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Summary

Cropmarks of a Neolithic long barrow, to the east of Swinhope.

Full description

Cropmarks of a probable Neolithic long barrow, to the east of Swinhope. Visible as an oval ditched enclosure, measuring roughly 50m by 20m. Identified on aerial photographs examined as part of the National Mapping Programme. {1}

This cropmark is overlain by a rectilinear complex which is considered to be Romano-British in date (see MLI50634). It was thought possible that, rather than representing the remains of a long barrow, this feature may instead be the remains of a hut circle, forming part of an earlier Iron Age farmstead on the site, which later evolved into a Romano-British settlement. {2}

Oval shaped cropmark which has been interpreted as a long barrow, occupying a slope position on a spur, on the east side of the Waithe Beck valley. It is aligned on a north-east to south-west axis, and its long axis traverses the contours. The field in which the feature lies was investigated in the mid 1980s and yielded 186 prehistoric flints, although the association of the flints to this feature was not clear. {3}{4}

The interpretation of this feature as a Neolithic long barrow was supported during further investigation in 2016. Although the long barrow can no longer be seen on the ground, it is clearly visible as cropmarks and soilmarks on aerial photographs. The site occupies a prominent position on the slopes of a spur on the east side of the valley of the Waithe Beck, in a field under arable cultivation. The barrow was surrounded by a north-east to south-west aligned, oval-shaped ditch, which measures 47m by 25.5m at its widest points. There is likely to have been an earthen mound inside the ditch, although this has since been levelled by ploughing. Overlying the long barrow are the rectilinear cropmarks of a Romano-British settlement (see MLI50634), which itself is thought to overlie remains of two probable Iron Age hut circles, lying to the immediate west of the barrow (see MLI125750). {5}{6}{7}

<1> Royal Commission on the Historical Monuments of England, 1992-1996, Lincolnshire National Mapping Programme, TF2296: LI.318.7.1 (Map). SLI3613.

<2> C. Went, 1997, Alternative Action Site Report, - (Unpublished Document). SLI4784.

<3> Dilwyn Jones, 1998, 'Long Barrows and Neolithic Elongated Enclosures in Lincolnshire: An Analysis of the Air Photographic Evidence' in Proceedings of the Prehistoric Society, vol.64, pp.83-114, no.55 (Article in Serial). SLI5407.

<4> Dilwyn Jones, 1998, Gazetteer of Neolithic Elongated Enclosures and Extant Long Barrows in (Historic) Lincolnshire, no.55 (Index). SLI2302.

<5> Aerial Photograph, NMR 1286/20 (06/07/1992) (Aerial Photograph). SLI89.

<6> Aerial Photograph, NMR 28027/024 (16/06/2010) (Aerial Photograph). SLI89.

<7> Historic England (formerly English Heritage), 2011->, The National Heritage List for England, 1462756 (Website). SLI13386.

Monument Types

• LONG BARROW (Neolithic - 4000 BC to 2201 BC)

Protected Status

• Scheduled Monument

Sources and further reading

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