Monument record MDO18108 - Greyhound Yard Late Neolithic Post Pit Arc 5540

An arc of twenty-one post pits forming part of a large timber monument, dating to about 2700BC, found during the Wessex Archaeology 1984 excavations at Greyhound Yard.

Found during the excavations carried out by Wessex Archaeology in 1984 prior to the redevelopment of the area of the former Greyhound Yard. (1) The results of the excavation were published together with the results of the adjacent Old Methodist Chapel excavations. (2) The numbers in square brackets below are context and feature numbers used in the published report (2).

An arc of 21 large post pits of similar size and shape. The postpits were ovate in plan, measuring between 3-6m in length, 2-3 in width and about 2.8m deep. They had a vertical east side and a sloping west side with postpipes between 0.8-1.2m in diameter against the eastern vertical face. The ramps became steeper towards the base of the postpit and were often smoothed or with a layer of compacted chalk. The postpits were filled with layers of rammed chalk and soil. The timbers within the postpits were projected to be between 6-11m in length and the charcoal suggested they were of oak. The molluscan evidence suggests the monument was constructed in an open scrubby woodland environment and that the monument may have existed in an open grassland environment. The monument was constructed c. 2700 BC on the basis of the finds and radiocarbon determinations.

Excavations at Greyhound Yard in 1984-6 revealed an arc of large post-pits whch are believed to represent part of the south-west side of a massive timber palisaded enclosure of later Neolithic date. The earliest feature on site is a single pit, which was cut by one of the later post pits. 21 post pits were identified in the excavated area, and were associated with a flanking gulley lying just outside the enclosed area to the west. The post pits were 3-6 metres long and 2-3 metres wide, with a maximum depth in the natural chalk of 2.8 metres. Each had a vertical eastern face, and a long sloping ramp on the western side. Their fills included some residual early Neolithic material, while the backfill of the post pits featured Grooved Ware and some Peterborough Ware sherds. Early Bronze Age material, including collared urn sherds, clearly post-dated the monument. The posts, of oak and each 1 metre in diameter and spaced about 1 metre apart, appear to have been burnt in situ. A series of radiocarbon dates offer a date range of circa 2900-2340 BC (calibrated). The gulley was of more irregular construction, varying between 1 and 2 metres wide, and a maximum of 30 centimetres deep. Assuming the arc represents a circle, the proposed enclosure would be circa 290 metres in diameter, enclosing some 7 hectares. However, some further pits exposed to the north, in Church Street, in 1982-3 are of similar construction and have yielded a similar radiocarbon date. Their location would suggest an enclosure of some 380 metres maximum diameter, enclosing some 11 hectares. Further excavations to the rear of 1-2 Acland street in 1989 found five further posts belonging to the monument. It was also noted further south beneath the Repository, but unexpectedly at the east end of the trench where three post pits were found. The alignment had changed markedly, swinging to the east, which contradicts earlier interpretations that the monument is an arc or circle. <1-4>

<1> Woodward, P J , Davies, S M , and Graham, A H, 1984, Excavations at the Greyhound Yard Car Park, Dorchester, 1984, 99-106 (Article in serial). SDO9437.

<2> Woodward, P J , Davies, S M , and Graham, A H, 1993, Excavations at the Old Methodist Chapel and Greyhound Yard, Dorchester, 1981-1984, 24-30 (Monograph). SDO9411.

<3> Trust for Wessex Archaeology, 1983, Dorchester, Durnovaria: Excavations in the town centre at Greyhound Yard, and the Old Methodist Chapel (1982-1984): Interim and introductory notes to the current excavations (Unpublished document). SDO9435.

<4> Wessex Archaeology, 1984, Greyhound Yard, Dorchester excavation archive (Excavation archive). SDO9456.

<5> National Record of the Historic Environment, 1147728 (Digital archive). SDO14739.

Record last edited

Aug 22 2024 7:26PM