Monument record MDO18036 - Maiden Castle Road grave 02220

An outlying 4th-century AD grave to the north of the Maiden Castle Road Roman cemetery. An extended inhumation oriented E-W in a wooden coffin with a limestone slab over the head and torso. Two copper alloy bracelets were found on the wrists and hobnails by the feet. An iron buckle may also be a grave good.

Found during the excavations to the north of Maiden Castle Road undertaken by Wessex Archaeology in 1987 in advance of the Dorchester By-pass construction. The following description is abstracted from the final published report on the site (1). The numbers in square brackets refer to context numbers quoted in the report.

An outlying grave to the north of the cemetery. This rectangular grave was oriented E-W and contained the extended supine inhumation of an adult ?female with head to the west. The burial was in a wooden coffin as indicated by coffin nails, with a limestone slab placed above over the head and body. Two copper alloy bracelets were found on the arms/wrists of this burial and 43 hobnails were found at the feet. An iron buckle was also found and may also have been a grave good.

The recovery of part of a New Forest red-slipped ware bowl dated c. AD345-380 from the grave indicates the burial is 4th century AD in date. Conjoining fragments of the same vessel were also found in Grave [02320]. The bracelets are probably 3rd-4th century AD in date.

National Record of the Historic Environment, 983909 (Digital archive). SDO14739.

Wessex Archaeology, 1987, Dorchester By-pass (Excavation archive). SDO9385.

Woodward, P J and Smith, R J C, 1987, Survey and excavation along the route of the Southern Dorchester By-pass, 1986-1987 – an interim note, 79-89 (Article in serial). SDO9381.

<1> Smith, R J C et al, 1997, Excavations along the Route of the Dorchester By-pass, Dorset, 1986-8, 56-70 (Monograph). SDO9379.

Record last edited

Dec 6 2023 8:04PM