Monument record MDO755 - Water meadows, Mill Mead, Cerne Abbas

A probable 18th-century water meadow lies the south of the Village Hall, Cerne Abbas on a field known as Mill Mead. The remaining earthworks comprise a series of parallel E-W aligned ditches fed by the River Cerne to the east. A tail leat then flows along the west and south sides of the field, draining back into a tributary to the Cerne at the SW corner of the field. The features are visible as earthworks on 1940s aerial photographs and Environment Agency lidar imagery and were digitally plotted during the Dorset Upper Cerne and Piddle Valleys Aim project. The water meadow continues northwards on the north side of the road, recorded under MDO48429.

AC Archaeology conducted a desk based assessment of land for a proposed village Hall at Cerne Abbas during 1998. This comprised a review of the data held in the Dorset HER, the Dorset History Centre and the Dorchester Reference Library. A detailed site inspection and earthwork survey was also carried out.

The study revealed that the site included remains of an 18th century water meadow system of significant local and regional importance. There is also the potential for a medieval building having existed on the site, in the higher western part above the flood plain of the River Cerne. This zone may be close to a former route to the abbey precinct. However, the site is known have been quarried prior to the late 19th century and subsequently backfilled (Valentin 1998).

The features are visible as earthworks on 1940s aerial photographs and Environment Agency lidar imagery and were digitally plotted during the Dorset Upper Cerne and Piddle Valleys Aim project. The northern end of the site is now developed over. The water meadow continues northwards on the north side of the road, recorded under MDO48429. <2, 3>

<1> Valentin, J, 1998, A Proposed New Village Hall on Land at Cerne Abbas, Dorset; Preliminary Archaeological Assessment (Unpublished document). SDO11323.

<2> Royal Air Force, 11-APR-1947, RAF/CPE/UK/1974 FS 2377 (Aerial Photograph). SDO20883.

<3> Environment Agency, 16-NOV-2021, LIDAR Environment Agency DTM (Aerial Photograph). SDO18034.

Record last edited

Nov 1 2024 11:46AM