EDO3819 - The Grove, Dorchester; watching brief 2003

An archaeological watching brief during the drilling of seven boreholes through the defensive ramparts of the Roman town at The Grove, Dorchester, Dorset, was carried out by AC archaeology during November 2003. The site is a Scheduled Monument (SM Dorset M141) and the work was undertaken in accordance with Scheduled Monument Consent received from DCMS. In most boreholes evidence for layers forming the town ramparts was revealed. The various layers recorded within each borehole while locally variable, are generally consistent with the sequence previously recorded for the ramparts in this area. It has been established during earlier work that they were constructed using alternate layers of loam and chalk rubble. Layers of this type were recorded in all cores except the most northerly borehole, which exhibited a very shallow sequence above chalk bedrock.