Monument record MDO51099 - Possible shrunken medieval settlement, Lillington

An area of possible shrunken medieval settlement to the east of Manor Farm, Lillington, is visible as earthworks on lidar imagery. Banked linear features are not well defined, possibly as a result of ploughing, but appear to suggest an area of small rectilinear closes that extend eastwards at least over half the present field. Further earthworks are visible on a 1947 aerial photograph, linear ditches and banks across the extent of the field, some of which might, however, be later drainage ditches. A historic water channel shown close to the west side of the field on the OS Epoch 1 map pulished in 1887 is still extant in 1947, now covered over.

An area of possible shrunken medieval settlement to the east of Manor Farm, Lillington, is visible as earthworks on lidar imagery. Banked linear features are not well defined, possibly as a result of ploughing, but appear to suggest an area of small rectilinear closes that extend eastwards at least over half the present field. Further earthworks are visible on a 1947 aerial photograph, linear ditches and banks across the extent of the field, some of which might, however, be later drainage ditches. A historic water channel shown close to the west side of the field on the OS Epoch 1 map published in 1887 is still extant in 1947 - 2005 Google Earth imagery shows that the southern part of this was probably altered and cannelised. A historic pond at the southern end of the watercourse was no longer shown on the OS Epoch 2 map published in 1903. The pond appears as a dried up earthwork in 1947 and this area appears to have been filled in and landscaped as part of the works carried out in 2005 (EA 2022; OS 1887; OS 1903; RAF 1947; GE 2005).

Ordnance Survey, Ordnance Survey map 6 inches to 1 mile, Dorset Sheet XI.NE published 1887 (Map). SDO17338.

Ordnance Survey, Ordnance Survey map 6 inches to 1 mile, Dorset Sheet XI.NE published 1903 (Map). SDO17338.

Environment Agency, 2022, LiDAR Composite Viewer - Digital Terrain Model 1m (Aerial Photograph). SDO21777.

Royal Air Force, xx-xxx-1947, RAF VAP 1974/3199 (Aerial Photograph). SDO21970.

Record last edited

Oct 1 2026 3:02PM