Monument record MDO18507 - Wollaston Field, Dorchester; Roman path

A linear band of chalk was observed during a watching brief on piling operations for the Dorchester Day Centre, Wollaston Field, Dorchester, undertaken by Wessex Archaeology in 1988. This consisted of a fairly thin layer of small weathered chalk rubble in a clayey matrix , which lay directly on top of the reddish-brown pre-urban soil. This layer was seen in five piles, in a N-S line. Only in one place was it recorded in two adjacent piles to the east or west, suggesting that in this area at least, it was over 6m wide. This layer was interpreted in the field as possibly being the remains of a N-S Roman street, but the lack of any metalling and the fact that it appears to lie too far west of the nearest projected Roman street alignment, suggests that this is not the case. It may be the remains of a path, or perhaps part of a yard surface.

A linear band of chalk was observed during a watching brief on piling operations for the Dorchester Day Centre, Wollaston Field, Dorchester, undertaken by Wessex Archaeology in 1988. This consisted of a fairly thin layer of small weathered chalk rubble in a clayey matrix , which lay directly on top of the reddish-brown pre-urban soil. This layer was seen in five piles, in a N-S line. Only in one place was it recorded in two adjacent piles to the east or west, suggesting that in this area at least, it was over 6m wide.

This layer was interpreted in the field as possibly being the remains of a N-S Roman street, but the lack of any metalling and the fact that it appears to lie too far west of the nearest projected Roman street alignment, suggests that this is not the case. It may be the remains of a path, or perhaps part of a yard surface.

Wessex Archaeology, 1987, Wollaston Field, Dorchester (Excavation archive). SDO9993.

Bellamy, P S, 1988, Wollaston Field, Dorchester, Excavations and Observations 1987-1988 (Unpublished document). SDO9857.

Record last edited

Aug 22 2024 7:29PM