Monument record MDO18797 - Merchant's Garage, High West Street, Dorchester; Early Roman boundary ditch 269

An early Roman property boundary ditch running north from the 1st century AD timber building 209/212 was found during observations and recording at the site of the former Merchant’s Garage, High East Street, Dorchester in 1983. The southern end of this N-S ditch was adjacent to the NE corner of the timber building and it continued northwards beyond the limits of the excavation, probably marking the eastern side of this property. It had silted up by the end of the 1st century AD.

An early Roman property boundary ditch was found during observations and recording at the site of the former Merchant’s Garage, High East Street, Dorchester in 1983 (1) (2). This ditch was aligned roughly N-S on the line of the eastern end of the early Roman timber building 209/212. This ditch must have terminated just before reaching the NE corner of the building, but the terminal had been destroyed by a later pit. The ditch continued beyond the excavation to the north, but must have soon terminated as it was not picked up on the Library Site to the north. The ditch was 0.6m deep with a flat bottom and ws filled with a reddish-brown soil containing 1st-century AD pottery, including many conjoining sherds of a large Black-burnished ware jar with countersunk handles. This boundary ditch appears to have been dug after the construction of Building 209/212 and probably defined the eastern side of the boundary of this property. This boundary ditch appears to have silted up by the end of the 1st century AD.

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, 41-54 (Article in serial). SDO9677.

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

Record last edited

Aug 22 2024 7:31PM