Monument record MDO18641 - Fire Headquarters, County Hall, Colliton Park; Roman building 250

A simple two-bay structure was discovered during excavations at County Hall in 1984. It was represented by robbed out foundation trenches at the east end of the excavation area. No evidence for roofing or floor surfaces survived, although the northern bay of the building contained the remains of two superimposed hearths. These appear to have been smithing hearths and the building a simple industrial shelter. The walls appear to have been robbed in the 4th century

Found during the excavations carried out by Wessex Archaeology in 1984 prior to construction of the New Fire Headquarters at County Hall, Dorchester (1) (2). The numbers in square brackets below refer to the context and feature numbers used in the published report (2).

Building [250] lay within the eastern part of a large courtyard (defined as Building VII during the 1937-1938 excavations) and immediately SW of Building II (3). Building [250] appears to have been formed by two major walls only on its east and south sides, with a later internal division aligned E-W to form two ‘bays’, rooms that may have been open on one or more sides. No evidence for roofing material or in situ floor surfaces could be identified, although an area of limestone, chalk and flint rubble could represent the disturbed remains of flooring. The northernmost bay contained two superimposed hearths.

The vestiges of hearth 1 consisted of an irregular depression cut into the chalk and contained much ash and several burnt limestone fragments. Immediately superimposed above hearth 1 was a second, constructed of limestone slabs, occasionally packed with ceramic tile fragments, set vertically to form the sides. A base of limestone slabs was burnt and crazed from exposure to heat. This is similar to the ‘smithy’ recorded in the earlier excavations in the 1930s (3), which was located approximately 25m SW of hearth 2. The distribution of iron objects in the disturbed deposits overlying the hearths and building [250] supports their interpretation as iron smithing hearths. The unsophisticated nature of the building may therefore be explained by its function as a simple industrial shelter, probably of the late 3rd and early 4th century.

A series of postholes to the east of the building appear to run parallel to the N-S wall and may represent the position of an associated structure.

The stone walls appear to have been completely robbed and the robber trenches contained large unabraded sherds of 4th century pottery.

Wessex Archaeology, 1984, Fire Headquarters Site, County Hall, Colliton Park, Dorchester (Excavation archive). SDO10075.

Royal Air Force, 22-JAN-1948, RAF/CPE/UK/2431 RS 4205-6, 1431021 (Aerial Photograph). SDO14793.

<1> Cox, P W, 1984, 'Excavations at County Hall, Dorchester, 1984. An Interim Note' Proceedings of the Dorset Natural History and Archaeological Society, 118-119 (Article in serial). SDO9676.

<2> Smith, R J C, 1993, Excavations at County Hall, Colliton Park, Dorchester, Dorset, 1988 in the North-West Quarter of Durnovaria, 89-93 (Monograph). SDO9660.

<3> Drew, C D, and Collingwood Selby, K C, 1938, 'The Excavations at Colliton Park, Dorchester: Second Interim report; Excavations carried out in the season of 1938' Proceedings of the Dorset Natural History and Archaeological Society, 51-65 (Article in serial). SDO9765.

Record last edited

Aug 22 2024 7:30PM