Battlegore Burial Chamber
Encyclopedia
Battlegore Burial Chamber is a Bronze Age
burial chamber located in Williton
, Somerset
. It is composed of three round barrow
s and possibly a long, chambered barrow. The site was excavated in 1931 by George Gray. The name "Battlegore" comes from this site being attributed to the location of a Danish
raid in 918 AD or 988 AD. At least as early as the 1300s, the site was referred to as "Bytelgore", a predecessor of the word "Battlegore".
, found 20 feet (6.1 m) to the east of the center of the barrow, contained the cremated
remains of a human.
Just south of this is another one of the three major round barrows, and it was around 8 feet (2.4 m) high as of 1969. Between this and the southernmost of the three major barrows is a ring ditch, which might be another barrow. The final, southernmost barrow is around 27 metres (88.6 ft) in diameter and 1.8 metres (5.9 ft) in height. Unlike the previous barrow, this one has not been ploughed, and as such it is in better condition.
The chambered barrow is composed of three stones. The largest is 3.1 metres (10.2 ft) long, 1.2 metres (3.9 ft) wide, and 0.7 metres (2.3 ft) deep; the second-largest is 1.6 metres (5.2 ft) long, 0.8 metres (2.6 ft) wide, and 0.5 metres (1.6 ft) deep; and the smallest is 1 metres (3.3 ft) long, 0.5 metres (1.6 ft) wide, and 0.3 metre (0.984251968503937 ft) deep. According to legend, the devil
and a giant's quarrel caused these stones to be thrown there.
pottery and flint
artifacts
have been found at this site. Archaeologists also found bronze
items, including a "knife dagger", a broken dagger, a rapier, a spearhead, and a winged axe. A field of Mesolithic
flint artifacts has been found to the north of Battlegore.
Bronze Age
The Bronze Age is a period characterized by the use of copper and its alloy bronze as the chief hard materials in the manufacture of some implements and weapons. Chronologically, it stands between the Stone Age and Iron Age...
burial chamber located in Williton
Williton
Williton is a medium-sized village and civil parish in West Somerset, England. It has many of the facilities of a small town, being the administrative centre for the district. Williton is situated at the junction of the A39, A358 and B3191 roads...
, Somerset
Somerset
The ceremonial and non-metropolitan county of Somerset in South West England borders Bristol and Gloucestershire to the north, Wiltshire to the east, Dorset to the south-east, and Devon to the south-west. It is partly bounded to the north and west by the Bristol Channel and the estuary of the...
. It is composed of three round barrow
Tumulus
A tumulus is a mound of earth and stones raised over a grave or graves. Tumuli are also known as barrows, burial mounds, Hügelgrab or kurgans, and can be found throughout much of the world. A tumulus composed largely or entirely of stones is usually referred to as a cairn...
s and possibly a long, chambered barrow. The site was excavated in 1931 by George Gray. The name "Battlegore" comes from this site being attributed to the location of a Danish
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
raid in 918 AD or 988 AD. At least as early as the 1300s, the site was referred to as "Bytelgore", a predecessor of the word "Battlegore".
Description
The most northernly of the barrows is around 18 metres (59.1 ft) in diameter and 1 metres (3.3 ft) high. It is partially surrounded by a shallow ditch with a radius of 45 metres (147.6 ft). 20 metres (65.6 ft) east of this barrow is a small mound about 6.5 metres (21.3 ft) wide and 25 centimetres (9.8 in) high. Gray found four other mounds in addition to this small one, but he was unable to find anything that would indicate the importance of these small mounds. A large urnUrn
An urn is a vase, ordinarily covered, that usually has a narrowed neck above a footed pedestal. "Knife urns" placed on pedestals flanking a dining-room sideboard were an English innovation for high-style dining rooms of the late 1760s...
, found 20 feet (6.1 m) to the east of the center of the barrow, contained the cremated
Cremation
Cremation is the process of reducing bodies to basic chemical compounds such as gasses and bone fragments. This is accomplished through high-temperature burning, vaporization and oxidation....
remains of a human.
Just south of this is another one of the three major round barrows, and it was around 8 feet (2.4 m) high as of 1969. Between this and the southernmost of the three major barrows is a ring ditch, which might be another barrow. The final, southernmost barrow is around 27 metres (88.6 ft) in diameter and 1.8 metres (5.9 ft) in height. Unlike the previous barrow, this one has not been ploughed, and as such it is in better condition.
The chambered barrow is composed of three stones. The largest is 3.1 metres (10.2 ft) long, 1.2 metres (3.9 ft) wide, and 0.7 metres (2.3 ft) deep; the second-largest is 1.6 metres (5.2 ft) long, 0.8 metres (2.6 ft) wide, and 0.5 metres (1.6 ft) deep; and the smallest is 1 metres (3.3 ft) long, 0.5 metres (1.6 ft) wide, and 0.3 metre (0.984251968503937 ft) deep. According to legend, the devil
Satan
Satan , "the opposer", is the title of various entities, both human and divine, who challenge the faith of humans in the Hebrew Bible...
and a giant's quarrel caused these stones to be thrown there.
Artifacts
NeolithicNeolithic
The Neolithic Age, Era, or Period, or New Stone Age, was a period in the development of human technology, beginning about 9500 BC in some parts of the Middle East, and later in other parts of the world. It is traditionally considered as the last part of the Stone Age...
pottery and flint
Flint
Flint is a hard, sedimentary cryptocrystalline form of the mineral quartz, categorized as a variety of chert. It occurs chiefly as nodules and masses in sedimentary rocks, such as chalks and limestones. Inside the nodule, flint is usually dark grey, black, green, white, or brown in colour, and...
artifacts
Artifact (archaeology)
An artifact or artefact is "something made or given shape by man, such as a tool or a work of art, esp an object of archaeological interest"...
have been found at this site. Archaeologists also found bronze
Bronze
Bronze is a metal alloy consisting primarily of copper, usually with tin as the main additive. It is hard and brittle, and it was particularly significant in antiquity, so much so that the Bronze Age was named after the metal...
items, including a "knife dagger", a broken dagger, a rapier, a spearhead, and a winged axe. A field of Mesolithic
Mesolithic
The Mesolithic is an archaeological concept used to refer to certain groups of archaeological cultures defined as falling between the Paleolithic and the Neolithic....
flint artifacts has been found to the north of Battlegore.