Monument record MDO18481 - Poundbury Post-Roman Structure PR10

Post-Roman structure PR10 was discovered close to the northern boundary of the later post-Roman enclosure during the 1966-79 excavations at Poundbury, Dorchester. This structure was a clearly defined, sub-rectangular sunken-featured building with closely spaced stakeholes around three sides, perhaps for a wattle wall. A number of postholes were found in the centre, perhaps roof supports or parts of internal fittings. Structure PR10 was assigned initially to phase VB and subsequently reassigned to post-Roman phase 2 settlement. The size of this structure is comparable to small sheds from the Roman period settlement, but it is likely that this hut served a dual domestic and workshop function. Sparey-Green has recently suggested that these sunken dwellings represent individual cells for a religious (possibly female) community established on the site of the late Roman cemetery.

Found during the excavations directed by Christopher Sparey Green, for the Dorchester Excavation Committee, between 1966 and 1979 during development of the Grove Trading Estate on the eastern slopes of Poundbury Camp, Dorchester (1). The numbers in square brackets below refer to the context and feature numbers used in the published excavation report and archive (1)(2). Further refinement of the post-Roman settlement sequence has been undertaken by Christopher Sparey Green since the initial publication of the site and this has been taken into account in the following description (3) (4).

Post-Roman structure PR10 lay close to the northern boundary of the later post-Roman enclosure at the northern end of site E, about six metres NW of structure PR9. PR10 was a clearly defined, sub-rectangular sunken-featured building about 4.3m long and 3.0m wide and up to 0.4m deep, terraced into the hillslope. The base of the structure was uneven due to the building cutting earlier graves. A series of regularly spaced stake holes were found around three sides of the structure and probably supported a wattle wall. The lack on the eastern (downhill) side could be the result of erosion or because the soil fill of the stakeholes was not recognised where it cut earlier features on this side. A series of post holes in the northern centre of the interior may have been for roof supports and internal fittings such as a loom or a partition . On the north side was an irregular hollow [E337] up to 0.25m deep. Its relationship with PR10 is uncertain but it may have formed part of an entrance (2).

The size of this structure is comparable to small sheds from the Roman period settlement, but it is likely that this hut served a dual domestic and workshop function (1). Sparey-Green has recently suggested that these sunken dwellings represent individual cells for a religious (possibly female) community established on the site of the late Roman cemetery (4).

Post-Roman building PR10 was originally included in phase VB in the published monograph (1). A subsequent review of the post-Roman evidence has placed it in the post-Roman phase 2 settlement (3). Phase 2 of the settlement is distinguished by the appearance of small terraced or sunken-floored buildings of post and wattle construction, each surrounded by irregular ditched enclosures (PR6-10 and PR13) (3).

<1> Sparey Green, C, 1987, Excavations at Poundbury, Dorchester, Dorset 1966-1982. Volume 1: The Settlements (Monograph). SDO9630.

<2> Sparey Green, C, 1966-1979, Poundbury, Grove Trading Estate, Dorchester (Excavation archive). SDO10096.

<3> Sparey Green, C J, 1996, Poundbury, Dorset: settlement and economy in the Late and post-Roman Dorchester (Article in monograph). SDO10040.

<4> Sparey Green, C J, Living amongst the dead: From Roman cemetery to post-Roman monastic settlement at Poundbury (Article in monograph). SDO10041.

Record last edited

Aug 3 2010 5:32PM