Robin Hoods Butts |
| Hob Uid: 190473 | |
Location :
Somerset
Somerset West and Taunton
Otterford
|
| Grid Ref : ST2300014360 |
| Summary : Five round barrows, together forming a linear round barrow cemetery on Brown Down in the eastern region of the Blackdown Hills. The cemetery forms part of a larger group of round barrows situated on Brown Down, collectively known as Robin Hood's Butts. The five round barrows, following a north to south alignment, include four bowl-shaped barrows and a bell barrow located at the south end of the linear cemetery. The mounds of the bowl barrows have an average diameter of 20 metres and an average height of 2.2 metres. The mound of the bell barrow is 28 metres in diameter, 2.5 metres high and is surrounded by a level berm up to 10 metres wide. The barrows are partly enclosed by a single continuous ditch, possibly contemporary, up to 1 metre deep on the south side of the bell barrow. The remainder of the ditch has become largely infilled, surviving as a shallow depression, between 2 metres and 4 metres wide. Scheduled. |
More information : [Centred ST 2299 1436] Robin Hood's Butts (Tumuli) [O.E.] (1)
Near the turnpike house at the end of Brown Down are five barrows
in a line with the road and adjoining each other. (2)
'Otterford, Robin Hood's Butts, round barrows' Scheduled as Ancient
monuments. [M.O.W. MSS map references ST 230 144 and 238128, so
presumably the remark applies to this group and ST 21 SW 9] They
are sometimes mis-identified as long barrows. (3-5)
These tumuli are shown as one feature on the tithe map of 1844 and
it is called 'Robin Hood's Butt. (6)
A 25" survey of these barrows has been made. All five are probably
bowl barrows but are closely confluent with a 'bridge' of earth,
apparently original, connecting them. Their average height is 2.0m.
Their confluency makes individual ditches improbable, but the
remains of a ditch some 0.4m deep enclose the group except for the
northern end, and may be an original feature although the ditch
leaves a wide berm. It gives them the superficial appearance of a
long barrow. (7)
Listed as five bowl barrows and numbered from the north as
Otterford 1-5. Grinsell states that they "are enclosed by a bank
with outer ditch, without doubt a copse enclosure probably 18th
century." (8)
This is an unusual group of confluent round barrows, correctly
shown on O.S. 25 in. 1964. The plantation bank referred to by
L.V. Grinsell cannot be identified. (9)
(ST 22991436) Robin Hood's Butts (NAT) Tumuli (NR) (10)
No change from report of 28 9 65. (11)
|