Scheduled Monument: BOWL BARROW ON CALTON PASTURES, 950M WEST OF CALTON HOUSES (1007995)

REASONS FOR DESIGNATION Bowl barrows, the most numerous form of round barrow, 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 or rubble mounds, sometimes ditched, which covered single or multiple burials. They occur either in isolation or grouped as cemeteries and often acted as a focus for 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 bowl barrows recorded nationally (many more have already been destroyed), occurring across most of lowland Britain. Often occupying prominent locations, they are a major historic element in the modern landscape and their considerable variation of 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. All the barrows on Calton Pastures have been disturbed by excavation and ploughing, but all are nevertheless reasonably well preserved and retain significant areas of intact archaeological deposits. This barrow is the least well-preserved but is important in terms of group value. DETAILS The monument is one of a dispersed alignment of five bowl barrows situated on Calton Pastures in the eastern gritstone moorlands of Derbyshire. It includes the remains of a partially excavated barrow which originally stood between 1.5m and 2m high and is currently 12m by 9m in diameter. It may have been this barrow that was excavated by Major Rooke in either 1779 or 1787, since it had clearly been disturbed when, in 1850, Thomas Bateman reopened it and then abandoned it without examining the rest of the mound. Rooke's barrow contained a small cist or stone-lined grave, the slabs from which remain in the barrow. The cist held a pottery food vessel and a cremation which date the monument to the Bronze Age. Faint earthworks from ridge and furrow ploughing lie next to the barrow but are not included in the scheduling. SELECTED SOURCES Book Reference - Author: Barnatt, J - Title: The Peak District Barrow Survey (1989) - Date: 1989 Book Reference - Author: Barnatt, J - Title: The Peak District Barrow Survey (1989) - Date: 1989 Book Reference - Author: Bateman, Thomas - Title: Ten Years Diggings in Celtic and Saxon Grave-Hills - Date: 1861 - Page References: 64-65 - Type: DESC TEXT