Monument record MDO18793 - Merchant's Garage, High West Street, Dorchester; ?prehistoric activity

A possible late prehistoric boundary ditch and a pit were found during observations and recording on the site of the former Merchant's Garage, High East Street, Dorchester in 1983 (1) (2). The ditch was aligned WNW-ESE and appeared to have been dug in a number of short sections as its width and depth varied considerably: one very narrow causeway was found. The ditch appears to have silted up naturally with material very similar to the pre-urnban soils and no artefacts were recovered. The character of the fills and the lack of finds suggest a pre-Roman date for this ditch, which is stratigraphically earlier than a first-century AD boundary ditch. The alignment of the ditch is at right angles to a series of ditches of possible pre-Roman date found at Colliton Park in 1984 and it is possible that they form part of a late prehistoric field system across this part of Dorchester.

Some possible Late Prehistoric features were found during observations and recording on the site of the former Merchant's Garage, High East Street, Dorchester in 1983 (1) (2). A ditch aligned WNW-ESE was found running across the northern part of the site. This ditch appeared to have been dug in a number of short sections as its width and depth varied considerably. One very narrow causeway was found in this ditch. It had steep sides and a flat bottom and was between 0.2-0.5m deep. It was filled with yellowish-brown and reddish-brown clay, very similar to the pre-urban soils. The ditch appears to have silted up naturally and no artefacts were recovered from it. The character of the fills and the lack of finds suggest a pre-Roman date for this ditch, which is stratigraphically earlier than a first-century AD boundary ditch. The alignment of the ditch is at right angles to a series of ditches of possible pre-Roman date found at Colliton Park in 1984 (3) and it is possible that they form part of a late prehistoric field system across this part of Dorchester.

One other possibly contemporary feature was a possible pit which had a similar fill to the ditch and was also devoid of finds.

National Monuments Record, NMR Monument Record, SY 69 SE 385 (Index). SDO9937.

<1> Bellamy, P S, 1991, Observations at Merchant’s Garage, High West Street, Dorchester, 1983. Proceedings of the Dorset Natural History and Archaeological Society, 44 (Article in serial). SDO9677.

<2> Bellamy, P S, 1983, Merchant's Garage, High West Street, Dorchester (Excavation archive). SDO10188.

<3> Smith, R J C, 1993, Excavations at County Hall, Colliton Park, Dorchester, Dorset, 1988 in the North-West Quarter of Durnovaria, 9-11 (Monograph). SDO9660.

Record last edited

Aug 22 2024 7:31PM