EDO8013 - Dorset VIP, Winterbourne Abbas, Winterbourne Steepleton, Winterborne St Martin and Portesham ; evaluation 2019

The second of three phases of archaeological evaluation consisting of the excavation of 147 trenches targeting and anomalies from geophysical survey and previously-known features recorded in the HER. The evaluation identified remains dating from the early Neolithic through to the post-medieval period. A ditch of unknown function contained two sherds of Neolithic pottery and is the only feature securely dated to this period. Worked flint of Neolithic date was recovered as residual finds. Flakes indicative of axe production or maintenance were recovered from topsoil in several trenches. Utilisation of Portland Chert was noted in a small assemblage of later Neolithic worked flints. Two early Bronze age barrows, mapped by geophysical survey, were investigated in the vicinity of Rew Hill, an area known for barrow monuments. A single urned cremation and a rectilinear enclosure, both of early Bronze Age date, were also present. Evidence of Roman agricultural processing was recorded in the centre of the scheme. Related features include a corndryer, enclosure ditches and a possible trackway, all dated to the late Roman period. There is some evidence to suggest the presence of earlier 2nd century activity. Further enclosure ditches, also of late Roman date, were recorded away from this area and provide additional evidence of the wider agricultural landscape. A cluster of inhumations was recorded atop Friar Waddon Hill towards the southern limit of the scheme. Six graves were identified within a single trench and were found to cut into an earthen bank or dyke of unknown date. The excavated remains comprise one adult and three children. The children were all buried in limestone cists and a radiocarbon date from one provided an early medieval date. Few features dated to the later medieval and post-medieval periods. Undated features along the route are likely to be associated with land management, such as field boundaries of medieval or post-medieval date. However, an earlier Iron Age or Roman date cannot be ruled out.