Monument record MDO37236 - Roman ditch, Southdown Ridge, Weymouth

A curvilinear ditch excavated during archaeological work in 2008-2009 in advance of construction of the Weymouth Relief Road. The ditch was of Roman date and would have enclosed an area approximately 25 metres in diameter. It was interpreted as a probable livestock enclosure.

Excavations at Southdown Ridge in advance of construction of the Weymouth Relief Road revealed a curvilinear ditch at the northern end of the site. The ditch was interpreted as the western part of a circular enclosure. The ditch was 1m wide and varied in depth from 0.35m to 0.51m. The primary filling of the ditch was a yellowish silty clay created through erosion from the outer edge. It contained a single sherd of early Roman orange ware, showing that the feature had started to fill during the Roman period. The upper filling of the ditch contained half a dozen small pieces of Poole Harbour ware. Because the feature contained so little occupation material the excavators concluded that it was located away from domestic activity and was probably a livestock pen. {1}

<1> Brown, L, Hayden, C and Score, D, 2014, 'Down to Weymouth town by Ridgeway'. Prehistoric, Roman and later sites along the Weymouth Relief Road, 194-195 (Monograph). SDO14013.

Record last edited

Jun 29 2015 11:10AM