Details
Results of the archaeological survey and excavations undertaken prior to and during the construction of the A35 Southern Bypass and A37 Western link road. The earliest features recorded were two pits, one of which produced a radiocarbon date in the early 4th millenium BC, and contained pottery, struck flint and food remains. A number of Neolithic features were revealed, most importantly an enclosure constructed in grazed grassland which contained child inhumations and an adult cremation burial. From the Bronze Age settlement evidence was recovered as well as indications of field ditches, tillage and pasture. Late Iron Age features included an enclosure ditch, storage pits, burials and a ditched field system. The combined results provide a comprehensive and illuminating picture of the development of occupation and land-use in the Dorchester area.