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Bowl Barrow and Bell Barrow on Graffham Down is a scheduled monument comprising two Bronze Age burial mounds situated on the South Downs in West Sussex. The site occupies 0.22 hectares and is protected under Historic England's scheduling reference 1008738. Both monuments are earthworks raised above the underlying White Chalk geology, which forms the bedrock of the Downs throughout this region.
The bowl barrow represents the simpler of the two mound types, consisting of a circular burial chamber surrounded by a ditch. The bell barrow nearby exhibits the more elaborate form characteristic of the Bronze Age, featuring a distinctive bell-shaped profile with the mound separated from a surrounding ditch by a level berm. These two monuments illustrate the stylistic developments in funerary practice across the Bronze Age period on the chalk downland.
Graffham Down's chalk landscape provided both the material for constructing these burial mounds and the natural setting for high-status interments. The proximity of both barrows suggests they formed part of a burial complex that served the regional community. The site remains archaeologically significant as evidence of Bronze Age settlement and ritual practice in the South Downs during the second millennium BCE.
Bowl barrow and bell barrow on Graffham Down is a scheduled monument protected by Historic England under reference 1008738. View the official record →
Bowl Barrow and Bell Barrow on Graffham Down is a scheduled monument comprising two Bronze Age burial mounds situated on the South Downs in West Sussex. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Historic England (NHLE) under reference 1008738.
Bowl barrow and bell barrow on Graffham Down is a Scheduled Ancient Monument, legally protected by Historic England (NHLE) — the body responsible for designating and safeguarding heritage sites in England. The official designation reference is 1008738.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Devil's Ditch, section 725yds (660m) long W of Ounces Barn (7.9 km), Devil's Ditch, section extending 1730yds (1580m) from Stane Street to NW end of Redvin's Copse (7.9 km), Devil's Ditch, section extending 200yds (180m) E of Waterbeach Hotel, Goodwood Park (8.2 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 15 strands of Bowl barrow and bell barrow on Graffham Down's history, each drawn from the record and mapped to the exact spot:
Every location is different. Not every section appears for every place, only what the historical record actually holds turns up in a report.
Bowl barrow and bell barrow on Graffham Down stands on White Chalk Subgroup, bedrock that formed in the Maastrichtian. The rock here is chalk.