Monument record MDO37227 - Iron Age 'Durotrigian' burial (7294) on Southdown Ridge, Weymouth

An uncoffined inhumation burial recorded during excavations in 2008-2009 in advance of construction of the Weymouth Relief Road, one of nineteen excavated in the area of an Iron Age settlement. The crouched burial of a young adult. The grave was later extended to accommodate the burial of a young man.

The earlier of two intercutting graves cut through the filling of an enclosure ditch. An oval grave cut 0.99m long, 0.53m wide and 0.34m deep, and aligned north-south with the head at the north. Pieces of limestone slab at the edges and fallen into the filling of the grave showed that it had been stone lined. The skeleton was that of a young adult between 18 and 24 years of age lying on their left side facing east. The sex of the individual could not be determined. The skeleton was in a very tight crouched position, suggesting that the body may have been bound before burial. Examination of the bones revealed evidence of possible dietary deficiency, spinal disc pathology, vertebral bone spurs and some dental caries. This grave was recut as a larger grave (7264) to accommodate the body of a young male of similar age. {1}

Record last edited

Mar 31 2024 8:48PM