Details

The monument includes a saucer barrow located on Coxford Heath, approximately
480m south west of Highfield House. The barrow is situated on former heathland
in the Good Sands upland region of north west Norfolk. A further round barrow
lies approximately 500m to the north east and is the subject of a separate
scheduling.
The saucer barrow is situated at the top of a short east-facing slope and is
visible as an earthen mound surrounded by a ditch with an external bank. The
mound is circular in plan, measuring 24m in diameter and standing up to 2m
above the base of the ditch on the downslope side. The ditch, measures up to
4m in width and 1m deep except for a length on the west and south west side
which has been infilled but will survive as a buried feature. The external
bank, measuring up to 3.5m wide and standing up to 0.75m above the general
ground level, is visible around the outer edge of the ditch except on the west
and the south west side of the barrow where the ground appears level.
All fence posts are excluded from the scheduling, although the ground beneath
them is included.

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

Saucer barrows are funerary monuments of the Early Bronze Age, most examples
dating to between 1800 and l200 BC. They occur either in isolation or in
barrow cemeteries (closely-spaced groups of round barrows). They were
constructed as a circular area of level ground defined by a bank and internal
ditch and largely occupied by a single low, squat mound covering one or more
burials, usually in a pit. The burials, either inhumations or cremations, are
sometimes accompanied by pottery vessels, tools and personal ornaments. Saucer
barrows are one of the rarest recognised forms of round barrow, with about 60
known examples nationally, most of which are in Wessex. The presence of grave
goods within the barrows provides important evidence for chronological and
cultural links amongst prehistoric communities over a wide area of southern
England as well as providing an insight into their beliefs and social
organisation. As a rare and fragile form of round barrow, all identified
saucer barrows would normally be considered to be of national importance.

The saucer barrow on Coxford Heath, 480m south west of Highfield House
survives well as a series of earthwork and buried remains. The monument will
preserve archaeological information concerning the construction and date of
the barrow. Evidence for the local environment at the time of construction
will be contained in buried soils beneath the mound and banks and also in the
ditch fill. A rare form of round barrow, it is associated with a further
barrow, giving added interest and importance, and will contribute to an
understanding of the character and development of the prehistoric landscape.

Source: Historic England

Sources

Other
Norfolk SMR, NF11280, (2001)

Source: Historic England