Monument record MDO18592 - Trumpet Major, Alington Avenue, Dorchester; prehistoric ditches

Evidence for Prehistoric ditches was discovered during excavations at Trumpet Major. A large V-shaped ditch [002], slightly over 7m wide at the top and aligned approximately NNW-SSE, was recorded at the western end of Trench S at the Trumpet Major I site. It was not fully excavated but the upper fills contained early Roman pottery. It may equate to a prehistoric ditch recorded during the cutting of the railway in 1846. A second, smaller ditch [010] in the same trench followed a similar alignment some 4.5m to the east. This ditch was cut by a 1st century BC/AD grave. It is possible that these ditches form part of a Bronze Age land division in the Dorchester environs.

Found during two small-scale excavations conducted by Wessex Archaeology in Fordington, Dorchester. The first comprised the investigation of a small plot of land adjacent to the railway on the NE side of Alington Avenue during 1986 in advance of the construction of two houses (Trumpet Major I). The second involved the excavation of footings for an extension to the Trumpet Major public house during 1988. The results of the excavations have been published in the Dorset Natural History and Archaeological Society Monograph (DNHAS Monograph 15). The numbers in square brackets below refer to the context and feature numbers used in the published report (1).

A large V-shaped ditch [002], slightly over 7m wide at the top and aligned approximately NNW-SSE, was recorded at the western end of Trench S at the Trumpet Major I site. It was not fully excavated because of the restrictive width of the trench and only the top 1m of the ditch was excavated; however, if the slope of the sides is projected a depth of c.3m could be postulated. The upper fills contained two pieces of Roman tile and one Dressel 20 amphora fragment. The attribution of this ditch to the pre-Roman period is partly reliant on the nature of the fill, which was very different to that of other Romano-British features. The attribution was also partly reliant on comparison with another section of ditch recorded during the cutting of the railway in 1846 which was of similar scale and alignment. There was no evidence for this ditch continuing into the area of the Alington Avenue excavation.

A second ditch [010] in the same trench followed a similar alignment some 4.5m to the east of ditch [002]. This ditch was only 3m wide and 0.5m deep with a rounded cross section. This ditch was cut by 1st century BC/AD grave [042].

These ditches have been associated with other fragments of ditch on similar alignments in the Dorchester environs. It is possible that these ditches form part of a Bronze Age land division, although no material was recovered to confirm or dispute this.

<1> Davies, S M, Bellamy, P S , Heaton, M J , and Woodward, P J, 2002, Excavations at Alington Avenue, Fordington, Dorchester, Dorset, 1984-87 (Monograph). SDO9565.

Record last edited

Aug 28 2008 4:20AM