by Jimit (one of our Founder Members)
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First, the good news …. the drainage inside seems to work even after the heavy rain we have had recently ….. The small infill dry-stone walling in the facade has been repaired. Not so good (temporary?) news ….. the wide access path up has been torn to shreds and rutted. Presumably this will be re-instated.
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Now the “if only they had asked me” news…..The old concrete slab over the end chamber has been replaced with a much thicker one. The only light coming in is through a tiny vertical ‘ porthole’ less than 9 inches in diameter (muddied over on the surface) and down a tube through the thick concrete. It makes much of the chamber invisible without a torch. There is a similar ‘porthole’ further east. The old lighting made the interior mysterious, the new makes it just gloomy……
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On top, the thick concrete has been covered by a scrape of soil, and turfed. I give this 6 months before the turf dies of drought and is eroded by footfall back to the concrete. This area has the heaviest usage outside the barrow …….. Access to the top is now by 10 shallow wooden-edged steps, unfortunately because of this shallowness the treads slope and the shingle covering them will quickly migrate downhill. This might be alleviated by doubling the number of steps. However improving the lighting would involve drilling another ‘porthole’ through the thick concrete. Don’t hold your breath.
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.It’s difficult to know what this expensive “Repair” was meant to achieve. Was the old roof dangerous? I hope someone else can inspect this well-loved site and report.
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Jimit.
The Heritage Journal 
4 comments
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17/02/2016 at 06:33
Sue Vincent
That just looks awful. 😦
17/02/2016 at 23:09
Marina Graham
I feel at least partly qualified to comment. I am not an archaeologist but I live locally and have made a lot of video slideshows since Spring 2009 of light beams entering WKLB from the rising sun at different times of year. Before I started doing this the phenomenon of sunbeams entering the barrow seems to have been unknown. At any rate I could find no single photograph of it anywhere on the internet before I posted mine on Youtube in 2009, although naturally a few others who have met me have photographed it since.
I think this is simply because we had all learned that West Kennet Long Barrow was closed in antiquity by a ‘blocking stone’ which is still in situ since the careful work by Piggott and Atkinson who re-erected it in 1956 from the exact place where it had fallen as part of their meticulous and carefully documented restoration work. I was encouraged and helped by a friend to submit a report on this to English Heritage which included my photographic evidence.
As far as I understand it repairs to the barrow were indeed necessary, particularly to the roof.
My comments which follow are a personal opinion;
I am very glad that the old ‘toilet window’ skylights have gone. The new roof is a lot easier on the eye, although nothing could ever be as good as the corbelled roof it most likely originally had and which was destroyed, mainly by that dreadful quack Doctor Toope who, during the late 17th Century, used any bones he found as an ingredient in potions and medicines.
The new small round roof-lights let in less light but this will make the experience of any person entering the barrow at sunrise on the dates when it is penetrated by sunbeams much closer to what was intended by the original architects (who put in no roof-lights). The disadvantage is that photographs taken inside will now show only the light beams as there is unlikely to be enough light now to pick up the surrounding chamber as well as the light beam in a photo. Glad I took all mine when I did!
There is also an issue with the acoustics inside the barrow. To me it seems there is now greater amplification of sound, but as I’ve already said we don’t have the original roof shape anyway as that was lost in the 17th century. Local musicians might have something to say as to whether or not this is an improvement though since it was still thought to be a good sound conductor before the recent work, even without any corbelled roof it may have originally had.
The new gravel floor seems higher which I will admit bothered me a bit, but I understand that it has improved drainage so that presumably the puddle just inside the entrance can’t form any more.
I really hate the new stepped and wood-framed gravel path up onto the roof. It’s as subtle as a brick and I preferred the old one which was just worn into the chalk by feet. I don’t suppose they had any choice about conforming to Health and Safety regs though and have to admit it might be safer, if uglier.
Overall I think it’s an improvement. Shame they had to put in that hideous stepped path onto the roof – but it’ probably easier to criticise them than to do their job. Above all I’m pleased to say that no sunrise light-beams seem to have been harmed at all by the recent work.
18/02/2016 at 09:55
Jim Mitchell
I remember taking a picture of sunrise on the Vernal Equinox to which the barrow is possibly(?) orientated. I agree that the ‘ toilet windows’ were out of keeping but at least they let some light in and were kept clear by the foot fall on the outside. This will not happen with the present arrangement. May I suggest that we wait 6 months and see if my predictions come true?
05/11/2017 at 20:19
Samara Lewis
I am a lover of West Kennet Long Barrow and have visited regularly for much of my life and studied archaeology to post grad level. Unfortunately I haven’t been able to visit for a couple of years but I went today with a group of people and was utterly shocked at the so-called “repairs” made to the barrow. Its awful. This webpage is the only evidence I can find so far, so I remain unclear who did the work and why. It seems like a bodge job to me and clearly one done quickly and cheaply. There are remains of plaster within the barrow itself and the skylights are awful. I agree the old windows were tacky but they were a vast improvement to the work that has been done now, which seems to have had no respect for the intricacies of the archaeology within. Raising the floor level was an awful idea. I can only describe what’s been done as desecration and I would like to know further details so I can make a complaint.