Monument record MDO5647 - Pond barrow, Gussage St Michael

A pond barrow near Down Farm and 35 metres north of the Dorset Cursus (Linear 41). The barrow was excavated in 1981-2. These revealed a shallow scooped circular feature circa 20 metres in diameter and up to 32 centimetres deep. It may originally have been surrounded by an external bank, possibly separated from the hollow by a berm. The "pond" appears to have cut through some pits containing Beaker sherds (see SU 01 SW 144. A setting of four postholes occurred near the centre of the pond barrow. One contained sherds of a Food Vessel, and charcoal produced a radiocarbon date of 1500+/-50 bc (uncalibrated). Towards the western edge of the hollow was a concentration of flints representing an episode of knapping. A small cluster of inhumation and cremation burials were situated within and beyond the eastern edge of the hollow, and leading away from them and in line with one of the centre posts and 3 of the cremations were 3 pits. According to the excavators, this line ran parallel with the axis of the cursus. However, this is not possible given the southwest-northeast orientation of the cursus and the apparent northwest-southeast orientation of this line of features. The burials discovered included urned and unurned cremations of both adults and infants, plus some infant inhumations. Associated pottery included Food Vessels and Colalred Urns, and a series of Early Bronze Age radiocarbon dates were obtained from associated charcoal. Other finds with the burials included bone and bronze awls. Four animal burials were found - two cows in pits just outside the pond barrow; and two sheep just inside the northern and southern edges of the hollow respectively. Other clusters of features, mainly pits and postholes, occurred outside the pond barrow. Many are of uncertain date, though animal bone from one produced an Iron Age radiocarbon date. Generally however the end of active use of the site is marked by the infilling with a ploughsoil associated with Deverel-Rimbury sherds.

A pond barrow discovered at SU 0006 1454 on Down Farm, Gussage St Michael, was excavated in 1981 and 1982. Four cremations were recovered including Food Vessel and collored urn cremations, and numerous pits around the barrow. <1-3>

<1> Dorset Natural History and Archaeological Society, 1982, Proceedings of the Dorset Natural History and Archaeological Society for 1981, 117 (Serial). SDO81.

<2> Dorset Natural History and Archaeological Society, 1983, Proceedings of the Dorset Natural History and Archaeological Society for 1982, 170-172 (Serial). SDO82.

<3> 1982, Proceedings of the Prehistoric Society 48, 507-508 (Serial). SDO17156.

<4> Barrett, J, Bradley, R and Green, M, 1991, Landscape, Monuments and Society: the prehistory of Cranborne Chase, 128-139 (Monograph). SDO16633.

<5> National Record of the Historic Environment, 888931 (Digital archive). SDO14739.

Record last edited

Oct 31 2024 1:57PM