Reasons for Designation
Medieval rural settlements in England were marked by great regional diversity
in form, size and type, and the protection of their archaeological remains
needs to take these differences into account. To do this, England has been
divided into three broad Provinces on the basis of each area's distinctive
mixture of nucleated and dispersed settlements. These can be further divided
into sub-Provinces and local regions, possessing characteristics which have
gradually evolved during the last 1500 years or more.
This monument lies in the West Wessex sub-Province of the Central Province, an
area characterised by large numbers of villages and hamlets within
countrysides of great local diversity, ranging from flat marshland to hill
ridges. Settlements range from large, sprawling villages to tiny hamlets, a
range extended by large numbers of scattered dwellings in the extreme east and
west of the sub-Province. Cultivation in open townfields was once present, but
early enclosure was commonplace. The physical diversity of the landscape was,
by the time of Domesday Book in 1086, linked with great variations in the
balance of cleared land and woodland.
The South Dorset local region is a diverse countryside comprising the South
Dorset Downs and narrow limestone ridges and clay vales which curve around the
chalk escarpments. Settlement is characterised by low concentrations of
scattered farmsteads, and small villages and hamlets: ancient settlements
whose arable fields were, on the evidence of Domesday Book, set among
substantial tracts of pasture and woodland in the 11th century.
Details
The monument includes the remains of a medieval settlement at Coombe Keynes,
situated at the northern end of a dry valley with views across the Frome
Valley.
The origins of the settlement are uncertain, although the Church of the Holy
Rood situated west of the settlement dates from the 13th century. The
settlement was recorded by the Royal Commission on the Historical Monuments of
England in 1970 and by C Tracey in 1987. It survives as a series of low
earthworks and associated buried remains which now extend over an area of
about 8ha. A hollow way, aligned north-south along the coombe bottom, is
likely to represent the course of a street. This is visible as an earthwork
15m wide and about 0.5m deep, and is flanked to the east by a series of
closes, or rectilinear enclosures, with dimensions ranging between 250m by
120m and 300m by 180m. To the west of the hollow way are three other possible
building platforms, all situated within the shelter of the coombe bottom. On
the higher ground to the west, there are three probable building platforms, as
well as a large pond which remains partially waterlain.
The Hearth Tax returns of 1662-4 record 14 taxable householders. It appears
that the site had become largely abandoned by 1770, when J Sparrow produced a
map of the area for the Weld Estate.
The Church of the Holy Rood (a redundant church, the structure of which has
been extensively restored) and the surrounding churchyard are not included in
the scheduling.
All gates and fence posts, telegraph poles and a water trough are excluded
from the scheduling, although the ground beneath them is included.
Legacy
The contents of this record have been generated from a legacy data system.
Legacy System number:
29099
Legacy System:
RSM
Sources
Books and journals
Legal
This monument is scheduled under the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 1979 as amended as it appears to the Secretary of State to be of national importance. This entry is a copy, the original is held by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport.
End of official list entry
