Cattle on the side of Woodborough Hill, with Adam's Grave and Walkers Hill on the skyline

Adam's Grave was a Neolithic long barrow near Alton Barnes in Wiltshire, southwest England. Its remains have been scheduled as an ancient monument.[1]

The barrow is considered to be of the Severn-Cotswold tomb type.[2] These generally consist of long, precisely built trapezoidal earth mounds covering burial chambers, thus they are a type of chambered long barrow. The chamber, made of sarsen stones, contained partial human skeletons. An arrowhead was also recovered.[1] There is a breast-shaped hill on the spot, with the remains of the barrow being 70 metres (230 ft) long and around 7 metres (23 ft) high with ditches on either side.[3] It was partially excavated by John Thurnam in 1860.[1] The area around Adam's Grave has a high density of long barrows and is important because of its archaeological potential.[1]

The arrangement of stones around the site suggests there was once a kerb or forecourt.[4] They are known as 'Old Adam' and 'Little Eve' and are near the original entrance to the barrow. According to folklore the barrow is the grave of a giant, and his ghost has been reported.[5][6] Associations with the nearby monument at Avebury have also been suggested.[7]

In the Anglo-Saxon period, the site was known as "Woden's Barrow" (Old English "Wōdnesbeorg") and the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle records two battles, in 592 and 715, thought to have taken place at the site.[8][9][10]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Historic England. "Adam's Grave: a long barrow on Walker's Hill (1013032)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 3 September 2016.
  2. ↑ Clarke, Bob (2013). Prehistoric Wiltshire: An Illustrated Guide. Amberley. ISBN 9781445623900.
  3. ↑ "Adam's Grave". Ancient Wisdom. Retrieved 3 September 2016.
  4. ↑ "Adam's Grave". Stone Circles. Retrieved 3 September 2016.
  5. ↑ "Adam's Grave". Haunted Wiltshire. Retrieved 3 September 2016.
  6. ↑ Wills, Keith (2014). Haunted Wiltshire. The History Press. ISBN 9780750955188.
  7. ↑ Range, Katherine. "A Prehistoric A-Z: Adam's Grave". The Heritage Journal. Retrieved 3 September 2016.
  8. ↑ "Adam's Grave, AD592 & AD715". The Ravens Warband. Retrieved 3 September 2016.
  9. ↑ Jebson, Tony. "Manuscript E: Bodleian MS Laud 636". The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle. Retrieved 3 September 2016.
  10. ↑ Historic England. "Battle of Woden's Barrow AD 592 (221229)". Research records (formerly PastScape). Retrieved 3 September 2016.
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