Monument record 0154200000 - TAPLOW BARROW

Summary

Barrow excavated in 1883, revealing a rich seventh century Saxon burial - Probable 7th century `hlaw' or round barrow surviving as a flat-topped mound containing the burial of a possible Saxon chieftain accompanied by grave goods including jewellery, swords, shields, drinking horns and a bucket. The finds are present in the Reading and British Museums. The mound has been landscaped to form a garden feature and is within the grounds of Taplow Court.

Protected Status/Designation

Archaeological Notification Area: Prehistoric hillfort, Saxon burial mound, site of Medieval parish church, 18th and 19th century park and gardens at Taplow Court (DBC9470)
Scheduled Monument 1014781: SAXON BARROW, CHURCH AND CEMETERIES IN THE OLD CHURCHYARD AT TAPLOW COURT (DBC7188)

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Type and Period (3)

ROUND BARROW (7th Century - 600 AD to 699 AD)
INHUMATION (7th Century - 600 AD to 699 AD)
EARTHWORK (7th Century - 600 AD to 699 AD)

Description

Dimensions - Radius 1150cm, Height 300cm.
Plan Form - CIRCULAR.
BARROW IN OLD CHURCHYARD; EXCAVATED 1883: C7 PRINCELY BURIAL FOUND WITH VERY RICH GRAVE GOODS (NOW IN BRITISH MUSEUM). DURING EXCAVATION WERE MANY EARTH FALLS & COLLAPSE OF OLD YEW ON BARROW ONTO BURIAL REMAINS (B1-12).
CONTOUR/GEOPHYSICAL SURVEY: NO QUARRY DITCH (B13).
BURIAL PLACE (OR NOT) OF TAEPPA? (B20).
SCHEDULED: SAM 19050 (B9).
During the summers of 1995-9, the Taplow Court Archaeological Survey Team excavated 5 trenches around the house and in the churchyard of the old St Nicholas church. In the churchyard, trench 3 revealed a portion of a sub-circular ditch. Trench 4 exposed a further segment of the ditch, a shallow trench, a double posthole and the remains of a small pit. Trench 5 again revealed the ditch along with two medium sized pits and an irregular line of postholes (B21-23).

(SU 90618216) Tumulus (NR) (B25).
A barrow, 82.5 feet in diameter and 12.25 feet high, excavated by Dr Stevens, in 1883. An inhumation-burial, accompanied by ornate 7th century AD weapons, ornaments, utensils and gaming counters and two drinking-horns, was found. The finds in Reading and British Museums. (B4, B5, B7, and B26).

SU 907821. A flat-topped barrow containing a chieftain's burial in gold-embroidered clothing and surrounded by jewellery, swords and shields, wooden buckets and tubs, drinking horns and a glass beaker, together with a set of bone draughtsmen. This was almost certainly the `hlaw' or burial mound of a Saxon chieftain called Taeppa, whose name survives in the place-name Taplow, and who died around 620-40.(B27)

5th-7th century AD glasses from Taplow (probably from this site) (B28).

A barrow as described within a disused graveyard. Its flat top is due to mutilation to form a garden, feature; an old path ascends it on the N side. It cannot be ascertained hether the Anglo-Saxon inhumation was primary, but the richness of the grave goods and the size of the barrow suggest that it was.

Published survey (1:1250) correct (B29).

Description and discussion of claw beakers found in burial (B2) and notes on gold braid and drinking horns also found (B30).

NRHE Insert 1997, Updates 1998, 1999, 2003, and 2011 (B32).

Sources (31)

<1>SBC6579 Bibliographic reference: ILLUSTRATED LONDON NEWS 1883 NOV 17 PP476-478; NOV 24 PP507,509 (FILED).
<2>SBC14750 Bibliographic reference: SOCIETY OF ANTIQUARIES OF LONDON PROCEEDINGS 2ND SERIES 10 1883-1885 PP19-20 (NOTE BY J RUTLAND).
<3>SBC14888 Article in serial: STEVENS J 1884 REMAINS FOUND IN AN ANGLO SAXON TUMULUS AT TAPLOW, BRITISH ARCHAEOLOGICAL JOURNAL 40 PP6.
<4>SBC2208 Article in serial: BURGESS B 1884 OPENING OF A TUMULUS AT TAPLOW, RECSOFBUCKS5PP331-335"".
<5>SBC20460 Bibliographic reference: William Page (ed). 1905. A History of Buckinghamshire (Victoria County History) Volume I. Volume 1. pp199-203.
<6>SBC13616 Article in serial: RECS OF BUCKS 9 1907 PP320-321.
<7>SBC20466 Bibliographic reference: Royal Commision on Historical Monuments. 1912. Historical Monuments in Buckinghamshire Volume 1. Volume 1. p294.
<8>SBC20374 Bibliographic reference: A Meaney. 1964. Gazetteer of Early Anglo-Saxon Burial Sites. p59.
<9>SBC14043 Scheduling record: English Heritage. 1996. SCHEDULING LISTS OF INSPECTORATE OF ANCIENT MONUMENTS: SAM 19050.
<10>SBC6671 Bibliographic reference: J F HEAD (MS NOTES GIVEN BY MRS L HEAD, MARCH 1984, FILED).
<11>SBC1891 Bibliographic reference: British Museum. 1923. GUIDE TO ANGLO SAXON & FOREIGN TEUTONIC ANTIQUITIES PP63-65.
<12>SBC15069 Bibliographic reference: THE TAPLOW BARROW (UNCREDITED PAMPHLET PRODUCED BY ?BM IN 1987/8, PHOTOCOPY FILED).
<13>SBC3181 Unpublished document: COPP A & ROYLE C 1987 REPORT ON THE SURVEYS CONDUCTED AT TAPLOW COURT/ FELL D, DANIELL C & RIMMER P.
<14>SBC11178 Bibliographic reference: OS RECORD CARD SU 98 SW 03 (FILED).
<15>SBC17108 Bibliographic reference: WYMER J J & BONSALL C J 1977 GAZETTEER OF UPPER PALAEOLITHIC/MESOLITHIC SITES IN ENGLAND & WALES P23.
<16>SBC2558 Bibliographic reference: CASS 05639.
<17>SBC3302 Bibliographic reference: CROWFOOT E & HAWKES S C 1967 EARLY ANGLO-SAXON GOLD BRAIDS, IN MEDIEVALARCHAEOLOGY11PP44FF"".
<18>SBC15019 Bibliographic reference: TAPLOW; BROOMFIELD; CAENBY; PROPOSED PUBLICATION SUMMARY (KATHARINE EAST, BRITISH MUSEUM)(FILED).
<19>SBC1939 Bibliographic reference: BROWN G BALDWIN 1915 ARTS IN EARLY ENGLAND 3 (FRONTISPIECE); 4 PP638-641.
<20>SBC16483 Bibliographic reference: WELCH M 1992 ANGLO-SAXON ENGLAND P96.
<22>SBC20008 Unpublished document: Taplow Court Archaeological Survey Team. 1999. Report on the research and excavation field work. Taplow Court Archaeological Survey Team.
<23>SBC20140 Article in serial: Elias Kupferman. 1999. Taplow Court Update. Vol 1, issue 5. pp3-4.
<24>SBC23605 Bibliographic reference: Tim Allen, Chris Hayden & Hugo Lamdin-Whymark. 2009. From Bronze Age Enclosure to Anglo-Saxon Settlement: Archaeological Excavations at Taplow Hillfort.
<25>SBC27310 Map: Ordnance Survey. 1961. OS 1961 6-INCH MAP. 1:10,560.
<26>SBC28309 Serial: Oxfordshire Architectural and Historical Society. 1945. Oxoniensia Volume 10. p12.
<27>SBC28310 Bibliographic reference: James Dyer. 1969. Discovering Regional Archaeology Eastern England. p15?.
<28>SBC28311 Bibliographic reference: D B Harden (ed). 1956. Dark-Age Britain: studies presented to E.T. Leeds with a bibliography of his work. p159.
<29>SBC28312 Verbal communication: N K Blood. 1974. Field Investigators Comments - F1 NKB 01-JUL-1974.
<30>SBC28313 Bibliographic reference: David M Wilson. 1976. The archaeology of Anglo-Saxon England. p260 and p272.
<31>SBC28074 Unpublished document: Helen Geake. 1997. The use of grave-goods in Conversion-period England, c.600-c.850. p146.
<32>SBC27441 Digital archive: Historic England. National Record of the Historic Environment (NRHE).

Location

Grid reference	SU 90620 82160 (point)
Civil Parish	TAPLOW, South Bucks, Buckinghamshire