Monument record MDO18477 - Poundbury Post-Roman Structure PR6

Post-Roman structure, PR6, was discovered within the south central part of the later post-Roman enclosure during the 1966-79 excavations at Poundbury, Dorchester. This sunken-featured building had stood on a partially destroyed terrace and surrounded by a small ditched enclosure (PR6). Large numbers of stake-holes were identified over the terrace, including two rows on the western side. In the centre of the platform a patch of discoloured chalk may mark a hearth. This structure was assigned initially to phase VB and subsequently reassigned to post-Roman phase 2 settlement. The size of this structure is comparable to small sheds from the Roman period settlement, but it is likely that this hut served a dual domestic and workshop function. Sparey-Green has recently suggested that these sunken dwellings represent individual cells for a religious (possibly female) community established on the site of the late Roman cemetery.

Found during the excavations directed by Christopher Sparey Green, for the Dorchester Excavation Committee, between 1966 and 1979 during development of the Grove Trading Estate on the eastern slopes of Poundbury Camp, Dorchester (1). The numbers in square brackets below refer to the context and feature numbers used in the published excavation report and archive (1)(2). Further refinement of the post-Roman settlement sequence has been undertaken by Christopher Sparey Green since the initial publication of the site and this has been taken into account in the following description (3) (4).

PR6, a sunken-featured building, had stood on a partially destroyed terrace [E85] of approximately triangular plan with sides 6.1m-7.6m long, which lay on the eastern side of Site E, within the minor ditched enclosure PR6. The NE corner and centre had been damaged by erosion and modern disturbances but large numbers of stake-holes were identified over the remainder of the terrace floor. No clear pattern could be discerned, but two clear lines of stakeholes could be identified on the western side. One line was along the western uphill edge and another band occurred about 1.2m to the east. Many other stakeholes were noted over the remaining SE part of the floor, however, many of these were cut into grave fills and could have been pockets of soil within their chalk rubble fill. In the centre of the platform a patch of discoloured chalk may mark a hearth. On the northern edge a cluster of three eroded hollows [E154] up to 0.25m deep may have been the remnants of a re-cut post-hole (1).

The size of this structure is comparable to small sheds from the Roman period settlement, but it is likely that this hut served a dual domestic and workshop function (1). Sparey-Green has recently suggested that these sunken dwellings represent individual cells for a religious (possibly female) community established on the site of the late Roman cemetery (4).

Post-Roman building PR6 was originally included in phase VB in the published monograph (1). A subsequent review of the post-Roman evidence has placed it in the post-Roman phase 2 settlement (3). Phase 2 of the settlement is distinguished by the appearance of small terraced or sunken-floored buildings of post and wattle construction, each surrounded by irregular ditched enclosures (PR6-10 and PR13) (3).

<1> Sparey Green, C, 1987, Excavations at Poundbury, Dorchester, Dorset 1966-1982. Volume 1: The Settlements (Monograph). SDO9630.

<2> Sparey Green, C, 1966-1979, Poundbury, Grove Trading Estate, Dorchester (Excavation archive). SDO10096.

<3> Sparey Green, C J, 1996, Poundbury, Dorset: settlement and economy in the Late and post-Roman Dorchester (Article in monograph). SDO10040.

<4> Sparey Green, C J, Living amongst the dead: From Roman cemetery to post-Roman monastic settlement at Poundbury (Article in monograph). SDO10041.

Record last edited

Aug 3 2010 5:32PM