Monument record MDO360 - Roman villa, East Hill, Bradford Abbas

Reports of surface finds (before 1878) of tesserae, pottery sherds and other material such as roof tiles led to discovery of stone-paved floors with a series of kilns, perhaps corn-drying ovens. The probable site of a Roman villa with evidence of Iron Age use of the area. First noted by Professor Buckman, subsequent work included surface collection over a number of years and some excavation, mainly by Mr C E Bean from the 1950s onwards. Excavations uncovered possible Roman corn drying ovens, a rectangular building, tesserae, pottery including samian, 3rd-4th century AD coins, bronze and shale bracelets and a bronze brooch. Large quantities of Iron Age and Roman material were recovered during excavation including a complete ‘Durotrigian’ pedestal bowl.

A Roman villa and five kilns were found on East Hill, south east of east farm, Bradford Abbas. There were significant amounts of Roman and Iron Age finds from the excavations, including large amounts of Roman roofing tiles and Roman pottery. The building is 82ft by 24ft (25m by 7m) with stone walls found along east side and possibly similar rising on the north side. Inside the building a flue, 38cm wide, was excavated in the south-east corner built parallel to the east wall, but not joined to it. 8ft of the flue had survived and was filled with ash. In the north-west corner of the building parts of the Keinton stone paving was still in position, but broken due to agricultural operations. The slabs were originally square and 1½in to 1¾in (3.8cm to 4.4cm) thick.


Remains of Romano-British occupation were discovered in 1878 or before on East Farm, Bradford Abbas, when ploughing in a fifty-acre field, "on the north side of the hill to the east of Bradford, called East hill" yielded an abundance of finds. Excavations in the centre of the field by the occupier of the farm, Professor Buckman, revealed pieces of pavement with five "kilns" or "stoves" (probably corn-drying ovens), stone roofing tiles, rotary querns, crude pottery and a quantity of scattered tesserae. <1>

In 1950 C E Bean found a large amount of roofing tiles and Roman pottery, including late 2nd century Samian forms at ST 59301513, on East Farm; a site which he equates with that discovered by Buckman. Although it lies on a southerly slope, Bean probably substantiated the identification locally, for he mentions speaking with farm labourers who knew of the corn-drying kilns being originally described as "bakehouses". By 1955 ploughing had revealed further Samian sherds, Iron Age "A" pottery, fragments of five greenstone axes and a 3rd century coin, also wall stones and flooring slabs. In 1958 excavations at ST 59331522 uncovered a rectangular stone-paved building some 82 feet by 24 feet, with finds including 19 3rd and 4th century coins, pottery of the same period, bracelets of bronze and Kimmeridge shale, a bronze brooch and a barbed and tanged flint arrowhead. Petrological reports on the five greenstone axes by S W Museums Survey (No's 950-954) indicate that one axe is Group I, a second Group VI (Great Langdale) and a third Group XVII. <2, 3, 5, 6>

The field at ST 593151 was not investigated, due to crops, but appears to be the one excavated originally by Buckman. <4>

DO 2 Listed as the possible site of a Roman villa. <8>

A review of aerial photographs of the site did not positively identify any remains which relate to the villa. There are numerous cropmarks of archaeological and geological origin in the same field. The archaeological cropmarks indicate the presence of prehistoric and/or Roman enclosures and boundaries - see Monument Record 981296 for details. (8)

<1> Buckman, J, 1878, On some Diggings at East Farm, Bradford Abbas. Proceedings of the Dorset Natural History and Archaeological Field Club (Article in serial). SDO16498.

<2> Bean, C E, 1950, Archaeological discoveries in Sherborne and District. Proceedings of the Dorset Natural History and Archaeological Society (Article in serial). SDO10284.

‘3. Bradford Abbas. (a) ST(31)/59301513; 1974/2206-7. The field at the junction and to the east of the lane leading from Bradford Abbas to the top of Babylon Hill with the Sherborne Road, again shows a large amount of Roman pottery, roofing tiles, Samian forms 31, 37, late 2nd cent. A.D. This was originally noted by Professor Buckman (see Proceedings Volume II). From what I have been told by the farm labourers, it was then described as being “bakehouses”. In my mind, I think it may have been corn-drying kilns. I found a T-shaped kiln in the Long Plantation at Pinford Lane. This site has also produced evidence of Iron Age A and B occupation, flint and chert cores flint scrapers.’

<2> Dorset Natural History and Archaeological Society, 1951, Proceedings of the Dorset Natural History and Archaeological Society for 1950, 77 (Serial). SDO50.

<3> Royal Commission on Historical Monuments England, 1952, An Inventory of Historical Monuments in the County of Dorset, Volume I (West), 30 (Monograph). SDO97.

'KILNS etc., found before 1878 in a 50 acre field, said to be on the N. side of East Hill to the E. of Bradford Abbas and reported on by Prof. J. Buckman. Finds of tesserae etc., led, on further investigation, to the discovery of stone-paved floors with a series of two or three flask-shaped kilns built of local stone with a covering of flat slabs; others were found in the angles of rough foundations, making five in all. The accompanying finds included stone roofing-slates, querns of local oolite, Cornish granite and Andernach lava, bracelets of Kimmeridge shale and black and red coarse pottery. (Dorset Nat. Hist. and Ant. F.C. ii, p. 53.) Some of the finds were given to the Corinium Museum, Cirencester, but cannot now be identified.'

<4> Quinnell, N V, Various, Field Investigators Comments NVQ, F1 NVQ 07-JUL-55 (Unpublished document). SDO11903.

<5> Dorset Natural History and Archaeological Society, 1956, Proceedings of the Dorset Natural History and Archaeological Society for 1955, 146 (Serial). SDO55.

‘Bradford Abbas, Early Iron Age and Roman site; ST 593151. The site of the substantial building at East Form, explored by Professor Buckman [Footnote: Proc., II, 1878, pp. 53-8; R.C.H.M., Dorset (West), I, 1952, p. 30], has been under plough for some time, and a watch has been kept by Mr. Bean [Footnote: See also Proc., 72 (1950), p. 77, wherein Mr. Bean fixed the location of the site, which is not on the O.S. maps, and has been omitted from the O.S. Map of Roman Britain]. He reports fragments of Iron Age A situla-shaped vessels, with rim and shoulder imprints, recalling Prof. Buckman’s reference to a ‘rude’ class of pottery on the site, the lower half of an Iron Age rotary quern of oolite, sherds of Samian and a 3rd century radiate coin. Fragments of stone axes, on which a petrological report is awaited, also recall the broken Neolithic ‘celts’ found on the farm by Buckman [Footnote: Proc., II, 1878, pp. 97-103], and examples recorded by Mr. J. Fowler elsewhere in the region (see below).
What remains still exist are suffering severely – wall stones, and large flat slabs from the floors are being rooted out by the plough. Human bones have also been ploughed up west of the site, which is on Inferior Oolite.’

<6> Dorset Natural History and Archaeological Society, 1959, Proceedings of the Dorset Natural History and Archaeological Society for 1958, 98 (Serial). SDO58.

‘A ROMAN BUILDING AT EAST FARM, BRADFORD ABBAS.
Opportunity was taken following the pulling out of further walling stones during the course of ploughing to investigate the field at the junction of the road leading from Sherborne to Bradford Abbas and Yeovil with the other road from Bradford Abbas to the top of Babylon Hill [Footnote: For previous finds, see J. Buckman in Proceedings, Vol. 2, pp. 53-8, also Vols. 72, p. 77, and 77, p. 146] ST 59331522. Excavation was by the kindness of Mr. Franks of Messrs. Cow & Gate Farms Ltd.
Ploughing and robbery had taken away all the southern end of the building uncovered apart from the herringbone foundations. However, at the north end, dressed stone walls, 2 ft. 2 ins. in width, had remained in part. Sufficient excavation was carried out to ascertain the size of the building, which appeared to be some 82 ft. by 24 ft. Inside the building, close to the south-east corner, a flue 15 ins. wide had been built agains and parallel with the east wall foundations but not bonded in [Footnote: This recalls the 5 ovens (for drying corn?) found by Buckman associated with a floor or floors]. The flue, the east wall of which was 1 ft. 10 ins. away from these foundations, survived for 8 ft. and was filled with ash, but its northern end was disturbed, possibly by previous excavation.
At the north-west corner the Keinton stone paving of the floor was still in position though broken by agricultural operation and the stone rubble which appeared to have been packed in during levelling operations. The slabs appeared to have been originally carefully squared and dressed and to be 1½ in. to 1¼ in. in thickness. 19 coins (14 3rd century, 5 4th century) were found; I am indebted to Mr. R. A. G. Carson for the identifications. The pottery adjacent to the walls also seemed of this date. Inside the building some 12 ft. from its north-west corner an earlier trench had been filled in to carry the later wall, and in the fill and ash from this trench was found practically a complete pedestalled bead-rim bowl (Brailsford, type 2), lying inverted, also pieces of types 3 and 12.
Small finds were:- parts of Kimmeridge shale and bronze bracelets, a bronze brooch (cf. Rotherley, c, 4 and 6) with a spiral spring, a leaf-shaped and a barbed and tanged flint arrow-head [Footnote: For stone axes from this site, see below, p. 99]. The site is on the edge of the Inferior Oolite at its junction with the Midford Sands.’

<7> Ordnance Survey, Ordnance Survey Map 6in, 1962 (Map). SWX1540.

(ST 593151) Roman Building (site of) (Not published on County series maps)

<8> Scott, E, 1993, A Gazetteer of Roman villas in Britain (Bibliographic reference). SWX1795.

<9> Royal Commission on Historic Monuments, Externally held archive: RCH01/088 RCHME Inventory: Dorset I (West) and Revision (Unpublished document). SDO17367.

<10> Winton, H and Grady, D, 2013, A Roman Camp at Bradford Abbas, Dorset. Aerial Investigation and Mapping (Unpublished document). SDO14940.

<11> National Record of the Historic Environment, 196041 (Digital archive). SDO14739.

Record last edited

Oct 16 2024 10:58AM