<< Our Photo Pages >> Whiteleaf Barrows - Long Barrow in England in Buckinghamshire
Submitted by thecaptain on Sunday, 09 September 2007 Page Views: 18370
Neolithic and Bronze AgeSite Name: Whiteleaf BarrowsCountry: England County: Buckinghamshire Type: Long Barrow
Nearest Town: Princes Risborough
Map Ref: SP82220398 Landranger Map Number: 165
Latitude: 51.728518N Longitude: 0.810944W
Condition:
5 | Perfect |
4 | Almost Perfect |
3 | Reasonable but with some damage |
2 | Ruined but still recognisable as an ancient site |
1 | Pretty much destroyed, possibly visible as crop marks |
0 | No data. |
-1 | Completely destroyed |
5 | Superb |
4 | Good |
3 | Ordinary |
2 | Not Good |
1 | Awful |
0 | No data. |
5 | Can be driven to, probably with disabled access |
4 | Short walk on a footpath |
3 | Requiring a bit more of a walk |
2 | A long walk |
1 | In the middle of nowhere, a nightmare to find |
0 | No data. |
5 | co-ordinates taken by GPS or official recorded co-ordinates |
4 | co-ordinates scaled from a detailed map |
3 | co-ordinates scaled from a bad map |
2 | co-ordinates of the nearest village |
1 | co-ordinates of the nearest town |
0 | no data |
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I have visited· I would like to visit
Chriski would like to visit
JohnLindsay visited - their rating: Cond: 3 Amb: 4 Access: 3 Why would you want to drive to something like this and make that the first option? The best walk is up Kop Hill, then into Brush Hill Nature reserve, along the path, it is easy to find. The other two aren't quite as easy and the site calls one a mill mound, but why would you build a mill mound when you already have this? Walk down Peter's Lane, a bit of a rat run (all those people driving to see the monument), but managable. Bus stop for the 300 at the bottom, called Peter's Lane.
http://www.biab.ac.uk/all_content?search=whiteleaf
incidently gives references for reading. I don't remember whether I knew about BIAB earlier.
TheCaptain have visited here
The most obvious barrow, a neolithic longbarrow, is to be found just to the southeast of the top of the giant chalk cross, and this has in recent years been re-excavated and restored, after many years of erosion. At the time of my visit in 2006, the barrow was still fenced off in order to allow settlement and regrowth of a protective layer of grass to establish itself.
A bit further to the north along the hilltop are the much less significant remains of two bronze age round barrows, both much disturbed.
The Ridgeway ancient track follows the ridge of the hill above the cross, and past all of these above mentioned features. At the foot of the steep slopes passes the Icknield Way.
There is also a Cross Ridge dyke, which may be as old as bronze age, and may have been defensive or a land boundary.
The cross itself has its first known and definite mention from 1738, but is possibly much much older, and was possibly changed into a cross from a fertility symbol shape which had existed here for hundreds of years beforehand, with speculation that it is Saxon or earlier in origin.
There are other earthworks and ditches to be found amongst the beech woods at the top of the hills here, which are thought to be the remnants of first world war vintage "practice" trenches.
Nowadays, the hillside has been tidied up, much erosion to the cross and surrounding area restored, and a car park and picnic area created. The views from the top of the cross, out over the town of Princes Risborough, the Vale of Aylesbury, and southwestwards along the edge of the Chiltern Hills (along which the Ridgeway runs) are stunning on a fine day.
Note: See comment on converting Whiteleaf cross into original fertility symbol.
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