Barrow Clump facts for kids

Barrow Clump from the southwest

Barrow Clump is an exciting archaeological site in Wiltshire, England. It's about 3.5 miles (5.6 km) north of the town of Amesbury. This special place is protected as a scheduled monument, which means it's an important historical site.

What is Barrow Clump?

Barrow Clump is located on a gentle slope near the village of Ablington. It's part of the Figheldean area.

The main part of the monument you can still see today is a bowl barrow. A bowl barrow is like a big, round mound of earth built a long time ago. This one is about 30 metres (98 feet) wide. Other similar mounds nearby have been lost over time due to farming.

A Place Used Through History

This barrow was first built during the early Bronze Age. This was a time when people started using bronze tools and weapons. Before the barrow was built, the area was a Neolithic settlement. The Neolithic period was even older, when people first started farming.

Much later, around the 6th century, the barrow was used again. This time, it became an Anglo-Saxon cemetery. This means people from the Anglo-Saxon period buried their dead here.

The site was officially protected as a scheduled monument in 1990.

Discovering Barrow Clump's Secrets

Archaeologists have been studying Barrow Clump for a long time. Excavations are like careful digs that help us find and understand old objects and structures.

Early Digs

Some parts of the site were dug up in the 1800s. More work was done in the early 1900s by Lt Col William Hawley. Later, in 2003 and 2004, English Heritage carried out more investigations.

Modern Excavations

From 2012 to 2014, a full excavation was allowed. This was important because badgers were causing a lot of damage to the site. The project was a team effort between the Defence Infrastructure Organisation, English Heritage, and Wessex Archaeology. Soldiers from The Rifles infantry regiment even helped with the digging!

During these digs, many amazing items from the Bronze Age were found. There were also some older items from the Neolithic period. Archaeologists also uncovered many Anglo-Saxon graves. Among the finds was a special drinking cup made from yew wood, held together with bronze. All the items found at Barrow Clump are now kept safely at the Wiltshire Museum in Devizes.

Barrow Clump on TV

This fascinating site has even been featured on television!

• The popular archaeology show Time Team visited Barrow Clump. It was shown in episode 5, called "Warriors," during series 20 in 2013 on Channel 4.
• The BBC Four series Digging for Britain also explored the site. It appeared in episode 2, "West," of series 3, which aired in 2015.