Details

The monument includes two adjacent round barrows which are situated in a
prominent position overlooking Troutsdale. It is located on level ground
on the central plateau of the Tabular Hills.

The northern barrow has an earthen mound which stands up to 1.5m high and
has a maximum diameter of 33m. The southern barrow lies 33m to the south
east. It has an earthen mound which stands up to 1m high and has a maximum
diameter of 22m. Neither barrow appears to have been excavated in the
past. The barrows lie in an area where there are many other burial
monuments as well as the remains of prehistoric land division.

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

Round barrows are funerary monuments dating from the Late Neolithic period to
the Late Bronze Age, with most examples belonging to the period 2400-1500 BC.
They were constructed as earthen mounds, sometimes ditched, which covered
single or multiple burials. They occur either in isolation or grouped as
cemeteries and often acted as a focus of burials in later periods. Often
superficially similar, although differing widely in size, they exhibit
regional variations in form and a diversity of burial practices. There are
over 10,000 surviving examples recorded nationally (many more have already
been destroyed), occurring across most of Britain, including the Wessex area
where it is often possible to classify them more closely, for example as bowl
or bell barrows. Often occupying prominent locations, they are a major
historic element in the modern landscape and their considerable variation in
form and longevity as a monument type provide important information on the
diversity of beliefs and social organisations amongst early prehistoric
communities. They are particularly representative of their period and a
substantial proportion of surviving examples are considered worthy of
protection.

Unlike many barrows in this area the two round barrows on Troutsdale Moor
900m west of Rock House Farm do not appear to have been excavated and have
survived in a good state of preservation. The archaeological deposits will
survive intact and evidence for the date and original form of the barrows
and the burials placed within them will be preserved. Evidence for earlier
land use and the contemporary environment will also survive beneath the
barrow mounds. The barrows are situated within an area which includes
other burial monuments as well as field systems and the remains of
prehistoric land division. Associated groups of monuments such as these
offer important scope for the study of the distribution of prehistoric
activity across the landscape.

Source: Historic England

Sources

Books and journals
Spratt, D A , 'Prehistoric and Roman Archaeology in North East Yorkshire' in Prehistoric and Roman Archaeology of North East Yorkshire, , Vol. 87, (1993)

Source: Historic England