Joe Abrams wrote up the investigation of a stretch of Cursus Monument to the north of Biggleswade. The full article appears in Bedfordshire Archaeology and can be downloaded free at http://www.baalhs.org.uk/index.htm.
The excavation revealed a 30m stretch of ditch, part of a much larger circuit. This was part of a very special type of prehistoric monument, datable to the Neolithic (about 4000-2500 BC) cursus is a recognised religious or ceremonial monument type found throughout the British Isles. They fall into a category of site noted for their length that includes avenues and stone alignments but cursus monuments or enclosures are the more widely distributed and numerous. They have been defined as parallel sided sites closed by at least one terminal and defined by ditches or pits/ posts. Although the term ‘cursus’ was used to refer to this monument type by William Stukeley in the early C18 it was only really in the early C20 that sites began to be discovered in great numbers (usually from aerial photographs), and discussed as a category. The date range is thought to be around 3600 to 3000 BC with recent evidence ranging from 3600 to 3300 BC. The cursus at Biggleswade is therefore an example of one of the oldest and rarest site types found in England.
The special character of the cursus has now been recognised and the monument has been designated as a Scheduled Monument. The details can be found on the Heritage List under SM1473383 https://historicengland.org.uk/listing/the-list/list-entry/1473383
コメント