SDO15116 - Royal Manor School, Weston, Portland, Dorset. Results of an Archaeological Evaluation

‘An archaeological field evaluation on a raised terrace that is part of playing fields opposite Royal Manor School, Weston Road, Portland, Dorset (NGR SY 6845 7170) was undertaken by AC archaeology during January 2005. The work was carried out in order to attempt to identify a location for the re-siting of an artificial sports pitch, where groundworks in its original position revealed a multi-period archaeological settlement complex. Remains recorded dated to the Iron Age, Romano-British and Medieval periods, and comprised evidence for at least three buildings. A subsequent geophysical survey of the whole terrace revealed sub-surface anomalies comprising possible walls and cut archaeological features. The current work comprised the machine-excavation of nine trenches located in the northern half of the terrace. The trench excavated closest to the previously recorded archaeological remains (Trench 9) established that probable Romano-British activity continues to the west for a distance of c. 25m where beyond this, soils more indicative of cultivation were recorded. The remainder of the evaluation area revealed evidence that previous landscaping associated with the creation of the playing fields is likely to have removed any archaeological features or deposits that may have once been present.’