Monument record MDO3891 - Ovens, Chantry Fields, Gillingham

'Evaluation work on the line of the Gillingham Relief Road continued in 1990; previous evaluation work was briefly reported in PDNHAS 111, 1989, 111. Earthworks in Chantry Fields to the south of the River Stour had been identified by P. W. Cox. Small scale evaluation work suggested that these were early medieval in date and indicated possible industrial activity; one trench revealed a possible stone building footing. In view of the potential importance of the site, further excavation, commissioned by Dorset County Council, was carried out in November and December 1990. An earthwork survey was caried out by the Salisbury office of the Royal Commission on Historical Monuments (England).

The earthworks ST806264 comprise a series of intersecting linear features delineating raised areas or platforms. On one of the platforms which will be partially destroyed by the road several early medieval ditches were identified partly sealed by a dump (probably also medieval) of building stone. Excavations on another small platform uncovered the remains of two ovens which are also believed to be of early medieval date, and which are tentativeley interpreted as iron-ore roasting ovens associated with iron smelting.

The ovens lay just inches beneath the surface of a meadow that has remained virtually unploughed since the Norman Conquest. The ovens consisted of shallow pits lined with stone and fired clay, with evidence that they had been redesigned and rebuilt on at least three separate occasions. A third oven, consisting of a long stone-lined flue connecting a stoke-hole and stone-lined chamber was constructed on a completely different orientation, cutting across the ends of the two earlier ovens. Samples of the in situ fired clay lining from one of the first phase kilns have been taken by Dr Tony Clark to provide an archaeo-magnetic date for the use of the ovens. The shallow soil build-ups within and around the ovens suggest a short timespan between the first and last uses.

Although medieval iron working sites are well known from other parts of the country, particularly the Weald, the process of roasting poor quality local ores to improve them prior to smelting is represented by only a few sites in Britain and Europe, and at present there are no known parallels for the Gillingham ovens.

A watching brief will be carried out during the construction of the road in the vicinity of the site.' {1}

Heaton, M, 1990, Gillingham Relief Road, Gillingham, Dorset. Archaeological Assessment. (Unpublished document). SDO193.

Dorset Natural History and Archaeological Society, 1990, Proceedings of the Dorset Natural History and Archaeological Society for 1989, 111 (Serial). SDO89.

<1> Dorset Natural History and Archaeological Society, 1991, Proceedings of the Dorset Natural History and Archaeological Society for 1990, 122 (Serial). SDO90.

Record last edited

May 16 2019 1:12PM