EDO3734 - Wessex Court, Charles Street, Dorchester; Trench 4

Trench 4, together with trench 5, formed the second stage of archaeological excavations conducted by Wessex Archaeology in advance of the proposed Wessex Court retail development, Charles Street, Dorchester in 1989. The trench was located towards the SW corner of the development area and measured approximately 35m N-S and 13m E-W. The location was chosen to investigate an early Roman ditch which may have marked the position of an early Roman fort, initial town planning or other feature. The earliest feature was a small prehistoric gully ditch aligned NE-SW and interpreted as a possible palisade trench. A Roman road aligned NE-SW was found running across the trench and is probably the continuation of the road found in Wollaston Field (1). The earliest road surface dated from the 1st century AD but up to 6 further re-surfacings were present. The latest phases contained 3rd and 4th century pottery and may have dated from the post-Roman period. Two superimposed early Roman post-built structures were found north of this road. The earlier building was aligned on the road and had a central hearth and three infant burials along its eastern wall. The later structure was associated with mid 1st to early 2nd century AD pottery. An early Roman well was also located at the southern end of the trench. Elements of three heavily-robbed late Roman stone buildings were found. Two buildings were aligned on the Roman road, replacing the earlier timber buildings. The third building was only glimpsed in the NW corner of the trench and may have enclosed a well. 5 infant burials were closely associated with the walls of these structures. A patchy stone surface ran parallel to and south of the road and may represent a post-Roman path. Two robber trenches may also be associated with this and later periods.