The Taplow Barrow is an early medieval burial mound in Taplow Court, an estate in the south-eastern English county of Buckinghamshire. Constructed in the seventh century, when the region was part of an Anglo-Saxon kingdom, it contained the remains of a deceased individual and their grave goods, now mostly in the British Museum. It is often referred to in archaeology as the Taplow burial.
The Taplow burial was made in what archaeologists call the "conversion period", during which the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms were undergoing Christianisation. This period saw the erection of "Final Phase" burials: a select number of inhumations featuring lavish grave goods far richer than the graves of the preceding "migration period" (fifth and sixth centuries). The majority of these Final Phase burials were spatially separate from the new churchyard burials, although the Taplow Burial—which was likely placed next to an early church—is one of the few known exceptions. Located atop a hill, the area around it was previously an Iron Age hillfort and offers widespread views of the local landscape.
In October 1883, an excavation of the barrow was made by Mr Rutland, with the assistance of Major Cooper King, Joseph Stevens and Walter Money. In total, it took around three weeks. Stevens noted that at the time of excavation, a felled yew tree—likely several centuries old was located in the centre of the barrow. To excavate, a horizontal shaft six feet in width was dug on the south of the mound and then expanded toward its centre. A similar process was then repeated on the north side and then the west side. During the excavation, soil from beneath the yew tree collapsed into the trench, injuring Rutland; the investigation was paused for several days as a result. On resuming the project, the excavators found the body beneath the mound, but shortly after the yew tree fell over into the trench, which delayed the project further. Only after the tree was removed could the grave goods be recovered.He noted that following the investigation, the mound was "restored to its former dimensions" At the time, it represented the most lavish Anglo-Saxon burial then known and at the request of the clergyman in charge of the churchyard, the grave goods recovered were donated to the British Museum, where many of them remain on display.
The name Taplow itself is in origin that of the burial mound, from Old English Tæppas hláw "Tæppa's mound", so that the name of the unknown chief or nobleman buried in the mound would seem to have been Tæppa. Stevens suggested that it derived from hlæw (mound) and tap or top, meaning "the mound on the crest of the hill".
During Stevens' investigation, the mound measured 15 feet in eight at its centre, and 240 feet in circumference.[He described it as being "somewhat bell-shaped", suggesting that this had been caused by the addition of later inhumation burials around its eastern perimeter.
After completing his excavation of the site, Stevens concluded that the individual interned was "a great chief" who ruled before Christianity came to Anglo-Saxon England. Given that Buckinghamshire was in Mercia for much of this period, Stevens noted that "it is not beyond the bounds of probability that he was a Mercian Angle of distinction.
So to the Virtual, the footpath is off Berry Hill Lane just south of the Taplow Court Estate.
Follow the footpath signs that will take you to the mound and remains of the churchyard.
The mound is accessible, there is usually two paths, one that goes straight up and one from the back that is easier to climb.
To claim please answer the following questions, answers can be sent via message centre or via email.
You will only get a reply if the answer is clearly wrong or there is evidence of you not actually visting the site and that will result in the log being deleted.
All logs must have a photo.
1, How many Angels watch over the site, look at the Taplow Estate building for this answer?
2, On the memorial there is a carved inscription about 3 foot up, count how many times the following letters appear in the inscription; R's T's and C's?
3, Photo either on top of the mound or with the Mound in the background, Up to you whether you appear in the photo.
Virtual Rewards 2.0 - 2019/2020
This Virtual Cache is part of a limited release of Virtuals created between June 4, 2019 and June 4, 2020. Only 4,000 cache owners were given the opportunity to hide a Virtual Cache. Learn more about Virtual Rewards 2.0 on the Geocaching Blog.