Stoney Littleton Long Barrow was built in the early Neolithic period, probably c3800-3400 BC. It contained the remains of over a dozen men, women and children, possibly 3 or 4 generations of the same family. It may also have been a religious shrine and/or way of marking territory.
Most of the stone and earth used to build the long barrow were quarried from near the site but the large slabs, which form the chambers, came from outcrops over 5 miles away. The barrow was used for about 200 years before the forecourt was filled with stone and the entrance was blocked up. There is a large fossil ammonite on the western portal stone at the entrance.
The site was rediscovered by a farmer in 1760 and the site was excavated in 1816. It was partly restored in 1858 and again more recently. Visitors to the site can explore the tomb by crawling along the 13m narrow passage.
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