SDO145 - Penny's Mead, Cranborne, Dorset. Archaeological Evaluation

Construction of a house at 10 Penny's Mead, Cranborne in 1982 revealed a pit containing material dated to the Middle Saxon period and of considerable regional importance. The Trust for Wessex Archaeology was commissioned by English Heritage to carry out further evaluation of the site in advance of further development. Geophysical survey proved unsuccessful, owing to interference from modern features. Seven trenches were dug, and two revealed evidence of human activity in the form of five sub-circular pits, one of which contained a late Neolithic flint assemblage. No further evidence of Middle Saxon occupation was found. The authors conclude that any major settlement of this period is likely to be in the field to the north, particularly as local residents recall observing quantities of occupation debris on the field surface after ploughing in the early 1900s.