EDO3833 - Damers First School, proposed new site, Poundbury, Evaluation Trench 11

An archaeological evaluation was carried out by AC archaeology in August 2005 on two proposed sites for the construction of a new Damers First School. The investigations comprised the machine-excavation of five trenches on the existing Damers First School site and eight trenches on a proposed site immediately west of Poundbury Cemetery (1). This work followed an earlier geophysical survey of both sites which identified a number of subsurface magnetic anomalies indicating the presence of archaeological activity (2) The investigations comprised the machine-excavation of five trenches on the existing Damers First School site and eight trenches on a proposed site immediately west of Poundbury Cemetery. The eight trenches on the proposed new site west of Poundbury Cemetery (trenches 6-13) totalled 165m in length, each 1.6m wide. Topsoil and overburden were removed by mechanical excavator. Machining ceased on top of natural subsoil, or in tact archaeological deposits. Only four of the eight trenches revealed evidence for archaeological activity, all of which corresponded with anomalies identified on the geophysical survey and interpreted by the geophysical surveyors as possibly modern. Trench 11 (25m long) was aligned approximately NE-SW, located on moderately sloping ground in the central portion of the site and excavated to a maximum depth of 0.45m on top of natural clay with flints (overlying upper chalk). The ploughsoil was 0.25m thick on top of subsoil at 0.25-0.45m. It was positioned in order to target both an amorphous geophysical anomaly interpreted by the surveyors as a possible poughed in ferrous object, and a linear anomaly also recorded in Trench 9. On excavation, a large circular pit with steeply sloping sides and a flat base was recorded, 1.3m deep. This feature may be a chalk quarry pit of possible prehistoric date. The upper fill contained a small quantity of struck flint and fired clay. No evidence for the linear anomaly was found in this trench. No other archaeological finds or deposits were recorded.