structure of stone slabs called a cist, let into the old
ground surface or dug into the body of the cairn. Round cairns can occur as
isolated monuments, in small groups or in larger cemeteries. Their
considerable variation in form and longevity as a monument type provides
important information on the diversity of beliefs, burial practices and social
organisation in the Bronze Age. They are particularly representative of their
period and a substantial proportion of surviving examples are considered
worthy of preservation.

This round cairn near Tresellern Farm has survived reasonably well and has not
been excavated. It has no visible or recorded signs of disturbance other than
some reduction in height due to occasional ploughing for pasture improvement;
as such it will retain many of its original features including burial
deposits. Its proximity to other broadly contemporary funerary and settlement
sites demonstrates well the nature of ritual activities and the organisation
of land use during the Bronze Age.

Source: Historic England

Sources

Other
Consulted 2/1992, Carter, A/RCHME, 1:2500 AP transcriptions for SX 2276;SX 2376 & SX 2476,
consulted 2/1992, Cornwall SMR entry for PRN 1011,
consulted 2/1992, Cornwall SMR entry for PRN 1011.1,
consulted 2/1992, Cornwall SMR entry for PRN 1011.2,
consulted 2/1992, Cornwall SMR entry for PRN 1066,

Source: Historic England