Wayland's Smithy chambered long barrow, including an earlier barrow and Iron Age and Roman boundary ditches

Scheduled area

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History & significance

Wayland's Smithy is a chambered long barrow located on the Berkshire Downs near the Uffington White Horse, dating to the Neolithic period, approximately 3500 BCE. The monument comprises two distinct phases of construction: an earlier barrow of Neolithic date lies beneath a later, more substantial long barrow with a stone-built chamber, which was constructed in the subsequent Neolithic phase. The site demonstrates multiple periods of use and modification, with evidence of Iron Age and Romano-British boundary ditches cutting across the monument, indicating its continued significance as a landscape feature in later prehistoric and Roman times. The long barrow itself is a substantial earthwork with a stone chamber that would have served a funerary and possibly ritual function for Neolithic communities.

Wayland's Smithy chambered long barrow, including an earlier barrow and Iron Age and Roman boundary ditches is a scheduled monument protected by Historic England under reference 1008409. View the official record →

Questions & answers

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