Attitudes to Disposal of the Dead - Gazetteer Query Form

Background to the Gazetteer | Table of Contents

Note that there may be a few slight discrepancies between counts given in the text and the returned results in the gazetteer. This is a result of corrections and amendments (not updates) made to the gazetteer since the research was published in BAR. This does not materially affect the picture presented but does add more detail.

Site name Dorchester 10, Two Barrows (East), Fordington Farm Barrow

Site number 1672

Burial codes 4005 4009 4021 4024 4025 4028 4030 4031 4043 4047 4051 4052 4053 4065 4072 4075 4081 4093 4098 4103 4104 4106 4107 4108 4109 4110 4111 4123 4124 4125 4128 4141 4152 4153 4157 4161 4167 4170 4181 4200

2500bc-14/1300bc A bowl barrow of five phases. In phase 1 the primary burials consisted of two large grave pits oriented NNW c0.3m apart cut into the chalk bedrock. In Pit 59 was a quantity of disarticulated material representing an adult male c19-23 and a child c10-14, the remains carefully separated, adult to north, child to south. No grave goods survived. The grave structure suggests a coffin or timber lining to the pit. In Pit 70 there were the disarticulated bones of an adult male c25-35, an adult female c25-35 and a very young or foetal infant. Again the bones were neatly and separately arranged, male to the north and the other two to the south. There were no grave goods. The grave structure was similar to Pit 59, suggesting a coffin or timber lining. A small interrupted ditch defined the burial area, the graves being offset to the south and west, and causeways in the ditch being to the NW (1) and in the SW-SE sector (3). A mound was built over the graves enclosed by the ditch, leaving a berm c1.2m wide.

The bone arrangements do not necessarily imply excarnation, but may indicate that the graves were re-opened and the bones re-ordered, as at Hazleton North (Site 22). This would have taken place before the mound was erected, and indicates a wooden mortuary structure existed as the grave evidence suggests.

In phase 1a the mound was used for flint knapping and stone clearance.

In phase 2 the mound was enlarged by a turf stack, after 4 concentric stake circles had been constructed. The circles in fact were made of a series of arcs rather than a continuous ring. There was no ditch in this phase.

In phase 3 the mound was again added to, and a ditch added without a berm.

In phase 4 the mound was again enlarged, a new ditch being excavated to provide the material, and a berm c4.5m wide reintroduced.

Two unphased graves were cut into the primary mound. There was the inhumation of a young adult male c25-30, semi-crouched on the right side, head to SE, in a grave 61 oriented NE, with below the head a cattle scapula, the feet resting on an axis vertebra of the same species. A barbed and tanged arrow head of Conygar type was found in the pelvic region. On or just above the base of the grave and behind the lower legs of the skeleton were two pieces of a cattle humerus. The grave was filled with chalk rubble which contained three more cattle scapulae, and a cattle pelvis placed above the body between 0.35 and 0.7m above the bottom of the grave. The scapulae were deposited as bones and not as joints.

This grave was cut by a circular pit 3 containing an inverted collared urn of primary type filled with the cremated bone of an older adult of unknown sex accompanied by a small copper alloy knife dagger.

RC: from human bone Pit 70 UB-3304 1765 +/-54, from human bone Pit 59 UB-3305 1817 +/-47, from human bone Pit 61 UB-3306 1914 +/- 30

Remains/Period Y4

County Dorset

Region S

National grid square SY

X coordinate 699

Y coordinate 899

Bibliographic source Bellamy 1991

Query

Site name	Dorchester 10, Two Barrows (East), Fordington Farm Barrow
Site number	1672
Burial codes	4005 4009 4021 4024 4025 4028 4030 4031 4043 4047 4051 4052 4053 4065 4072 4075 4081 4093 4098 4103 4104 4106 4107 4108 4109 4110 4111 4123 4124 4125 4128 4141 4152 4153 4157 4161 4167 4170 4181 4200
2500bc-14/1300bc	A bowl barrow of five phases. In phase 1 the primary burials consisted of two large grave pits oriented NNW c0.3m apart cut into the chalk bedrock. In Pit 59 was a quantity of disarticulated material representing an adult male c19-23 and a child c10-14, the remains carefully separated, adult to north, child to south. No grave goods survived. The grave structure suggests a coffin or timber lining to the pit. In Pit 70 there were the disarticulated bones of an adult male c25-35, an adult female c25-35 and a very young or foetal infant. Again the bones were neatly and separately arranged, male to the north and the other two to the south. There were no grave goods. The grave structure was similar to Pit 59, suggesting a coffin or timber lining. A small interrupted ditch defined the burial area, the graves being offset to the south and west, and causeways in the ditch being to the NW (1) and in the SW-SE sector (3). A mound was built over the graves enclosed by the ditch, leaving a berm c1.2m wide. The bone arrangements do not necessarily imply excarnation, but may indicate that the graves were re-opened and the bones re-ordered, as at Hazleton North (Site 22). This would have taken place before the mound was erected, and indicates a wooden mortuary structure existed as the grave evidence suggests. In phase 1a the mound was used for flint knapping and stone clearance. In phase 2 the mound was enlarged by a turf stack, after 4 concentric stake circles had been constructed. The circles in fact were made of a series of arcs rather than a continuous ring. There was no ditch in this phase. In phase 3 the mound was again added to, and a ditch added without a berm. In phase 4 the mound was again enlarged, a new ditch being excavated to provide the material, and a berm c4.5m wide reintroduced. Two unphased graves were cut into the primary mound. There was the inhumation of a young adult male c25-30, semi-crouched on the right side, head to SE, in a grave 61 oriented NE, with below the head a cattle scapula, the feet resting on an axis vertebra of the same species. A barbed and tanged arrow head of Conygar type was found in the pelvic region. On or just above the base of the grave and behind the lower legs of the skeleton were two pieces of a cattle humerus. The grave was filled with chalk rubble which contained three more cattle scapulae, and a cattle pelvis placed above the body between 0.35 and 0.7m above the bottom of the grave. The scapulae were deposited as bones and not as joints. This grave was cut by a circular pit 3 containing an inverted collared urn of primary type filled with the cremated bone of an older adult of unknown sex accompanied by a small copper alloy knife dagger. RC: from human bone Pit 70 UB-3304 1765 +/-54, from human bone Pit 59 UB-3305 1817 +/-47, from human bone Pit 61 UB-3306 1914 +/- 30
Remains/Period	Y4
County	Dorset
Region	S
National grid square	SY
X coordinate	699
Y coordinate	899
Bibliographic source	Bellamy 1991