Monument record MDO41289 - Possible late prehistoric field system, Little Moors Farm, Ferndown Town

A series of ditched linear and curvilinear features to the southeast of Little Moors Farmare visible as cropmarks on 1940s aerial photographs. The features may be modern agricultural marks but alternatively they could be field boundaries and enclosures of possible late prehistoric origin. They were digitally plotted by the Dorset Stour NMP project.

A series of ditched linear and curvilinear features to the southeast of Little Moors Farmare visible as cropmarks on 1940s aerial photographs (1).

The features are only visible in 1947 and could not be verified on later aerial photographs. It is possible that they are modern agricultural marks but their character is potentially archaeological and they could alternatively be field boundaries and enclosures of possible late prehistoric origin.

The features potentially include two or three large irrgular curvilinear enclosures and some shorter linear sections of field boundaries or trackways. There is also the suggestion of two possible sub-circular ring-ditches or enclosures approximately 12m in diameter. The features are potentially overlain by a series of parallel linear features which are also visible on the same 1947 aerial photograph and which may be trackways (MDO41288) of post medieval agricultural origin (1). It is possible that some apparently later features are in fact of earlier origin, and vice versa; there is currently fairly low confidence in their interpretation, however, due to the lack of supporting evidence.

The site is still arable fields on current Google Earth imagery but the features are no longer visible. They were digitally plotted by the Dorset Stour NMP project.

<1> Royal Air Force, 17-JAN-47, RAF/CPE/UK/1934 RP 3184-5 (Aerial Photograph). SDO16089.

Record last edited

Jul 23 2018 1:54PM