EDO4415 - Harvey Vault, St George’s Church, Fordington, Dorchester; casual observation 1840

During the construction of the Harvey Vault in the churchyard of St George’s, Fordington in 1840, “immediately underneath the foundation of the north wall were found the remains of a horse with a bit in its mouth, a brass buckle, and other relics of the bridle” (1). The bit was an undecorated two-link snaffle-bit of late Iron Age type, with bit of iron, plated in bronze, with bronze cheek rings (2). It was apparently accompanied by two small bronze rings of unequal size (the bit and rings are illustrated in Plate 230 of the Royal Commission Inventory (2)). The bit is described and classified as a single-jointed snaffle by Palk (3), who suggests a mid-late 1st century AD date for this type. It is possible that this is the remains of a pre-Roman chariot burial (2).