Disc barrow and pillbox within Boscombe Down airfield, 520m south east of the Officers' Mess

Scheduled area

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History & significance

Disc barrow and pillbox within Boscombe Down airfield is a Scheduled Ancient Monument combining two distinct periods of military and prehistoric heritage. The disc barrow represents Bronze Age funerary practice, consisting of a circular earthwork with a central burial mound surrounded by a flat platform, typical of barrows constructed during the second millennium BC. The pillbox, constructed during the Second World War, represents the rapid militarisation of the Wiltshire landscape when Boscombe Down airfield was developed as a Royal Air Force station. The juxtaposition of these two structures on the same site illustrates the long history of military use across the Wiltshire Downs, from prehistoric burial practices to modern defence infrastructure.

Disc barrow and pillbox within Boscombe Down airfield, 520m south east of the Officers' Mess is a scheduled monument protected by Historic England under reference 1015030. View the official record →

Questions & answers

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