SDO9534 - Duchy of Cornwall Land off Bridport Road: Archaeological Desk-based assessment

Wessex Archaeology was commissioned by the Duchy of Cornwall to undertake a desk-based assessment of three areas of proposed development lying to the south of Bridport Road, Dorchester, Dorset (SY 674902). The aim of the desk-based assessment was to collate and document all known or potential archaeological sites and findspots within the proposed development area and within 0.5km around it. The results of this study have been used to assess the potential for buried archaeological remains. A number of sources were consulted, including the Dorset Sites and Monuments Record and local and national archaeological journals. The desk-based assessment established that several known archaeological features lie within the area of study, although none lie directly in the area of development. However, fieldwalking in the vicinity suggest that quantities of worked flint occur in the ploughsoil, and evidence from aerial photographs suggest the presence of a large enclosure within the study area, along with other less obvious features. The study has also demonstrated that there is a potential for as yet unidentified archaeological remains. The highest potential is for the identification or artefacts and deposits of prehistoric and especially Bronze Age (2000-800BC) dates. There is a high potential for the remnants of Bronze Age, ditched field boundaries and other associated features, such as settlement remains. Such settlement remains need not be substantial, many represented by only the subsoil remnants of circular timber huts. There is a lesser potential for Neolithic remains, either as worked flint artefacts recovered from the ploughsoil, or as subsoil features, such as single or small clusters of pits. There is also potential for buried remains of Iron Age and Roman remains, either in the form of small settlements or agricultural systems. There is little potential for the survival of substantial Medieval remains