Maumbury Rings

Maumbury Rings

Maumbury Rings
Weymouth Avenue
Dorchester
Dorset
DT1 1QZ


Web: Maumbury Rings

About Maumbury Rings

Maumbury Rings has interested antiquarians from the 17th Century. The monument has three distinct phases of construction, each modifying or destroying part of its predecessor.
Between 1642 and 1643, the earthwork was re-modelled as an artillery fort guarding the southern approach to Dorchester during the English Civil War. The earthworks and open space around is now scheduled as an ancient monument. Finds from excavation works are at the Dorset County Museum.
c2500 BC. A large circular bank was made with a series of tapering shafts about 3m apart, and about 10m below ground level. The spacing of the shafts suggests that there were 45 in total. Eight shafts were fully excavated, four of which contained deer skulls and skull fragments. Carved chalk objects of the deer ragments show the importance of these deposits.
In the 1st Century AD, the site was converted into amphitheatre, probably by the Roman Army. It is one of the largest in the Country. Earthmoving operations were carried out to lower the enclosure by around 3m, with the material being deposited over the Neolithic bank. The Amphitheatre was not used for long going out of use by AD 150.