Monument record MDO21887 - Romano British ditch, Bell Street, Herston, Swanage

A ditch containing Romano-British pottery was excavated during an evaluation of land adjacent to Bell Street. The ditch followed the same alignment as later medieval strip fields.

Excavated during an archaeological desk-based assessment and field evaluation were undertaken by Wessex Archaeology during March 1996 at land adjacent to Bell Street, Herston, Swanage,in advance of proposed residential development.

The excavation of nine machine-cut trenches covering 2% of the proposal site, revealed evidence for prehistoric, Roman and later features.
A small ditch of possible Romano-British date was discovered within Trench 5; this feature appears to be an isolated field boundary, and runs parallel to the later medieval strip fields which survived as earthworks in the southern part of the site prior to development. The ditch was sealed by colluvium (hill-wash associated with arable cultivation). The date of the beginnings of colluviation is not known, though the earliest material found in it was a single sherd of Romano-British pottery from Trench 7.[1]

<2> Hutcheson, A, 1996, Land Adjacent to Bell Street, Swanage, Dorset. Archaeological Assessment and Evaluation (Unpublished document). SWX8551.

Record last edited

Jan 3 2021 1:57PM