Monument record MDO18346 - Wollaston Field, Dorchester; Roman conduit

The remains of a substantial Roman stone-lined conduit was found running parallel to the north side of the NE-SW Roman road in Wollaston Field during excavations by R A H Farrar in 1947-1948 and by the Central Excavation Unit in 1978. The date of the construction of the conduit is not known, but it appears to have been abandoned by the mid 2nd century AD.

The remains of a Roman conduit aligned roughly NE-SW was exposed on the northern side of the Roman road in Wollaston Field during excavations by R A H Farrar in 1947-1948 (1) and further parts were exposed during excavations by the Central Excavation Unit in 1978 (2). The conduit was a large stone-lined feature with a square-cut base with steeply sloping upper sides. It measured about 2m wide and 1.3m deep. In Farrar’s excavations, the conduit appeared to be lined with tile and apparently a well cut through the base of it, but the relationship between the well and conduit is not known. The date of construction of this conduit is not known, but it is broadly similar in construction to the conduit found in Colliton Park and Wadham House, so may be part of this same system, which was constructed in the latter part of the first century AD. The material recovered from the fill of the conduit, including pottery of late 1st/early 2nd century and mid 2nd century AD pottery, suggests a mid second century date for the abandonment of the conduit, similar to the Colliton Park/Wadham House conduit.

Record last edited

Jan 5 2011 4:47AM