Roman barrow, Rumbury Field, north of Bird Green Farm (EHER 123)

Roman barrow located 700 metres WNW of Clavering Farm, on the western side of Beard's Lane - a footpath and trackway which is thought to perpetuate the line of a road between the Roman settlements at Great Chesterford and Braughing. The barrow is circular in plan and measures 50 metres in diameter. Over the years the mound has been reduced by ploughing, yet it still rises to a domed profile of about 1 metre in height, and it clearly served as a mare prominent local landmark in the past. The Hon. R.C. Neville (later Lord Braybrooke of Audley End) directed limited excavations on the mound in the mid 19th century. He found that the barrow had been disturbed in antiquity, but was nevertheless able to recover evidence of Roman origin. Fragments of glass, pottery and brick - which Neville termed 'the remnants of the sepulchral deposit' - were found near the centre of the mound. In the absence of evidence for a surrounding ditch, it is thought that the mound was constructed using material gathered from its surroundings or quarried elsewhere. Scheduled.

Original HER entry merged with NRHE data import: Tumulus, standing at intersection of parishes of Langley, Arkesden, Wenden Lofts. Excavated by Neville. It had been disturbed but was clearly of Roman date, from the pieces of brick, glass and Samian ware near the centre-the remnants of a burial deposit. The mound is named 'Rumbery Hill' in 1829 on the enclosure map, situated on the Roman road, lying mostly in Elmdon parish. It is 40m in diameter x 2.5m high, much spread by ploughing. Apparently without a ditch. No longer known as 'Rumbery Hill' but the field is known as 'Rumbury Field'. 45m x 1.6m high, no ditch (was so in 1838). Site Assessment = In November 1979 the height was perhaps less than 5ft. In February 1981 it was still being ploughed and in danger of being flattened. Finds are comparable with those the Bartlow Hills (see 4751). <1> - <7> Three photos in SMR. <8> The barrow lies alongside the Roman road known as Beards Lane. <9> The barrow is circular in plan and measures approximately 50m in diameter. Over the years the mound has been reduced by ploughing and is now approximately 1m in height. In the absence of evidence for a surrounding ditch, it is thought that the mound was constructed using material gathered from its surroundings or quarried elsewhere. <10> See also: <11> 1975. Field survey. A Roman barrow lying 50.0m north of Roman Road 221b in "Rumbury Field". It measures 45.0m in diameter by 1.6m high. There is no trace of a ditch and the mound is being spread by ploughing. Surveyed at 1:2500. <12> Listed as a Roman Barrow with reference to Authority 1. <13> TL 456348. Roman round barrow. Scheduled 159. <14> (TL 45603476) Tumulus (R). <15> See also: <16>