Wimborne St. Giles

23 WIMBORNE ST. GILES (0311)

(O.S. 6 ins., SU 00 NW, SU 00 NE, SU 01 SW, SU 01 SE, SU 01 NW)

The parish, covering 5,947 acres, extends for over 7 miles in a roughly L-shaped strip from the E. Dorset heathland in the S.E., north-westwards to Cranborne Chase. The central and northern parts of the area, on Chalk, are drained by the headwaters of the R. Allen and the R. Crane which flow through broad, open valleys between 400 ft. and 180 ft. above O.D.; the S.E. part, a well-wooded undulating area of Reading Beds and London Clay, is drained by tributaries of the Crane.

The parish contains several early settlements. Four in the Allen valley are mentioned in Domesday. Monkton Up Wimborne in the N.E. was part of Cranborne until late in the 19th century. Next is Wimborne All Hallows, a separate parish until 1733; the site of the church is known, but almost nothing remains. Further S.E. the village of Wimborne St. Giles stands near the centre of the parish. To the S. of St. Giles lay Philipston, now deserted (Dorset Procs., 88 (1967), 210). Roughly rectangular land-blocks associated with these settlements are still defined by continuous hedge-lines. Oakley Farm on Oakley Down was a separate settlement within Monkton Up Wimborne; it existed in 1333 and probably earlier.

Much of the S.E. part of the parish, on the Reading Beds and London Clay, was a detached part of Gussage St. Michael until the 19th century. It contains the scattered hamlet of Sutton Holms, of which the history is not documented.

St. Giles's House, the seat of the earls of Shaftesbury, is the principal Monument in the parish. House, church, almshouses and estate buildings, together with an extensive park, compose a unit of aesthetic and historical interest. Manor Farm at Monkton Up Wimborne has a 16th-century timber-framed house. The Bronze Age barrow group on Oakley Down is noteworthy.

Ecclesiastical

(1) The Parish Church of St. Giles, near the centre of the village, has walls of Greensand ashlar chequered with panels of squared and knapped flint, and slate-covered roofs. The N. wall of the West Tower is probably earlier than other parts of the church, accounting for the asymmetry of the tower in relation to the nave, and it may be mediaeval in origin; some rough ashlar is exposed in the S. wall of the vestry. In 1732 (Hutchins, 1st ed., II, 219) the Nave and tower were almost entirely rebuilt. Close affinities with the church at Blandford Forum (Dorset III, 19) suggest John and William Bastard as the architects, but documentary evidence is lacking. In 1887, N. and S. arcades designed by G. F. Bodley were inserted in the nave, previously undivided, and a north chapel was added. In 1908 fire destroyed everything except the tower, the S. and E. walls of the 18th-century nave, and a few fittings. In 1910 the nave colonnades were rebuilt, the North Aisle was added and the interior was sumptuously refitted to designs by Sir Ninian Comper.

Externally, the tower and nave illustrate the high ability of provincial builder-architects in the first half of the 18th century. Inside, interesting monuments are preserved.

Architectural Description— The Chancel and Nave are structurally one, although separated by an oak rood-screen which continues in the N. aisle. The E. wall has a chamfered plinth and a round-headed window with an apron extending down to the plinth; a pediment with a moulded cornice encloses a bull's-eye window with a moulded architrave and four key-stones. The S. wall has plinth and moulded cornice continuous with those on the E.; the ashlar buttresses are of three stages with wave-moulded weathering. In the eastern bay, a square-headed doorway is flanked by rusticated Tuscan pilasters supporting an entablature with a pulvinated frieze; above is a round-headed window with a moulded architrave with plain imposts and keystone. Further W. are two larger round-headed windows with architraves and aprons as on the E.; between them is a plain round-headed doorway. The South Porch has a round-headed archway with plain imposts and keystone; above is a moulded string-course and a small pediment.

The West Tower (Plate 5) is of three stages. The two lower stages have corner buttresses in the form of rusticated pilasters and the top stage has similar corner pilasters without rustication. String-courses continuous with the capitals of the pilasters define the stages. At the top a modillion cornice is surmounted by a plain parapet with a balustraded panel at the centre of each side. Each corner has a stone vase with a wrought-iron finial. The round-headed W. doorway has an ashlar surround of Portland stone, with Tuscan pilasters, entablature and pediment; above is a round-headed window with a rusticated architrave. The S. side of the lower stage has a round-headed window similar to those of the nave, but smaller. On the S. and W. the middle stage has circular openings with plain archivolts and key-blocks; that on the W. contains a clock face. Each side of the top stage has a round-headed belfry window with a plain architrave with a key-block and plain imposts; below the sill is an apron of knapped flint-work.

Fittings—Books: Common Prayer, Baskerville, 1761, seven leather-bound copies. Brass: In pavement of N. aisle, of Francis (sic.), 1652, 2nd wife of 1st earl of Shaftesbury, plate (16 ins. by 11½ ins.) with inscription in Roman capitals. Chest: In vestry, of oak, with two compartments, each with panelled lid, sides plain, late 18th century. Coffin-stools: seven, with turned legs and beaded tops, late 17th century. Font: of stone, with round bowl with strapwork decoration, on octagonal baluster and square base (Plate 18), probably early 17th century. Glass: Reset in centre S. window, two trefoil-headed panels and one rectangular, the former depicting Entry into Jerusalem, the latter showing St. Andrew presenting kneeling donor to throned figure, donor with shield-of-arms (unidentified 53), German or Flemish, early 16th-century, erected 1785. Graffiti: On apron of S.W. nave window, intials and dates from 1744; on jambs of W. doorway, from 1764.

Monuments and Floor-slab: Monuments. In N. aisle, on N. wall, (1) of Rev. Charles Talbot, 1823, marble tablet with shield-of-arms of Talbot impaling Somerset; (2) of Sir Anthony Ashley, Bt., 1628, and his wife Jane (Okeover), large tomb of clunch and alabaster with restored painted enrichment (Plate 13), with two effigies lying on sarcophagus beneath double barrel-vaulted canopy supported on Corinthian columns; at head, pedestal with trophied sides supporting model of helm, at foot similar pedestal supporting gauntlets and globular object with polygonal facets; beside sarcophagus kneeling lady, presumably Anne, daughter of commemorated, wife of Sir John Cooper and mother of 1st earl of Shaftesbury; above canopy, inscription panels set between composite columns and flanked by later cartouches with arms of Okeover and Peyto; over all, shield-of-arms quarterly of twelve: i and xii Ashley (ancient, or Astley) (fn. 1), ii Talbot, iii Camois, iv Ashley, v Hamelyn, vi Plecy, vii Malmains, viii Rumsey, ix Beseley, x Okeover, xi Peyto; baronet's inescutcheon; helm with crest, a vase of ostrich plumes above earl's coronet; flanking, restored figures of Fortitude and Temperance. Also in N. aisle, (3) of 3rd earl, 1712, granite sarcophagus-shaped wall-monument surmounted by niche with female figure representing 'Polite Literature mourning the death of her most distinguished votary'; (4) of 1st earl, died 1683, marble wall-monument by J. M. Rysbrack (M. I. Webb, Michael Rysbrack, 224), erected 1732, with inscription tablet, medallions representing three wives, portrait bust and arms of Ashley quartering Cooper (Plate 73). On S. wall, near E. end, (5) of 4th earl, 1771, variegated marble wall-monument designed by James Stuart and made by T. Scheemakers, with inscription panel, sarcophagus, achievement-of-arms, cherubs and bust (Plate 73); over S. doorway, (6) of 5th earl, 1811, marble wall-monument by R. Schadow, with Roman-Doric aedicule enclosing reliefs. Near S.W. corner of nave, formerly in chancel, (7) recumbent mail-clad effigy with feet resting on couched beast, feet and beast probably late 13th century, other parts modern. In churchyard, S. and S.E. of church, (8–10) of John Stead, 1662, Thomas Warner, 1657, and Thomas Dowse, 1649, three coffin-shaped stones. Floor-slab: In nave, near E. end, Purbeck marble slab of Rev. Thomas Hooper, 1753, with Latin inscription and arms of Hooper, Port and Davenant.

Plate: in the church includes undated Elizabethan silver cup by 'Gillingham' silversmith, with cover-paten perhaps of somewhat later 16th-century date; stand-paten with assay mark of 1730 and donor's inscription of 1731; stand-paten with assay mark of 1836. Plate kept in modern private chapel at (4) includes large cup and matching flagon, with assay marks and donor's inscriptions of 1731, in original leather cases. Royal Arms: (Plate 73), of carved wood, 1714–1801.

Secular

(2) Almshouses (03161199), adjacent to the church on the N.W., are of one storey and have brick walls with ashlar dressings, and tile-covered roofs (Plate 61). They were built c. 1624 (Hutchins III, 600) and comprise a central common-room, now disused, flanked by symmetrical wings. Each wing originally contained five dwellings.

The S.W. front of the centre bay is gabled and of two storeys, with a three-arched loggia in the lower storey and with an inscription panel and a cartouche-of-arms flanked by square-headed casement windows with moulded surrounds in the upper storey. The inscription, within a border of bezants, reads 'Liberasti me Domine in maxima tribulatione'. The shield-of-arms, uncharged except for a baronet's badge carved on a canton, is surmounted by a helm and crest (a vase of ostrich feathers above a coronet) and is flanked by carved mantling; presumably the charges were painted. The arms are enclosed in a moulded rectangular frame with egg-and-dart enrichment. In the gable, a rectangle of moulded brickwork surrounds an oval stone panel. A small bell-cote on the apex of the gable has recently been replaced by a cross finial. In the flanking wings the doorway of each dwelling has a massive timber frame with a shallow four-centred head; the casement windows are of two square-headed lights with moulded ashlar surrounds. In the N.E. elevation the common-room has a window of three trefoil-headed lights; an archway has recently been formed in the wall below this window. The doorway from the loggia to the common-room has oak jambs with arabesque enrichment, and palmette ornament on the head. The oak door is highly enriched, with moulded stiles and rails and a fretted top panel carved with a grotesque mask (Plate 35).

(3) Stocks (03011198), of oak with iron hasp and staple, much weathered, are probably of the 18th-century.

(4) St. Giles's House (03221159) has walls of brickwork with ashlar dressings, and roof-coverings of slate and of lead. The building is now mainly two-storeyed with cellars and attics, but the basement storey in the E. block was formerly above ground and its rooms have been made into cellars by the construction of later terraces.

The Commission first visited St. Giles's House in 1964 and the accompanying plan and photographs show the house as it then was. Subsequently, in the course of stripping 18th-century cement rendering from the walls, much new information has come to light and continues to come to light at the time of writing (1973); current research in the muniment room is also yielding important results. The description which follows can only be provisional. Many problems remain unresolved.

On the death of Sir Anthony Ashley in 1628 the manor of St. Giles passed to his only child Anne, wife of Sir John Cooper of Rockbourne, and on Sir John's death in 1631 to his grandson, Sir Anthony AshleyCooper, the statesman and politician who in 1672 was created Earl of Shaftesbury. Sir Anthony greatly enlarged and modernised his maternal grandfather's house. In an autobiographical fragment he records 'On 19 March 1650/1 I laid the first stone of my house at St. Giles' (Christie, First Earl of Shaftesbury, p. lv), and a document of 1654 states that 'Sir A. A. Cooper has occasion to carry timber and stone to his building' (Cal. S.P. Dom., 1654, p. 303).

The earliest drawing of the house as yet discovered is a small bird's-eye view from N.E. on an estate map dated 1659 (Plate 82). In it a branch of the R. Allen is seen flowing between two groups of buildings. On the W. bank, a courtyard is defined by W., S. and E. ranges, that on the W. apparently two-storeyed, the others lower. To S. a small building, probably a mill, spans the stream. On the E. bank an ill-defined range, parallel with the stream, seems to be connected with the western courtyard by a bridge. Further E., at right-angles to the ill-defined range, an E.–W. range has a chimney-stack or smoke-louvre on its roof; this range seems to terminate in a tower-like building of three or perhaps four storeys. Further E. again, a large rectangular building is identifiable with the 1st earl's new house, started in 1650/1 and perhaps still under construction in 1659.

An estate map dated 1672, probably by the same draughtsman as that of 1659, shows the house from the E. (Plate 82). The mill is no longer seen. The E. front of the 1st earl's new house, symmetrical and of seven bays, appears much as at present. Behind it, a long range, on the site of the building on the E. bank of the stream in the drawing of 1659, extends N. and S. beyond the ends of the 1651 building. The S. part of this range still exists (Small Dining Room on accompanying plan); the N. part, largely rebuilt in the 19th century to create the N. tower, was demolished in 1973. Further W., the sketch of 1672 appears to show the courtyard on the W. of the stream. Later illustrations include two engravings published by Hutchins (1774 ed., II, opp. 216): a view from S.W. by Thomas Vivares and an E. elevation by B. Pryce of Dorchester. These views date from the third quarter of the 18th century and show that the house was not greatly changed externally between then and 1972, except for the addition of two 19th-century towers, bow windows in the S. front, and dormer-windowed attics (Plate 74).

The manor house inherited by the 1st earl appears to be represented by thick walls of neatly coursed red brickwork seen in the lower storey of the central range of the present building (basements of Green Room, Small Dining Room, Ante-room), but not enough is exposed, at present, to allow inference of an original plan. Some 30 yds. N.E. of these walls, in a cellar below the Tapestry Room, a moulded stone doorway of 16th-century origin appears to be another relic of the Ashley house, perhaps of the tower-like building shown in the 1659 sketch. Other remains include fragments of oak panelling now in the library (Plate 35); a 15th-century carved alabaster panel (Plate 73), now in the room below the Green Room, with a shield-of-arms, three bulls passant quartering three talbots passant, recorded at the Heralds' Visitation of 1531 as Ashley quartering Talbot (John Ashley married Edith Talbot temp. Richard II); a roundel of stained glass with the same arms above the inscription 'scutum Henrici Asheley', probably of the 16th century; and three square pillars of rusticated ashlar, perhaps of early 17th-century origin, now seen in the basement below the E. end of the library, but evidently not in situ.

The old range, shown on the 1659 sketch extending E.–W. between the 1st earl's new building and the watercourse, probably remained standing until the 18th century, when it was removed to make way for the Great Dining Room (Plate 77), erected by Henry Flitcroft for the 4th earl. Flitcroft also worked on a 'New Hall', identifiable as the present Tapestry Room, and on a 'Musick Room next to the Great Dining Room', evidently the present White Hall (account books 1740–4, St. Giles's House muniments).

As the S.W. wing appears on Vivares's engraving it must have been built before 1774, but there is no record of the date of building, and at the time of demolition in 1972 no datable features were seen. The obliquity of the wing suggests that it was built on the foundations of some earlier range; on the sketch of 1659, however, the site is shown vacant.

In the period 1813–20 the 6th earl employed Thomas Cundy on extensive alterations, for which accounts exist. Among them were the roofing-over of an inner courtyard to form the Stone Hall and the formation of a Library to the S.; the library extends into the S.W. part of the 1651 building. In 1853 the 7th earl employed P. C. Hardwick to pull down and rebuild the kitchens on the N. of the W. court, and in 1854 Hardwick built Italianate towers over the entrance vestibule and small dining room; he also remodelled and heightened the roofs (Plate 81).

Architectural Description—The E. front of the 1st earl's new building of 1651 is symmetrical and of seven bays (Plate 74). Originally of finely jointed red brickwork with brick quoins and with stone architraves to the openings, the wall-face was rendered in cement in the time of the 5th earl (1771–1811). The brick quoins appear to have been chamfered and rendered at an earlier period. Former basement windows, obliterated by the E. terrace, are attested by six blind embrasures in the long vaulted cellar below the two drawing rooms; the centre bay having no embrasure suggests that there was originally a flight of steps from the garden to the central opening on the piano nobile. The tall windows of the piano nobile rooms have original keystones, subsequently extended in cement to join a cement plat-band, and shaped cement aprons below the window-sills. The central opening has a stone architrave with a heavy key-stone and scrolled brackets supporting a curvilinear broken pediment within which a blank shield is surmounted by a coronet. The central window of the chamber storey has a rusticated architrave and a multiple keystone; the other chamber windows have details as in the piano nobile. The cement enrichments appear on Vivares's and Pryce's engravings and were perhaps designed by Flitcroft; they are repeated on all the principal elevations. Above the chamber window is a second cement plat-band and a plain parapet wall with a row of ball finials; the latter appear to have been installed in the 19th century to replace the crenellations shown on 18th-century engravings.

The N. front of the E. block (Plate 81) comprises the end of the building of 1651 and the N. side of Flitcroft's range. Above terrace level the joint between the two buildings is masked, but in a narrow passage which extends along the N. front, below the terrace, the brick quoin of the 1651 building is seen. In the same passage are also seen the original basement windows. Those of the 1651 building have moulded stone architraves and keystones; those of Flitcroft's range have similar architraves and also heavily moulded stone window-sills, details which prove that the basement storey was originally a visible part of the façade. In the two upper storeys the details of most of the windows are as described in the E. front, but the easternmost bay of Flitcroft's range has, on the piano nobile, a round-headed doorway in a stone door-case with rusticated pilasters and a Roman-Doric entablature and pediment; above, the chamber storey has a window with scrolled cheek-pieces and a segmental pediment. Evidently Flitcroft made this bay of the N. front into the main entrance. The vaulted substructures of a perron, now concealed by the terrace, are still seen in the basement. Later, when Cundy or Hardwick transferred the main entrance to another position further W., Flitcroft's entrance hall became the Tapestry Room and his principal doorway was converted into a window. At basement level the projecting block of the later entrance vestibule, shown on the 1672 drawing, had 17th-century characteristics, but the cement-rendered superstructure was mainly of 1854.

The S. front (Plate 74) is composed of the S. end of the 1651 building together with the S. side of the range which links that building to the earlier house. Again the basement storey is exposed in a ventilation passage below the terrace while the upper storeys of the façade are masked by later rendering and additions. The basement windows of 1651 have moulded stone architraves, as described above; their upper parts are depicted on Vivares's engraving. The basement windows in the linking range have no architraves, but the former stonework appears to have been removed when these windows were bricked up. Above, in the cement-rendered piano nobile and chamber storeys, 19th-century projecting windows take the place of the two eastern bays of the 1651 façade; the other piano nobile windows are fitted with 19th-century french casements. The chamber windows, string-courses and parapets are uniform with those of the E. front. A rusticated quoin still defines the S.W. corner of the 1651 building; Vivares shows it in his engraving.

The E. and S. walls of the small dining room and the chamber above it appear on the estate-map drawing of 1672, but not on that of 1659. The architectural details of the windows are uniform with those of the E. front. The top storey with its balustraded parapet (Plate 74) was added in 1854.

The S. elevation of the bedroom and ante-room block is symmetrical and of three bays, with basement, piano nobile and chamber storeys; it remains today much as shown on Vivares's engraving except that the central opening in the basement has ceased to be an archway. A short westward extension of the façade, masking the end of the oblique S.W. wing, allows the central opening of the symmetrical façade to fall clear of the adjacent N.—S. wall, which is earlier (see below).

The long S.W. wing of nine bays extending W. from the three-bay projection in an orientation slightly oblique to the rest of the house, demolished in 1972, was of three storeys, the first floor being level with the piano nobile and the ground floor corresponding with the basements elsewhere. In general, the plain sashed windows were uniform and evenly spaced. A projecting bay with traceried windows in the lower storey was formed c. 1900 as part of a domestic chapel designed by Sir Ninian Comper. When the rest of the range was demolished the chapel was allowed to remain. The N. side of the S.W. wing was masked by a 19th-century range.

The E. side of the court has six bays of plain sashed windows in three storeys, the lowest storey corresponding with the basement of the E. block. Although the thickness of the W. wall of the Green Room suggests that it survives from an older range, no building appears in this position on the sketch of 1659. The kitchen wing on the N. side of the courtyard, rebuilt in 1853 and demolished in 1971, had no notable features.

Inside, the basements of the White Hall, Green Room and small dining room have rendered walls and no certain traces of the early house are visible. The room below the ante-room has, on S. and W., brick walls with wide window splays subsequently modified to suit 18th-century openings. It is possible that this basement incorporates the 'mill' shown in the sketch of 1659, but if so the watercourse must have been moved; it now flows in a culvert below a vaulted cellar to the west.

In the basements which lie between the former manor house and the house of 1651, a blocked arch, with ashlar voussoirs spanning some 8 ft, supports the W. part of the S. wall of the Tapestry Room; it may have originated as a gateway in the inner court before the erection of Flitcroft's dining-room range. Although removed on the piano nobile to form Flitcroft's 'New Hall' (Tapestry Room), the northern part of the W. wall of the 1651 building is intact in the basement and it is here, close to the N. front, that the 16th-century stone doorway mentioned before is found. It has a heavily moulded four-centred or 'Tudor' head, under a label with returned stops, and continuous jambs ending in moulded and broached stops. The mouldings are on the W. and the rebate on the E. side.

The basement of the 1st earl's new building of 1651 is divided by the spine-wall into two parts, both with brick barrel-vaults of elliptical cross-section probably inserted during the 18th century. In the area below the library, however, the southern sector of the W. basement has no vault, but beams supporting the library floor. On the N. side of this basement room are three niches with jambs formed of rusticated stone piers, perhaps of the late 16th or early 17th century, but certainly reset. There is some reason to associate this material with a bath room mentioned in a manuscript by the 1st earl (St. Giles's House muniments), directing that 'the three rooms within, and the dineing roome be finished & a bathing roome made under that wch. was intended for the Cabanett & a doore opened out of the Hall into it & that doore into the long greene walk be made up'. The earl's 'dineing roome' was probably one of the two present drawing rooms, since Pryce's view calls the E. façade 'the dining room front'; the 'three roomes within' would therefore be in the W. part of the 1651 building with, presumably, the intended cabinet on the S. and the bathing room below it. Since a door was to be made from the hall into the bathing room, it follows that the earl's 'hall' was in the basement storey. It may have been below the 19th-century main staircase.

On the piano nobile the White Hall (Plate 75), Flitcroft's music room, has 18th-century decoration augmented by later work. The ceiling (Plate 38) is original.

Flitcroft's Great Dining Room (Plate 77) has a coved plaster ceiling rising into the chamber storey. The cornice has a frieze of gilded rinceaux. The doorcases are flanked by pilasters with scrolled brackets supporting broken pediments enclosing busts. The white marble fireplace surround (Plate 37) has foliate swags and scrolled consoles with flower festoons; at the centre is a Bacchic mask. The wooden overmantel has clusters of Corinthian pilasters and half-columns supporting an entablature with a scrolled pediment enclosing a cartouche and festoons of fruit and flowers; at the centre is an oil-painting attributed to Van Dyck. Attached to the walls are six portraits in gilded surrounds with enriched borders. Between the windows are oval mirrors with gilt foliate surrounds and marble-topped console tables with brackets elaborately enriched with festoons.

The Tapestry Room, Flitcroft's 'New Hall', has door-cases with pulvinated laurel-leaf friezes and pediments enclosing baskets of fruit and coronets. The cornice is 19th-century work.

The North Drawing Room, probably the dining room of the 1651 house, has 18th-century joinery and plasterwork, but it retains a stone chimneypiece of c. 1650 (Plate 76) with a moulded and enriched cornice supported on brackets with acanthus leaves; between these are heavy festoons of fruit; the pilasters have lion masks and fruit swags.

The South Drawing Room has 18th-century joinery as in the adjacent room, and a marble chimneypiece of the same period with caryatid figures supporting the cornice. The ceiling, on the other hand, is of c. 1650 and has wreaths of oak and bay-leaves surrounding a central wreath of fruit and flowers (Plate 76). It is comparable with ceilings of c. 1635 formerly in Balmes House, Hackney (Drawings by G. W. Toussaint, Hackney Public Library).

The small lobby in the thickness of the spine-wall, between the S. drawing room and the library, retains the original ceiling cornice with gilded acanthus enrichment. The walls are decorated with 16th-century carved oak panelling, perhaps taken from the former Ashley house, with arabesques and busts in high relief (Plate 35).

The main staircase, with wrought-iron balustrades of plain design, appears to be Cundy's work of c. 1820, as also the Stone Hall in the area of the former courtyard. The hall is two-storeyed, with columned galleries, and has a vaulted plaster ceiling with pendentives supporting a fluted dome above a drum with windows. The stairs in the 1st earl's house probably occupied the same position as at present and, as suggested above, possibly continued down to an entrance hall on the lower level, where now are cellars. Adjacent to Cundy's stairs is a small oak service stair of 17th-century origin, with moulded close strings, square newel posts with carved pendants, turned balusters and stout moulded handrails.

When Cundy created the library he obliterated the earlier rooms of the S. connecting range. Further W., the Green Room, the small dining room, the ante-room and the bed room have 19th-century decorations. The staircase on the N. of the anteroom is probably Cundy's work.

In the storey above the piano nobile several chambers have 18th-century dados with fielded panelling, and ceilings with moulded cornices. A chamber above the S. drawing room has a wooden chimneypiece (Plate 36) of c. 1650, carved to represent hanging drapery. An inserted panel with a painted inscription records that the room was once part of the 3rd earl's library.

Vivares's engraving shows that the roofs were not originally seen behind the crenellated parapets; or if seen that they were low enough to be ignored. The present steep roofs were built by Hardwick to admit the construction of dormer-windowed attic rooms loftier than those of the 17th century. In the area above Cundy's main staircase, however, a small part of the original roof survives. It is of low mansard form, with stout chamfered beams some 6 ft. long rising at a steep pitch from the wall-plate to join similar timbers at a very low pitch which span the interval between the first-named members and the spine wall.

Although Vivares's engraving shows that the recently demolished S.W. wing existed in the 18th century, its rooms contained no notable features. At the time of demolition the remaining fittings were of the late 19th or early 20th century. The chapel is outside the scope of this inventory.

(5) Castellated Archway (03051146), of ashlar and rubble, with two rusticated towers flanking a round-headed arch (Plate 32), is said to have been built in 1748 (MS. notes by 7th earl).

(6) Grotto (03451142), with walls of flint and rubble, roofed partly with tiles and partly with slate, was begun in 1751 (Hutchins III, 598) to the design of Mr. Castles of Marylebone (Pococke, Travels (Camden Soc., xliv) II, 138). The main compartments, an ante-room and an inner grotto, have their walls lined with shells, fossils, coral and stone flakes mounted on an irregular timber framework composed partly of unhewn tree-roots. The lath-and-plaster 'vault' is similarly concealed. In the ante-room the pavement is of patterned pebble mosaic; the inner room has a late 19th-century tiled floor and fireplace. Smaller compartments flanking the ante-room are lined with architectural fragments and flints, many of the latter suspended from the timber roof by iron hooks.

(7) 'Temple' (03011129), with brick walls and a slate-covered roof, has a rendered Ionic portico of two columns between antae, supporting a pedimented entablature. One side wall has a round-headed window. The structure, a summer-house, is probably of the 19th century.

Monuments (8–11) are arranged on four sides of a courtyard, originally a manège.

(8) Riding House (03301170), now stables, on the S. of the courtyard, is of two storeys and has brick walls with ashlar dressings, and tiled roofs; it dates probably from the first quarter of the 17th century (Plate 75). In the symmetrical nine-bay S. front, five bays with eaves alternate with four gabled bays, each gable having shaped kneelers, moulded copings and three obelisk finials. The storeys are defined by a moulded ashlar string-course; the plinth has ogee-moulded capping. In the lower storey the middle bay has an elliptical-headed doorway with a chamfered ashlar surround. Each gabled bay has a ground-floor window of four elliptical-headed lights with ovolo-moulded stone jambs and mullions; in the upper storey it has a square-headed light and there is a small bull's-eye window in the gable. The moulded plinth and string-course continue on the gabled E. and W. end-walls. The E. gable has three bull's-eye windows arranged in a triangle. The W. end-wall has a ground-floor doorway similar to that of the S. front, but narrower; flanking it are two windows, each of two elliptical-headed lights; there are similar windows in the upper storey. At the apex of the W. gable is a diagonally-set brick chimney-stack. The N. elevation is without architectural ornament, except that three plain doorways are spanned by carved oak spandrels of 17th-century origin, brought from elsewhere. Both storeys have plain casement windows.

Inside, the building has been fitted with stalls and loose-boxes; the stalls have posts with acorn finials, probably of 18th-century date. The roof has eight chamfered tie-beam trusses with collar-beams and queen-struts supporting two chamfered purlins on each side.

(9) Barn (03281173), on the W. side of the courtyard, with timber-framed walls masked in part by later brickwork and with a tile-covered roof, dates from early in the 16th century. In the W. elevation the timber framework, with later brick nogging, is set on a high flint plinth with ashlar dressings and with a weathered ashlar buttress at the base of each main post. Early in the 17th century the gabled S. end was rebuilt in brickwork with ashlar dressings resembling that of (8); the façade has three bull's-eye windows arranged in a triangle. The E. elevation was refaced in brickwork, probably in the 18th century, but part of the original buttressed flint plinth remains. The N. end of the barn is masked by a later building. Inside, the barn has been divided into stables, dairies etc., but of the original timber-framed structure there remain twelve and a half bays, one bay having been truncated in the construction of the 17th-century S. façade. The timber-framed posts, with shouldered heads, support collar and tie-beam trusses with lower angle-struts; the slightly cambered tie-beams are braced to the posts.

(10) Barn (03301175), on the N. of the courtyard, is similar to the foregoing in construction and date; it has a gabled transeptal exit-bay on the N. side, with an ashlar doorway with buttressed jambs; the E. and W. walls are of brick. The buttressed flint and ashlar plinths have been extensively rebuilt in brickwork.

(11) Barn (03321173), similar to the foregoing, on the E. of the courtyard, has been extensively altered while being adapted for use as stables. In the 19th century the S. end was removed and a pair of cottages was built in its place, with brick walls with ashlar dressings and tiled roofs designed to harmonise externally with (8). To the N., the barn abuts on a 19th-century Farmhouse of two storeys with brick walls and tiled roofs.

(12) Range (03291179), nearly parallel with (10), is single-storeyed with lofts and has walls partly of brickwork and partly weathereboarded, and a tiled roof. It is of the late 17th or early 18th century.

(13) The Rectory (03211198), of two storeys with attics, has brick walls and tiled roofs; in the original walls the lower courses are built with exceptionally large bricks. The S.W. range is of the late 17th century and probably originated with a class-T plan. Early in the 18th century a S.E. wing was added and a staircase was built in the re-entrant angle so formed. Later in the 18th century a dining-room was built on the N.E. of the staircase. About the middle of the 19th century the original range was extended to N.W. and a service range was built on the N.E. At the same time the drawing-room, at the southern end of the original range, was heightened at the expense of the upper storey, new S.E. windows were formed, and a fireplace and chimneybreast were built on the S.W. The mid 19th-century extensions were removed in 1955 and the late 18th-century dining-room was then made into a kitchen.

The S.W. front retains original casement windows of two and of three lights with plain timber surrounds. The 18th century dining-room wing has tall segmental-headed sashed windows in both storeys, and a coved eaves cornice. Inside, the ground-floor room in the early 18th-century S.E. wing and the bedroom in the dining-room wing have fielded panelling in two heights, partly reset. The stairs have square newel posts, three turned balusters to each step, moulded handrails and scrolled step spandrels.

(14) Mill House (03011199), of two storeys with attics, with brick walls and tiled roofs (Plate 61), dates from the first half of the 17th century. Although now a dwelling house, and in the 19th century an inn, the first purpose of the building was evidently industrial; the mill-race passing underneath it and the large open fireplaces in each storey suggest that it was a paper mill (cf. Harnham Mill, Salisbury). The S. front comprises six equally spaced bays, each bay having in each storey a stone window of four square-headed lights. Those of the lower storey have sunk-chamfered surrounds; those above have ovolo mouldings; much of the stonework has been renewed. Between the two central ground-floor windows is an elliptical-headed doorway of uncertain date, possibly original, with a chamfered stone surround ending in shaped stops. The two middle bays are surmounted by a gable with an attic window of three lights. The gabled W. end wall has a weathered brick chimneybreast flanked at attic level by two small oval openings, now blocked, with moulded brick surrounds. The chimney-stack culminates in a pair of diagonally-set flues decorated with arabesques in cement. A similar chimney-stack with four flues serving the eastern fireplaces has no such decoration. The N. elevation is partly masked by a modern range; where exposed, the wall is rendered and openings are modern. The gabled E. end has stone windows in the upper storeys and moulded brick coping with a shaped brick finial.

Inside, the western ground-floor rooms have intersecting ceiling beams, now cased; when exposed they were seen to have no mouldings. The centre room has an open fireplace with a plain oak bressummer and lightly chamfered stone jambs. The stairs are modern. The first-floor rooms are spanned by plain beams resting on roughly shaped timber brackets. The roof has four plain collar-beam trusses.

(15) Cottages (03061219), pair, of two storeys with brick walls and thatched and tile-covered roofs, are of the late 18th century. Each dwelling has a three-bay W. front, with a central doorway and with casement windows in both storeys.

(16) Cottages (03051223), two adjacent, originally three dwellings, are single-storeyed with attics and have brick walls and thatched roofs. They date from late in the 18th century.

Wimborne All Hallows

(17) Bridge (02791242), of brick with ashlar coping, spans the Allen with five equal segmental-headed arches. It is of the early 19th century.

(18) Bridge (02451280), of brick, spans the Allen with a semicircular central arch and smaller side arches of segmental form. It is somewhat later in date than (17).

(19) Cottage (02951243), now divided into two tenements, is of two storeys and has rendered rubble walls and a thatched roof. It is of 17th-century origin and retains some windows with moulded timber frames. Inside, the plan is of class J, and some rooms have stop-chamfered beams.

(20) French's Farm (02801246), house, of two storeys with brick walls and tiled roofs, is of the late 18th century.

Monkton Up Wimborne

(21) Manor Farm (01791358), house, of two storeys with attics, has walls of timber framework, of ashlar chequered with knapped flint, and of brick; the roofs are slate-covered. The S. bay of the W. range comprises substantial remains of a well-built early 16th-century house. The N. part of the same range is probably of the early 17th century; it was originally of timber frame construction and it retains traces of an open-roofed hall. Early in the 18th century a central chimney-stack was built, the hall was chambered over and the walls were refaced in brick. The E. range was added in the 19th century.

The W. front is in two parts, the N. part of brick, the S. part, corresponding with the 16th-century bay, rendered. When the rendering was removed in 1953 the wall was seen to be of timber framework with later brick nogging. All windows in this and in the other elevations have plain 19th-century sashes. The S. elevation is mainly slate-hung, but the projecting chimneybreast is carefully built of ashlar blocks chequered with knapped flint. At the base is a chamfered plinth; at eaves level is a weathered, hollow-chamfered and roll-moulded string-course. Higher, the stack has weathered ashlar shoulders and above these it is of brick. The N. elevation has no notable features. The E. elevation of the W. range is masked by the 19th-century E. range.

Inside, the S.W. room is spanned by a stout beam with double ogee and hollow-chamfered mouldings ending in splayed stops; the beam is supported on chamfered and shouldered wall posts. Three heights of 17th-century oak panelling were removed in 1953. The fireplace surround is modern. In the chamber over this room, chamfered and shouldered wall posts, plainer than those below, support the cambered and moulded tie-beam of a principal roof-truss. Removal of the plaster revealed that the walls of the chamber were of stout timber framework with braced angles and originally with wattle-and-daub nogging. The W. wall had a window with moulded timber jambs, but this was destroyed when the present sashed window was inserted; only the jambs remain. The E. wall of the chamber had a doorway with a four-centred head, now blocked up; it probably led to an original staircase situated where the 19th-century stairs are now. In the S. wall is a fireplace with a four-centred timber bressummer with double-ogee mouldings continuous on the ashlar jambs. The roof of the S. bay is ridged at right angles to the rest of the range; originally it was gabled on the W., but the S.W. corner is now hipped. The roof truss with the moulded tie-beam has a steeply cambered collar, chamfered on the under side. E. of the truss the roof retains two stop-chamfered purlins on each side, chamfered wind-braces, and six original common rafters pegged to the purlins; there is no ridge-piece. The chamfering shows that the roof was originally open to the chamber. The E. truss has two cambered collar-beams and studding.

In the northern part of the W. range the ground-floor rooms are spanned by chamfered beams of c. 1700. The fireplaces have been blocked and no noteworthy features are seen. Upstairs and in the attics the roof retains five early 17th-century tie-beam trusses in positions lettered AA to EE on the plan. The northernmost truss is some 8 ft. south of the present N. wall, the range having been extended at some time, perhaps in the 18th century; the tie-beam rests on and is braced to stout timber posts, now embedded in 18th-century brickwork. Roof-truss BB has a collar-beam with chamfered arch-braces, showing that it originally spanned a hall. The next roof truss (CC) retains studding with wattle-and-daub infilling, proving that the hall continued no further S.; it coincides with and has been cut through to make way for the 18th-century chimney-stack. Between this truss and the N. side of the 16th-century structure there is another partition-truss (DD) with remains of studding and wattle-anddaub nogging; hence the space between the 16th-century chamber and the upper part of the former hall appears to have contained at least two attic rooms. The southernmost truss (EE) rests on the N. wall-plate of the 16th-century structure.

(22) South Monkton Farm (02131325), cottage, of one storey with an attic, has rendered walls and a thatched roof; it is of the 17th century and has a 19th-century two-storeyed extension on the S.E.

(23) Cottage (02031333), now demolished, was single-storeyed with an attic and had walls partly of banded flint and brickwork, and partly timber-framed; the roof was thatched. It was of the 17th century.

(24) Cottage (01851352), now demolished, was single-storeyed with an attic and had walls of brick and of flint, and a thatched roof. It was of the late 18th century.

Sutton Holms

(25) Gazebo (04601106), of two storeys, is square on plan and has rendered brick walls and a domical roof covered with tiles and lead (Plate 32). It was built c. 1700, reputedly as a place of contemplation for the 3rd earl of Shaftesbury. The E. side has a plain square-headed doorway at ground level and a large sashed window in the upper storey. The N. and W. sides have similar windows; the W. side also has an oval ground-floor window and a plain doorway giving access to a small cellar. The S. side, without openings, bears a stone cartouche of the arms of the 2nd earl (Ashley-Cooper impaling Manners).

(26) Woodlands Gate Farm (04870936), house, of two storeys with brick walls and a tiled roof, dates from about the middle of the 18th century. The S.W. front is of two bays with a central doorway. An added N.W. bay is probably of the 19th century.

(27) Cottage (05591020), of one storey with an attic, with brick and timber-framed walls and with a thatched roof, was built about the end of the 18th century. Inside, the plan is of class S and the main room is spanned by a chamfered beam with ogee stops.

(28) Cottages (05531032), two adjacent, now combined as one dwelling, are single-storeyed with attics and have brick walls and thatched roofs. The W. cottage dates from late in the 18th century; the E. cottage is of the early 19th century. Both have class-S plans.

(29) Cottage (06180979), of one storey with an attic, has walls of brick and of cob and a thatched roof; it dates from late in the 18th century.

(30) Cottage (06570967), of one storey with an attic, has brick walls and a thatched roof; it is of the late 18th century. On the E. is a two-storeyed extension with a tiled roof.

Mediaeval And Later Earthworks

(31) Foundations (01221862) of a small building, some 400 yds. N.E. of Oakley Farm at the N. extremity of the parish, are composed of flint and stone and appear to represent two rooms with a paved yard adjacent. Associated pottery and glazed tile fragments are of the 13th century (Dorset Procs., 72 (1950), 93).

(32) Platform (02391259), some 22 yds. by 9 yds., lying about 250 yds. S.S.W. of (18), is the site of All Hallows Church; it bounds the former churchyard on the N. and has itself been much disturbed in the digging of graves. The former church building, described by Hutchins as 'a mean fabric' (III, 602), was demolished soon after the union of the old parishes of Wimborne All Hallows and Wimborne St. Giles, in 1733.

(33) Mounds, Banks etc., near St. Giles's House (4), appear mostly to be connected with the 18th and 19th-century landscaping of the park. A mound (03341114), 4½ ft. high and about 50 ft. in diam., marked on O.S. maps as a tumulus, is probably spoil from the ha-ha which extends to the W. Of three mounds (032114) beside the canal which joins the lake to the grotto (6), two are 15 ft. and one is 40 ft. in diameter; none exceeds 2 ft. in height. A slightly curved bank (03011168), 120 ft. long from N. to S., 25 ft. wide and 5 ft. high, has no associated ditch. A ditch or hollow-way shown on O.S. maps (038113) is 50 ft. to 60 ft. wide and 2 ft. to 3 ft. deep; it extends roughly N.—S. and represents a former track, possibly older than the park.

(34) Deer Park, almost certainly mediaeval, occupies about 100 acres, much of it wooded, on and S.E. of Rye Hill (centre 043101). Most of the perimeter is still traceable as a substantial bank with, here and there, remains of an internal ditch. The park may be that of the lost manor of Philipston. (Dorset Procs., 90 (1968), 244–6.)

(35) Deer Park and Ponds, probably the original park of St. Giles's manor, lie E. of the present park (around 049109). The park covers about 110 acres, N. and E. of Deer Park Farm, and is bounded for the greater part by the remains of a substantial bank and ditch. Within the park a chain of three ponds, now largely dry, was formed by damming a small stream which flows S.; although undated they appear to be integrated structurally with the park. (Dorset Procs., 90 (1968), 246–8.)

Roman and Prehistoric

(36) Iron Age and Romano-British Settlement (01601775), on Oakley Down, associated with a trackway and lying among 'Celtic' fields (Group (85), p. 118), is now almost completely flattened by ploughing (Plate 78). It lies, at about 340 ft. above O.D., on a low ridge some 500 yds. W. of the Roman road from Old Sarum to Badbury Rings. Limited excavations have been carried out by R. M. Puckle (1949–51) and previously by A. R. Turing Bruce. Map opp. p. 102.

Air photographs (C.U.A.P., RC8 V223: N.M.R., SU 0217/2/99, 100; SU 0117/11/101–3) show that the site consists of a four-sided enclosure, about 600 ft. across and 9 acres in area, defined by a bank with an external ditch. Within it numerous patches of darker soil, some notably rectangular, appear to represent areas of occupation. A track which leads through the enclosure from an entrance at the N. corner continues S.E. towards the Roman road and presumably once joined it, but ploughing has obscured the junction. The alignment of the enclosure does not conform with that of the 'Celtic' fields on E. and S., and the track appears to lie over these fields, suggesting that the settlement grew up some time after the fields had been laid out. A boundary ditch leaves the N. corner of the enclosure and divides into two arms which may be traced N.W. for some 300 yds.

A section cut across the ditch of the enclosure on the S. side showed that it was V-shaped, 10½ ft. across and 6 ft. deep. Four Romano-British cremations, three of them in urns, and an extended headless and armless skeleton were found in the filling. Possibly the bank was fronted by a vertical timber revetment. An almost identical ditch section was excavated on the N. side. In the N.E. part of the enclosure a dished area, perhaps a hut floor, yielded much Romano-British pottery including New Forest ware, a bronze bracelet, part of an iron brooch, an oxgoad, nails and cleats. Immediately outside, on the N.E., a pit 6½ ft. deep contained Iron Age pottery in the lower filling and, in the upper filling, much Romano-British coarse ware of the 3rd and 4th centuries, a fragment of roof-tile and a coin of Constantine I. In the S. part of the enclosure four Iron Age pits and a drainage ditch were found. (Dorset Procs., 71 (1949), 69–70; 72 (1950), 92–3; 73 (1951), 104.)

Coins of c. 250–350, brooches and 'iron weapons' have been found in the area while ploughing, and pits have been noted; several pits were lined with flints and one contained a headless inhumation. Finds (in D.C.M.) include a brooch of La Tène I type and a Roman enamelled disc brooch (Dorset Procs., 74 (1952), 109; also notes by A. R. Turing Bruce in D.C.M.). Near-by barrows ((115) and another, unidentified) contained secondary burials of Roman date.

(37) Platforms (03271515), near Bowldish Pond in the extreme E. of the parish, appear to be the remains of a settle ment, probably of Iron Age or Romano-British date. They cover little more than an acre, facing S.W. on the lower valley side of the R. Crane, but they have been extensively damaged by ploughing. The site lies among 'Celtic' fields (Group (85)), and air photographs (N.M.R., SU 0315/2) suggest that it is integrated with them.

(38) Long Barrow (01461476), part of Drive Plantation Group (Gussage All Saints (23–30)), is aligned S.W.-N.E. and is crossed by a modern hedge. Ploughing has flattened the S.W. end and has severely reduced the remainder. Formerly it was at least 120 ft. long, 90 ft. across and up to 3½ ft. high.

Bank and Ditch (039138) near Nine Yews, and Ditch (026156) on Bottlebush Down: see 'Celtic' Fields, Group (85), p. 118.

Monuments (39–124), Round Barrows etc.

Eighty-five round barrows have been identified, the majority in the N. part of the parish; among them is the famous group on Oakley Down (94–124).

Remains of at least four barrows and a small enclosure, part of the Knowlton Circles Group (Woodlands (29–65)), occur just within the parish and S. of St. Giles's Park (Plate 79). They appear as crop-marks on oblique air photographs (C.U.A.P., AQ 17, 20, 23) which do not permit the close estimate of dimensions.

(39) Barrow (02971072), small.

(40) Barrow (03031074).

(41) Barrow (03041078), large.

(42) Barrow (03071067), small.

(43) Enclosure (03101075), rhomboidal, 80 ft. by 60 ft., with a probable entrance at the N.W. corner.

Barrows (44–53), within or close to St. Giles's Park, lie on a gentle W. slope of the Chalk, below the 250 ft. contour.

(44) Bowl (04101154); diam. 105 ft., ht. 8 ft.

(45) Bowl (04431185), much spread, probably by cultivation; diam. 105 ft., ht. 4½ ft.

Barrows (46) and (47) lie close to the parish boundary with Edmondsham.

(46) Bowl (04531206), damaged by cultivation, has a hole dug into the centre; diam. 80 ft., ht. 9 ft.

(47) Bowl (04531213), in Drive Plantation, is now much damaged; diam. about 75 ft., ht. 10 ft.

(48) Bowl (03781217), N. of St. Giles's Park, is enclosed in a tree-ring and planted with trees; diam. 100 ft., ht. 4 ft.

(49) Bowl (03941217), 165 yds. E. of (48), is a flat-topped mound planted with trees, but within arable; diam. 70 ft., ht. 5½ ft. Two large blocks of sarsen lie near the edge of the mound, on N.W. and S.E.

Barrows (50–53) lie very close together, in a line extending N.W.-S.E. beside the road from Edmondsham to Wimborne St. Giles. They are covered with trees and undergrowth.

(50) Bowl (04081230); diam. 64 ft., ht. 7½ ft.

(51) Bowl (04101229), damaged by ploughing on N.E. side; diam. about 55 ft., ht. 6 ft.

(52) Bowl (04121228), pared away by ploughing on N.E.; diam. about 55 ft., ht. 6 ft.

(53) Bowl (04161227), reduced by ploughing on N.E.; diam. about 55 ft., ht. 5½ ft.

Five barrows (54–58) lie in a scatter N. of Nine Yews, on a N.W. slope descending to the R. Crane. They have been incorporated into the surrounding pattern of 'Celtic' field boundaries (Group (85), p. 118).

(54) Bowl (03511433), N.E. of Bottlebush Clump, has been flattened by ploughing; diam. 48 ft., ht. under 1 ft.

(55) Bowl (03681439), 200 yds. E.N.E. of (54), has been levelled by ploughing; diam. 45 ft., ht. under 1 ft.

(56) Bowl (04061411), under bushes against a modern hedge, has been damaged by ploughing; diam. 75 ft., ht. 7½ ft.

(57) Barrow (04121412), just E. of (56) and completely levelled by ploughing, appears as a ring ditch on air photographs (N.M.R., SU 0314/4; C.U.A.P., V-DH 9); diam. about 90 ft.

(58) Bowl (04131434), near the valley bottom S. of Cranborne Farm, lies within arable; diam. 68 ft., ht. 7 ft.

Three barrows (59–61), all levelled by ploughing, form part of Drive Plantation Group (Gussage All Saints (23–30)); (Plate 55).

(59) Bowl (01281468), against the parish boundary with Gussage All Saints; former dimensions: diam. 65 ft., ht. 2 ft.

(60) Bowl (01391468), 110 yds. E. of (59); former dimensions: diam. 45 ft., ht. under 1 ft.

(61) Barrow (01421466) appears as a ring ditch on an air photograph (N.M.R., SU 0015/6); diam. about 50 ft.

A scatter of seven barrows (62–68) lies between 250 ft. and 300 ft. above O.D. on the S.W. slope of a ridge, in the vicinity of Drive Plantation and The Warren. Barrows (66) and (67) form part of the Cursus Group (Gussage All Saints (31–40)).

(62) Bowl (01451491), much reduced by ploughing; diam. 86 ft., ht. 2½ ft.

(63) Barrow (01511514), just S. of The Warren and now completely destroyed by ploughing; dimensions unknown.

(64) Bowl (01551514), 40 yds. E.N.E. of (63), is much reduced by ploughing; diam. 100 ft., ht. 2 ft.

(65) Bowl (01641522), among trees in The Warren; diam. 90 ft., ht. 9½ ft.

(66) Bowl (01291521), in arable immediately S. of Drive Plantation; diam. 65 ft., ht. under 1 ft.

(67) Bowl (01291528), in Drive Plantation; diam. 70 ft., ht. 3½ ft.

(68) Bowl (01371557), E. of Wyke Down and just N.W. of the Dorset Cursus (Gussage St. Michael (9)), has been much ploughed; diam. 55 ft., ht. 3 ft.

(69) Bowl (03241502), S. of Bowldish Pond in the valley bottom of the R. Crane, has been much damaged by ploughing; diam. 60 ft., ht. 3½ ft.

Four barrows (70–73), aligned N.-S. in Blackbush Plantation, lie at about 300 ft. above O.D., well down the W. slope of a ridge near Water Lake Bottom.

(70) Bowl (03121571); diam. 73 ft., ht. 4½ ft.

(71) Bowl (03131575); just N. of (70), is much spread; diam. about 45 ft., ht. 2 ft.

(72) Bowl (03131580), 60 yds. N. of (71); diam. 78 ft., ht. 4 ft.

(73) Bowl (03141587), 70 yds. N. of (72); diam. about 60 ft., ht. 1 ft.

(74) Bowl (03481629), at the N. end of Blackbush Plantation, lies near the top of the ridge; diam. 45 ft., ht. 2½ ft.

Salisbury Plantation Group (75–82) consists of nine barrows, one of them in Pentridge (24); they lie among fir trees at the S.E. end of a low spur.

(75) Bowl (02841607), damaged by a track; diam. 45 ft., ht. 1½ ft.

(76) Bowl (02851611); diam. 80 ft., ft. 7 ft.

(77) Bowl (02801611); diam. 65 ft., ht. 5½ ft.

(78) Bowl (02771617); diam. 40 ft., ht. 1 ft.

(79) Bowl (02641621), on the boundary with Pentridge; diam. 90 ft., ht. 12 ft. with a substantial encircling ditch. Sherds, apparently of a barrel urn, found on the surface of the mound suggest the presence of a secondary burial (O.S. Records).

(80) Bowl (02661624); diam. 68 ft., ht. 9 ft.

(81) Bowl (02741625); diam. 52 ft., ht. 6 ft.

(82) Bowl (02811630); diam. 60 ft., ht. 1½ ft.

(83) Bowl (02641682), much damaged by ploughing, lies 30 yds. E. of the Dorset Cursus and just outside Salisbury Plantation; former diam. 60 ft., ht. 1½ ft.

Three barrows (84–86) lie on top of the ridge of Bottlebush Down, close to the Dorset Cursus; (84) and (85) are S.E. of it, (86) is to N.W. All three appear to have been dug into in the past.

(84) Bowl (01911591); diam. 42 ft., ht. 4½ ft.

(85) Bowl (01941593); diam. 45 ft., ht. 4½ ft.

(86) Bowl (01761604); diam. 67 ft., ht. 5 ft.

Handley Hill Group (87–89) comprises five barrows near the summit of the hill. Three of them are in a line and two of these are in Gussage All Saints ((61) and (62)).

(87) Bowl (01491626), now almost levelled by ploughing; diam. 30 ft., ht. under 1 ft.

(88) Bowl (01411628), on the parish boundaries with Gussage All Saints and Sixpenny Handley; diam. 50 ft., ht. 5 ft. Excavation by William Cunnington yielded a cremation in a large 'barrel' urn, probably primary, accompanied by a smaller urn; both were fragmentary. Two intrusive skeletons were also found (Hoare, Ancient Wiltshire I, 243. Ant. J., XIII (1933), 448).

(89) Bowl (01531632), on the S. side of the road from Sixpenny Handley to Cranborne, is nearly flattened by ploughing; diam. 30 ft., ht. under I ft.

Four barrows (90–93) lie on the N.E. slope of the ridge of Bottlebush Down. Three of them were dug into by William Cunnington (Hoare, Ancient Wiltshire I, 243).

(90) Bowl (01901642), with a clearly defined ditch, yielded a primary cremation; diam. 58 ft., ht. 4 ft.

(91) Bell (01911645), partly damaged by ploughing, yielded a primary cremation in a large urn, with beads of amber, shale and 'horn', fragments of a bronze (Únetice) pin, and an incense cup. The mound is 68 ft. across and 9 ft. high; the berm is 10 ft. across; the ditch is 12 ft.–18 ft. across and 1 ft. deep.

(92) Bowl (01951648), among scrub, yielded a primary cremation; diam. 64 ft., ht. 4 ft. with traces of a ditch.

(93) Bowl (01811656), now almost levelled by ploughing; diam. about 30 ft.

Oakley Down Group (map opposite, and Plate 78) consists of thirty-one barrows (94–124) on the E. side of the down, most of them lying in the angle between the Roman road and the modern road from Salisbury to Blandford; among them are six disc barrows. The barrows occupy two spurs which slope gently to a dry valley on the E. Possibly their siting is related to Wor Barrow (Sixpenny Handley (29)), a Neolithic long barrow visible on higher ground some 500 yds. to the W. Many of the mounds were investigated by Sir Richard Colt Hoare and William Cunnington at the beginning of the 19th century (Ancient Wiltshire I, 236–43); some of their finds are in Devizes Museum. Hoare's numbered plan makes it possible to identify the mounds which he examined, except for two small unnumbered barrows N.W. of the modern road; one of these contained a disturbed interment and the other contained a cremation (? Romano-British) with large-headed nails in a cist. There has been little subsequent excavation. 'Celtic' fields (Group (85)) intrude into the group, particularly on the N. side, and more recent cultivation has damaged many of the barrows, especially N.W. of the modern road. Two irregular elongated mounds within the group are probably not barrows; that at 02031737 is 90 ft. by 38 ft., formerly larger, and 4 ft. high; that at 02061760 is 62 ft. by 26 ft. and 1½ ft. high. A slight mound at 02071769 is a 'Celtic' field angle, not a bowl barrow.

(94) Bowl (01481698), now levelled by ploughing, lies just S. of the modern road; diam. about 30 ft.

(95) Bowl (01591704), (Hoare No. 23), in which Cunnington found a central cremation in an inverted collared urn. Recent excavations (Dorset Procs., 92 (1970), 159–67) near the N. edge of the mound have revealed a post-hole, interpreted as a cremation-pyre support; near it was a pit containing much cremated bone and ash. The pit lay outside and was clearly earlier than the very irregular barrow ditch. Many flint flakes were found in the mound and ditch. Diam. 40 ft., ht. 1½ ft.

(96) Bowl (01661704), (Hoare No. 21) yielded a primary cremation with charcoal and pottery in a cist, but it had been previously disturbed. The mound has been damaged by ploughing. Diam. 40 ft., ht. 1 ft.

(97) Bowl (01701704), (Hoare No. 20) covered a primary cremation with remains of an urn, 'linen' cloth, a grooved bronze dagger, a bone pin and a bone pendant (Devizes Museum Catalogue, 1964, Nos. 349–50; P.P.S. (1938), 102–3). Diam. 54 ft., ht. 6 ft.

(98) Bowl (01761704), (Hoare No. 18) yielded a primary crouched interment associated with a perforated deer antler (Devizes Mus. Cat., 1896, No. 198). More recently, two secondary cremations in urns and an unaccompanied inhumation have been found just below the surface of the mound (Dorset Procs., 72 (1950), 92). Diam. 70 ft., ht. 7 ft.

(99) Barrow (01611708), (Hoare No. 22), in the form of a low elongated mound aligned S.W.-N.E., has been damaged by ploughing. Three cremations, perhaps primary, were found: at the N.E. within a cist; at the centre with an amber bead in an urn; at the S.W. in a large urn accompanied by a pair of bone tweezers. Dimensions of mound: 95 ft. by 40 ft., and 3½ ft. high; no side ditches are visible.

(100) Bowl (01671708), (Hoare No. 19) covered a primary cremation with two perforated bone pins (Devizes Mus. Cat., 1964, Nos. 379–80); diam. 48 ft., ht. 5 ft.

(101) Disc (01681711), (Hoare No. 17), damaged by ploughing on the N.W. side, yielded a primary cremation wrapped in cloth beneath an inverted collared urn (Devizes Mus. Cat., 1964, No. 502). The mound is 36 ft. across and 3 ft. high; the berm 30 ft. across; the very shallow ditch and the low outer bank are both 16 ft. across.

(102) Bell (01731713), (Hoare No. 16), beneath which evidence of cremation was found. The mound is 85 ft. in diameter and 11 ft. high; the berm, 12 ft. wide, is surrounded by a very shallow ditch 20 ft. across.

(103) Disc (01781713), (Hoare No. 13), has two mounds, one at the centre and one in the S.E. Part of an amber bead was found, but the barrow had been opened previously (Devizes Mus. Cat., 1964, No. 475). The central mound is 28 ft. in diameter and 2½ ft. high; the S.E. mound is 30 ft. in diameter and 2 ft. high; the berm is 60 ft. across; the ditch is 18 ft. across and 2½ ft. deep; the outer bank is of similar dimensions.

(104) Bowl (01841709), (Hoare No. 14), under which three cists were found. One contained a cremation and charcoal; another contained a cremation under an inverted urn and the jawbone of a (?) cow; the third contained only ashes. A 'bucket' urn was subsequently recovered from this barrow (Pitt-Rivers, Excavations IV (1898), 180 and Pl. 305). Diam. 54 ft., ht. 5 ft., with surrounding ditch 12 ft. across and 1½ ft. deep.

(105) Bowl (01881707), (Hoare No. 15) yielded a skeleton lying E.-W. Diam. 63 ft., ht. 5 ft.

(106) Disc (01931701), (Hoare No. 28), obscured by undergrowth and trees in Salisbury Plantation, is cut on the N.W. by the Roman road. A skeleton was found. The mound is 35 ft. across and under 1 ft. high; the berm is 50 ft. across; the ditch is 15 ft. wide and under 1 ft. deep; the outer bank is of similar dimensions.

(107) Bowl (01771718), (Hoare No. 12), an irregular mound in which nothing was found; diam. about 40 ft., ht. 1½ ft.

(108) Bowl (01761721), (Hoare No. 11), damaged by ploughing, yielded a cremation. Diam. about 45 ft., ht. 1½ ft.

(109) Barrow (01781724), (Hoare No. 10), in the form of a low elongated mound aligned N.-S., has been damaged by ploughing. It yielded three cremations, perhaps primary; that in the centre was accompanied by an incense cup (Devizes Mus. Cat., 1964, No. 442). Dimensions of mound: 65 ft. by 34 ft., height 2½ ft.

(110) Bowl (01841718), (Hoare No. 9), in which was found, at a depth of 11 ft., a primary crouched interment accompanied by a bronze riveted dagger, a bronze awl, a V-perforated shale button, a shale pulley ring, three barb-and-tang arrowheads and a flint fabricator. Also found, but not preserved, were a 'drinking cup', perhaps another shale button, a fourth arrowhead and a number of worked flints (Devizes Mus. Cat., 1964, Nos. 77–85). A fragment of stone axe and pieces of antler were found in the primary cairn. Near the top of the barrow were two secondary inhumations, the uppermost with two 'drinking cups' at its head and a cremation at its feet. Diam. 73 ft., ht. 6 ft.

(111) Disc (01911715), (Hoare No. 8), oval in plan to accommodate two mounds near the centre, is cut on the S.E. by the Roman road. In the N.W. mound was found a primary cremation accompanied by a small bronze dagger, a bronze awl, amber beads and space-plates; in the S.E. mound was a primary cremation with a bronze awl, beads of amber and faience and an Aldbourne cup (Devizes Mus. Cat., 1964, Nos. 407–13 and 433). Both mounds are 35 ft. in diameter and 2 ft. high; the berm is about 60 ft. across; the ditch is 16 ft. wide and 2 ft. deep, and the outer bank is of similar dimensions.

(112) Disc (01821730), (Hoare No. 6) has two mounds, one at the centre and another to S.E. The former had been opened previously, but it appears to have contained a primary cremation with an intrusive skeleton above it; the latter covered a primary cremation in a cist. In 'a ridge' between the two mounds was found a large urn containing a cremation with beads of amber and faience. The central mound is 35 ft. in diameter and 2 ft. high; the S.E. mound is 25 ft. by 20 ft. and under 1 ft. high; the berm is 40 ft. across; the ditch is 15 ft. wide and 1½ ft. deep; the outer bank is of similar dimensions.

(113) Disc (01881724), (Hoare No. 7) has two mounds; one of them (unspecified) contained a cremation with amber beads; the other had been opened previously. The central mound is 28 ft. in diameter and 3 ft. high; the N.W. mound is 25 ft. in diam. and 2½ ft. high; the berm is 45 ft. across; the ditch is 15 ft. across and 1½ ft. deep; the outer bank is of similar dimensions.

(114) Saucer (01801753), now almost levelled by ploughing, formerly consisted of a low mound 60 ft. in diameter, surrounded by a shallow ditch and a very low outer bank, both about 15 ft. across. The barrow appears to lie over a 'Celtic' field lynchet (Group (85)).

(115) Bowl (01831754), now levelled by cultivation, was excavated by A. L. Parke in 1940 and 1950–1. It covered two primary cremations in pits, one with a bronze awl and a stone or pottery bead; above lay a deposit of unburnt human bones. There were also found three secondary cremations beneath inverted sub-biconical urns, and an intrusive cremation of a child in a pit, the filling of which contained a coin of the house of Valentinian I and a sherd of New Forest ware. From the mound came five segmented glass beads and a coin of Constantine I. From a 'Celtic' field lynchet (Group (85)) which encroached on the N.W. side of the barrow came a large quantity of Romano-British pottery. (Dorset Procs., 72 (1950), 91–2; 73 (1951), 103–4; 75 (1953), 36–44. Finds in D.C.M.) Diam. about 32 ft., ht. formerly 1½ ft.

(116) Bowl (01851755), adjoining (115) on the E., has been flattened by ploughing; diam. about 30 ft.

(117) Bowl (01931755), now levelled by ploughing; diam. about 40 ft.

(118) Bowl (01991756), (Hoare No. 2), now much spread by ploughing, lies immediately N.W. of the Salisbury-Blandford road. A primary inhumation was found at a depth of 9 ft. A secondary cremation accompanied by lozenge-shaped bone beads and a bone pin was found at 5 ft. A secondary inhumation of a child was found at 4 ft. (Devizes Mus. Cat., 1964, No. 378). Diam. 68 ft., ht. 4 ft.

(119) Bowl (02001755), (Hoare No. 3), cut away on the N.W. side by the main road, covered a primary cremation in a collared urn (Devizes Mus. Cat., 1964, No. 532); diam. about 40 ft., ht. 2 ft.

(120) Bowl (02021756), (Hoare No. 1), damaged on the N.W. side by the modern road, yielded a primary crouched interment at a depth of 10 ft. Near the surface was an intrusive pagan Saxon female inhumation accompaned by a gilt button-brooch, beads of glass and amber, two bronze rings and fragments of iron (Devizes Mus. Cat., 1896, pp. 53, 54, 59). Diam. 45 ft., ht. 4 ft.

(121) Bell (02011752), (Hoare No. 4), yielded a primary inhumation at a depth of 12 ft. and, 2 ft. above it, two further inhumations with a small handled cup, a bronze dagger and a shale bead (Devizes Mus. Cat., 1964, No. 463). More recently, two secondary cremations (one in an inverted urn) and sherds including the rim of a bucket urn were found near the surface, in the side of the mound (Dorset Procs., 72 (1950), 92; 77 (1955), 151). The mound is 84 ft. in diameter and 10 ft. high; the sloping berm is 12 ft. across; the ditch is 16 ft. wide and 1 ft. deep.

(122) Bowl (02031751), (Hoare No. 5), damaged and made irregular by ploughing, adjoins the ditch of (121). In it was found a primary cremation in a cist. Diam. about 38 ft., ht. 1½ ft.

(123) Bowl (02001763) has been levelled by ploughing, but is visible on air photographs (N.M.R., SU 0117/10/106. C.U.A.P., RC8 V223). Diam. about 45 ft.

(124) Bowl (02031761), as (123); diam. about 50 ft.

Undated

(125) Rectangular Enclosure (02071732), on Oakley Down, lies in the bottom of a dry valley just E. of the Roman road; it is under rough grass and isolated in arable. Roughly square, it measures some 70 ft. across overall and comprises a bank, 10 ft. across and 1 ft. high, with an inner ditch of similar dimensions surrounding a slightly raised interior. There is a possible entrance in the W. side.