Monument record MDO31542 - Post medieval sand pit, Corfe Common, Corfe Castle

A pit is visible as an earthwork on aerial photographs of the western edge of Corfe Common, Corfe Castle. It is considered likely to be the remains of a post medieval extractive pit, probably associated with the extraction of sand or gravel. A number of sand pits on Cofe Common produced a fine grey sand. This mineral may have been used in the stone polishing industry.

Sand Pit (1) A number of sand pits on Corfe Common produced a fine grey sand. This mineral may have been used in the stone polishing industry. At least four sand pits survive on Corfe Common. The largest is at SY95698099. Others are at SY96088094; SY96178085 and SY96958120.<2>

A pit is visible as an earthwork on aerial photographs <4> of the western edge of Corfe Common, Corfe Castle. It is considered likely to be the remains of a post medieval extractive pit, probably associated with the extraction of sand or gravel. This feature was digitally plotted during the Wild Purbeck mapping project.

<1> Papworth, M, 1993, Corfe Village, Common and Vineyard Farm, Corfe Castle Estate, Wessex Region (Unpublished document). SWX8224.

<2> Fletcher, Martin, Field investigator's comments MJF, F1 MJF 20 Dec 2003 (Unpublished document). SDO17630.

<3> Historic England, Historic England Archive, AF00137 (Index). SDO14738.

Corfe Common, Dorset. A large scale archaeological survey and investigation of Corfe Common was commissioned by the National Trust to provide detailed information to aid future management and conservation decisions. The common is a unique landscape, an SSSI entirely enclosed by cultivated land, which incorporates an impressive variety of relatively undisturbed archaeological features. The analytical investigation was undertaken by staff from the English Heritage Exeter Office in the Spring of 2003.Background AutoCAD files stored on CD03001: 'Plan.dwg' and '1to10000plan.dwg'.

<4> Royal Air Force, 18-FEB-1970, RAF 58/0254 0022 (Aerial Photograph). SDO13680.

Record last edited

Aug 25 2023 11:50AM