Monument record MWX690 - Iron Age and Romano-British settlement at Cuckoo-pound Lane, Arne

Cropmarks and excavation have revealed an Iron Age and Romano-British settlement dating from the late Iron Age to the 3rd century AD consisting of an enclosure, pottery kilns, workshops and clay pits. Bronze Age flints were found.

SY 91258695 and 91488669. Occupation debris was found in a field W of Cuckoo Pound Lane, towards the crest of the ridge and to the SE overlooking the flood plain of the River Frome. The pottery which is in the Dorset County Museum ranged from 1st or 2nd century to the 4th and seems to be mainly domestic waste. A mass of pottery, untraced, was seen lying on "river gravel" at a depth of 3ft, when an army camp existed on the site in 1915. The pottery from the camp was thought to be derived from Romano-British pottery kilns. Flint flakes and scrapers from the field (centred SY 913867) are also in the museum. A barbed and tanged arrowhead of white flint was found at SY 91488669 in the SE corner of the field. (1-4)

A large settlement enclosure is visible (at SY 91388668) on air photographs (not cited), consisting of ditches and possible pits. The eastern part has been obliterated by the playing field of a new school, leaving a pottery scatter and dark patches. High magnetometer readings suggested that the remains of kilns might survive here. On the part of the settlement to be destroyed by the Wareham by-pass, the geophysical survey located the enclosure ditch in two places. A working hypothesis of the site suggests a Romano-British settlement associated with kilns, workshops, clay-pits etc. Plan (5).

SY 91558675. Small quantity of 2nd-4th century coarse ware found during field walking in 1976 (6).

Site not visible on RAF air photographs.

Part of the site was excavated in 1986 when the Wareham Bypass was built locating an extensive system of ditched enclosures dating from the late Iron Age to the 3rd century AD. No settlement features were recorded. Six kilns, mid 2nd - late 3rd century AD, were also excavated. Each comprised of a simple single chambered, single flue design.

Hearne, Carrie M and Smith, R J C, 1991, A Late Iron Age Settlement and Black Burnished Ware (BB1) Production Site at Worgret, near Wareham, Dorset (1986-87); Proceedings of the Dorset Natural History and Archaeological Society (Article in serial). SWX717.

<1> Royal Commission on Historical Monuments (England), 1970, An Inventory of Historical Monuments in the County of Dorset, Volume II (South East) Part 3, 592-3 (Monograph). SDO150.

‘(49) Worgret (SY 98 NW). Occupation Debris was found in 1952 and 1955 in a field W. of Cuckoo Pound Lane, on Valley Gravel, towards the crest of the ridge (91258695) and to the S.E. overlooking the flood-plain of the R. Frome (91488669). The pottery (in D.C.M.), ranging from the 1st or 2nd century to the 4th century, seems to be domestic waste. In an army camp here in 1915 a mass of pottery, untraced, was observed lying on 'river gravel' at a depth of 3 ft. and was thought to be derived from Romano-British pottery-kilns. (Dorset Procs. XXXVI (1915), xl-xli; LXXIV (1952), 96; LXXVII (1955), 151.).’

<2> Proc Dorset Nat Hist. Antiq. FC (Article in serial). SWX2986.

<3> 1952, Proceedings of the Dorset Natural History and Archaeological Society, 96 (Article in serial). SWX2987.

<4> Farrar, R A H, 1955, Archaeological Fieldwork in Dorset 1955; Proceedings of the Dorset Natural History and Archaeological Society, 151 (Article in serial). SWX1552.

<5> The Wareham By pass - Archaeological Implications (Dorset Arch Comm) June 1975 7-8 (D E Johnston) plan (Unspecified Type). SWX2989.

<6> Johnston D E (compiled by Keen L), 1976, Dorset Archaeology in 1976- Wareham St. Martin, p62 (Article in serial). SWX2990.

<7> Cox P W and Smith R, 1986, Wareham bypass II, Excavations 1986: an Interim Report, p180-181 (Article in serial). SWX2991.

<8> Borthwick, A and Cox, P W, 1992, Proposed Retail Development Site, Worgret Road, Wareham, Dorset (Unpublished document). SWX8509.

<9> Hearne, C M, 1991, Wareham to Stoborough Water Main - Archaeological Observations (Article in serial). SWX8751.

<11> National Record of the Historic Environment (Digital archive). SDO14739.

Record last edited

Feb 5 2024 11:15AM