Monument record MDO43522 - Deer Park, Bryanston

Field and place names in Bryanston parish, notably Old Park Wood, Old Park Linhay, Old Park, and Old Park Cottage, and the topography in the vicinity of the area strongly suggest a Mediaeval deer park.

(ST 85 06 Deer park sited to Bryanston from Auth 1 and OS 6" 1969) Field and place names in Bryanston parish, notably Old Park Wood, Old Park Linhay, Old Park, and Old Park Cottage, and the topography in the vicinity of the area strongly suggest a Mediaeval deer park. <1>

<1> Dorset Natural History and Archaeological Society, 1980, Proceedings of the Dorset Natural History and Archaeological Society for 1977, 9-10 (Serial). SDO77.

'BRYANSTON (P. 2). At Bryanston the only evidence for a park lies in a group of field names in a dray valley running south-west from the school and village. The six-inch OS map shows Old Park, Old Park Cottage, Old Park Linhay and Old Park Wood. Regrettably, nothing in the area can be found to confirm the existence of an embanked park here, though the location is a promising one. The southern slopes of the valley are occupied by strip lycnhets (RCHME, III, Pt. I, p. 48) and the scarp of one of them south of Old Park Wood, is in a position where it could well have bene utilised as ar park boundary, taking advantage of the slope of the hillside. But no trace of the south-western end of the park can be seen, and the whale-back down on which the northern side pf the park would perhaps have been situated reveals nothing, on the ground or in air photographs. Nor can any embankment be seen around Old Park Wood. Further negative evidence is provided by a Jacobean estate map in the County Record Office. This vicinity being the enigmatic 'Idle Hill'. It is nevertheless felt that the group of Old Park names and their fabourable situation carry enough weight for the existence of a mediaeval park here to be left open.'

<1.1> Ordnance Survey, Ordnance Survey Map 6in, 1969 (Map). SWX1540.

<2> National Record of the Historic Environment, 888631 (Digital archive). SDO14739.

Record last edited

Nov 5 2024 11:19AM