Monument record MDO18175 - Linear ditch system, Red Cow Farm, St George's Road, Dorchester

A four undated ditches on varying orientations were found in Trench 2 during the 2004 evaluation of Red Cow Farm by AC archaeology. The ditches were all found together and although all on different alignments may be part of the same field system. These ditches may be part of the same field system ad the Roman rectangular field system found at St George's Road, in 1987.

Found in Trench 2 during the evaluation excavations undertaken by AC archaeology in June 2004 at Red Cow Farm, St George's Road, Dorchester (1). The ditches were all found together in Trench 2 and although all on different alignments may be part of the same field system. There were two parallel small ditches oriented roughly ENE-WSW, 0.4m wide and less than 0.1m deep, filled with pale, slightly orange clay soil with chalk fragments. The only finds from these two ditches were some animal bone and a worked flint. The eastern end of these ditches was cut by a larger NNW-SSE ditch, one metre wide and 0.48m deep with sloping sides and flat base. It was filled with pale brown calcareous soil with frequent chalk fragments, which produced six worked flints and a small quantity of animal bone. The remaining ditch was aligned roughly NE-SW and was 0.4m wide and less than 0.1m deep, filled with pale, slightly orange, soil with chalk fragments. No finds were recovered. No secure dating evidence was obtained for any of these ditches, however,the NNW-SSE alignment of the largest ditch was similar to the alignment of the Roman rectangular enclosure system found on the nearby site of St George's Road 1987, in advance of the by-pass construction (2). These ditches may be of a similar date.

Record last edited

Sep 27 2023 4:43PM