Prehistoric Sites in Dorset

An Iron Age Hillfort to the northwest of Abbotsbury village. The fort encloses an area of 4 acres, and within the double ramparts, the outlines of huts can still be seen. The location is superb, with views across Lyme Bay.
Abbotsbury, Dorset, England

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Set on a high rise of land within the Kingston Lacy estates is the Iron Age hillfort known as Badbury Rings. The site, now crowned with trees, is defended on three sides by a trio of concentric earthen ditches and ramparts. Badbury has been proposed as the site of Mons Badonicus (Mount Badon) - the great 6th-century battle which saw a Romano-British force under King Arthur defeat invading Germanic tribes of Angles, Saxons, and Jutes.
Blandford Road, Wimborne, Dorset, England

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A 180 foot high figure of a man bearing a club, carved into the chalk of the hillside. It is not clear who carved the giant, and speculation has ranged from the Romans, to Celts, to Iron Age Britons. The figure's rather impressive physical endowments have made him the source of fertility practices; local folklore says that an infertile woman who spends the night within the figure will then be able to bear a child.
Cerne Abbas, Dorset, England

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The Kingston Russell stone circle dates to the late Neolithic or early Bronze Age. The circle is composed of 18 stones, all fallen. The location is wonderful; the stone circle is set on a chalk hilltop with wide-ranging views towards the sea and nearby Abbotsbury village.
Abbotsbury, Dorset, England, DT3 4JX

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One of the most intriguing ancient sites in England, Maiden Castle is a huge pre-Roman fortress, with high earthen banks enclosing a hilltop site of 45 acres. The fort was occupied in the Bronze Age, but the 'castle' was extended to its current dimensions in the 1st century BC. In 43 AD the local Celtic tribes used Maiden Castle to make their futile last stand against the invading Roman Army.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, DT2 9PP

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Heritage Highlight: Roman foundations lie within the hilltop site

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A long barrow that really is *long*! Pimperne barrow stretches to 330 feet in length, rises to 10 feet high, and is about 90 feet wide at its widest point. The barrow can be roughly dated to 3500-4000 BC. 
Pimperne, Dorset, England

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Heritage Highlight: The longest barrow in England

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Near the ruins of Cerne Abbey is a holy well said to have been founded by St Augustine in the early 6th century. St Edwold later set up a hermitage there. The well is said to heal eye problems and infertility.
off Abbey Street, Cerne Abbas, Dorset, England

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Heritage Highlight: Links to St Augustine

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Nine Stones is a small stone circle set in a woodland glade immediately west of Winterbourne Abbas village. As the name suggests, the circle is composed of nine stones. It was constructed in the late Neolithic or early Bronze Age, around 2000 BCE.
A35, Winterbourne Abbas, Dorset, England, DT2 9LX

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Winterbourne Poor Lot Barrows is a large cluster of 44 Bronze Age burial mounds is spread out on either side of the A35 a mile west of Winterbourne Abbas. The site is so large that the grouping of barrows has been described as a Bronze Age cemetery. What is fascinating about the site is that so many different types of barrows are clustered so close together. Here you will find disc barrows, bell barrows, bowl barrows, pond barrows, and the remains of what may be a hut circle.
Winterbourne Abbas, Dorset, England, DT2 9XD

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