Monument record MDO4566 - Iron Age Enclosure, Pimperne

The ploughed out remains of an oval enclosure overlooking the village of Pimperne has been identified from aerial photo evidence. It appears to have had a single bank and ditch, augmented by an outer ditch on the south western and northern sides. The form of this enclosure suggests that It is probably Iron Age in date. Part of the enclosure ditch was picked up by geophysical survey and subsequently excavated during the archaeological evaluation of the route of the Corfe Mullen to Salisbury Water Transfer Scheme. No dating evidence was recovered. The site of the large oval bank and ditched enclosure is visible as earthworks on aerial photographs and was digitally plotted during the Dorset Middle Stour AIM Project. The record for this monument has been enhanced with support from Wessex Water.

The north west and south west part of this enclosure is visible on aerial photographs dating to 1997 and 2005. These appear to show a second external ditch on the south west side of the circuit and around the northern side. <2-3> A large curvilinear anomaly (192), indicative of a former cut feature such as a ditch, was identified during geophysical survey of the proposed route of the Corfe Mullen to Salisbury Water Transfer Scheme in 2012. It coincided with a lobe in the north west part of the cropmark enclosure. <4> The geophysical anomaly was investigated during the subsequent evaluation excavation of the proposed route of the Corfe Mullen to Salisbury Water Transfer Scheme in 2012. Trench 28 cut across the line of the geophysical anomaly which proved to be caused by a V-shaped ditch (28002) about 2.5m wide and 0.75m deep. Three fills were identified and the profiles of these deposits suggested the former presence of a bank on the eastern side. No finds were recovered from the ditch. <5> The record for this monument has been enhanced with support from Wessex Water. The site of the large double-ditched oval bank and ditched enclosure is visible as earthworks on aerial photographs [8-10] and was digitally plotted during the Dorset Middle Stour AIM Project. It's internal dimensions are 355m by 242m; it appears to be multivallate at it's southern end.

Record last edited

Nov 30 2022 7:04PM