NHER 5923 (Monument record) - Site of possible prehistoric long barrows or pillow mounds, Barnham Cross Common (Thetford, poorly located)

1870s.
It is recorded that several features described as 'long barrows' were levelled on Barnham Common in the 1870s. Information from (S1).

July 1910. Site Visit.
In 1910 the site of these features was visited by the then newly formed Prehistoric Society of East Anglia , although it is reported that little in the way of visible remains survived at this time (S2). According to (S2) these "barrows" were said to be 46m (150ft) in length, 17m (55ft) broad 2.4-3.1m (8-10ft) high. They also apparently yielded a number of skulls. See NHER 5797 for details of finds recovered during this site visit.

Although these may well have been prehistoric features, long barrows are rare in this region and it should be noted that their description would also be consistent with the 'pillow mounds' that were often associated with the rabbit warrens in this area.

The exact location of these features is unclear as the area known as Barnham Common (or Barnham Cross Common) also entended to the south of Barnham Cross (NHER 5945), into Suffolk.

A note in the Norwich Castle Museum records suggests that finds from this site may be held by the Bury St Edmunds Museum, although A. R. Edwardson, the curator, could find no evidence for this in 1960.

E. Rose (NAU). Amended by P. Watkins (HES), 21 June 2013.

June 2015 and January 2016. Walkover Survey.
Archaeological Rapid Identification Survey of Barnham Cross Common and adjacent land off Elm Road undertaken ahead of a programme of heath re-creation and restoration.
This survey identified earthworks of only limited, local interest. All of the banks and boundaries recorded can be seen to have been elements of the post-medieval landscape, although it is possible that some had earlier origins.
See report (S3) for further details.
An archive associated with this work has been deposited with Norwich Castle Museum (NWHCM : 2018.45).
P. Watkins (HES), 7 April 2026.