Monument record MDO2033 - Medieval settlement of East Shilvinghampton, Portesham

Extensive remains of the medieval settlement of East Shilvinghampton, visible as earthworks on aerial photographs.

Settlement Remains, at West and East Shilvinghampton, lie some 1 2/3 miles south east of Portesham Church on the lower north facing slopes of a limestone ridge. West Shilvinghampton is mentioned in Domesday Book and belonged to Abbotsbury Abbey until 1539 when it passed to the Samways family. East Shilvinghampton was described in Domesday Book as two parcels, of which one or both passed to Shaftesbury Abbey and after 1539 both were held by the Earl of Pembroke. The two settlements are clearly set in a territory bounded on the west by Abbotsbury and Langton Herring, on the east by the Chickerell boundary and its continuation by field walls north to the vicinity of Corton, on the south by Fleet, but only dubiously along the north by Corton Hill. This territory seems to be divided by a line running between the two settlements and then south passing east of Seven Acre Coppice and through Drift Plantation. East Shilvinghampton (629844) has very disturbed remains immediately north east of East Shilvinghampton Farm covering about 8 acres 200 yds east of (A) and in a similar situation. Two small and virtually flat closes probably mark sites of buildings. Clearly visible on air photographs. <1> Circa SY 629844. Deserted Medieval villages of East and West Shilvinghampton. Listed. <4> East and West Shilvinghampton occupy a gentle N facing slope divided by a water course and bounded on their northern limit by a stream. The area is given over entirely to pasture. The deserted Medieval village remains are very scanty and only in the area centred SY 62858450 can anything that resembles a house platform be recognised: for the remainder only odd corners of fields can be seen. The best preserved remains are centred at SY 62548450 below West Shilvinghampton Farm where there are 4 terraces about 30.0m apart on average and 70.0m long. Ploughing in this field has destroyed the ditch and bank that formerly flanked the western side of the terraces, and in the fields centred SY 62628440, E of the water course, ploughing has reduced the platforms noted by RCHM to inconspicuous scarps. In the field centred SY 62878440 3 N facing prominent scarps may be the remains of building platforms and in the N part of the field centred SY 62808448 remains of a hollow way separate two platforms, with two further platforms to the S. None of the features here is very prominent. At SY 62908447 on the W side of a large field is a further platform and N of it an irregular hollow way or wide ditch. Surveyed at 1:2500 on MSD. <5> Extensive remains of the medieval settlement of East Shilvinghampton, visible as earthworks on aerial photographs <2-3> to the north and east of East Shilvinghampton Farm. The site was digitally plotted during the South Dorset Ridgeway Mapping Project.

Record last edited

Jun 28 2022 12:22PM