EDO8106 - North of Oakley Lane, Wimborne; excavation 2023

OASIS: EXCAVATION: Of the seven areas excavated, Areas 1, 5 and Area 6 were the most archaeologically fruitful: Area 1 contained two segmented ring ditches and a linear ditch, all broadly datable to the prehistoric period, along with eight pits of the same broad date or undated. Within Area 5 were fourteen Neolithic pits, four Bronze Age pits, eight other pits and a gully broadly datable to the prehistoric period, an Iron Age/Romano-British pit, a medieval tree-throw hole and a variety of undated features. Area 6 contained three Bronze Age pits and a variety of linear and discrete features datable only to the prehistoric period generally, including a cremation grave and a nearby pit containing redeposited pyre debris. Three post-medieval field boundary ditches and a group of undated discrete features were also recorded in Area 6. Remains were sparser in the other areas and may be summarised thus: Area 2: An undated ditch; Area 3: A small number of undated minor linear and discrete features; Area 4: Post-medieval ditches and an undated pit and gully terminal, and Area 7: an undated posthole. Finds amounting to 23.13 kg were recovered from Areas 1–7, the majority dating to the prehistoric period. The pottery provides the primary dating evidence and includes material of Late Neolithic through to post-medieval date, with a Late Neolithic and Bronze Age focus. The worked flint assemblage (469 pieces, 5315 g) derives largely from Areas 5 and 6, where much came from pits of prehistoric date, including examples securely dated to both the Late Neolithic and Bronze Age. A significant assemblage of environmental evidence, including charred plant remains and wood charcoal, has been recovered from the Late Neolithic and early Bronze Age pits. Further analysis of these samples would provide information in the nature of the activities at the site, plant exploitation practices, the availability of wild resources, and the nature of the local environment.