SDO12322 - Archaeological Investigations During Underpinning of The Court House, Poyntington, Dorset

During September 1996, archaeological recording work was carried out during urgent repairs to the south wing of the Court House, Poyntington, Dorset. The Court House - one of the oldest inhabited buildings in Dorset - required large scale underpinnning to stablise the eastern gable wall. The underpinning excavations were carried out by a team of archaeologists, and provided evidence for the wall fabric, construction technique, history of repair and date of the building. In addition, a human skeleton was found, seemingly pre-dating the Court House, and likely to be associated wth an early phase of the adjacent medieval church. On the evidence of pottery found associated with the gable wall foundations, the construction of this wing of the Court House can be confirmed as dating to the 14th century.