Monument record MDO2411 - Sherborne House; 18th century garden

Sherborne House was erected in the early 18th century and is shown on the map of Lord Digby’s manor dated 1733. The Ordnance Survey maps depict the gardens of Sherborne House, with paths, ornamental trees, glashouses and pavilions.

Sherborne House was erected in the early 18th century and is shown on the map of Lord Digby’s manor dated 1733. The Ordnance Survey maps depict the gardens of Sherborne House, with paths, ornamental trees, glashouses and pavilions. A curvilinear boundary is also shown on the eastern plot, but no evidence of this remains on the ground [1].

During 1997 AC Archaeology conducted an archaeological evaluation of land at the rear of Sherborne House. Trench 4 in Area B contained an approximately NE-SW aligned ditch [F403] along the full length of the trench with a slightly curving orientation. It measured 1.2m wide but only 0.2m deep with a profile resembling a shallow scoop rather than a well defined cut. Its fill contained glass, slate, brick and a small fragment of post-medieval pottery. It is likely that this feature may have been part of the 18th century formal landscape gardens behind Sherborne House [2].

<1> Whitehead, B, 1996, Archaeological assessment of land at rear of Sherborne House, Sherborne, Dorset. (Unpublished document). SDO10246.

<2> Valentin, J, 1997, An archaeological evaluation of land at the rear of Sherborne House, Sherborne, Dorset: Areas B and C (Unpublished document). SDO10382.

Record last edited

Aug 23 2024 1:10PM