EDO3851 - Southfield House, Dorchester; Trench 5

Southfield House lies across the line of the southern defences of the Roman town of Durnovaria, immediately east of the the suggested site of the south gate and the Roman road to Radipole. Following the observation of eight test pits excavated by developers in 1986, an evaluation of the site was carried out by Wessex Archaeology during June and July 1987. Six trial trenches were excavated by machine in the garden of Southfield House, mainly aligned N-S across the line of the Roman town defences. Trench 5 was aligned N-S in the NW corner of the site on the west side of Southfield House. It measured 11m long and 1.6m wide and was excavated to a maximum depth of 1.17m at the north end and 0.97m at the south end on to natural chalk bedrock. It was positioned in order to find evidence for the south gate of the Roman town of Durnovaria. Part of the counterscarp bank was found at the southern end of the trench and the edge of the outer ditch of the Roman town defences was found in the north end of the trench. It was considered that the relative shallowness of the ditch profile suggests the beginning of a ditch terminal here.