Breamore Down

Nearest town:
Salisbury (10km NNW)
OS reference:
SU141202
OS sheet:
184
Latitude:
50° 58' 49.62 N
Longitude:
1° 47' 56.84 W
Added to TMA by

Images

Image of Breamore Down (Round Barrow(s)) by drbob

This is the open end of the horseshoe shaped bank which is all that remains of the barrow. The bracken in the foreground is growing in the middle of the barrow.

D
drbob Jun 25, 2006

Articles

Breamore Down

Magic mountain yields jade axes

Littlestone
Littlestone Dec 17, 2009

“Jade is normally associated with imperial China, notably the Han Dynasty burial suits made up of hundreds of jade plaques linked with gold wire; or with the Ancient Maya in Central America, where royal burials were often smothered in jade necklaces and carved objects. Prehistoric Europe is not usually thought of as society that used jade, but recent studies have shown that superb polished axes of green jadeites were traded from the Alps to the Channel 6,500 years ago, reaching Britain shortly thereafter.”

The Wiltshire Heritage Museum in Devizes holds a superb example of a jadeite axe from Breamore (mentioned in The Times article above and here – timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/court_and_social/article6497835.ece )

Breamore Down

D
drbob Jun 25, 2006

The barrow is in the grove at the centre of which stands Breamore Mizmaze. Follow the bridleway up past Breamore house, through the wood to an open section of down, the path leading into the grove to the Mizmaze is signposted. A few yards before you reach the fence surrounding the labyrinth, head about ten yards to the left into the wood and the remains of the barrow are visible.

This is a small Bronze Age round barrow which has been almost completely robbed out leaving just a horseshoe bank. Its location in a yew grove close to a turf labyrinth adds to its interest.

There are other barrows and the Giant’s Grave long barrow in the area, and indeed the hump at the centre of the Mizmaze is sometimes claimed to be the remains of a barrow.

Sites within 20km of Breamore Down

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