Exploring Kent's Past

It should not be assumed that this site is publicly accessible and it may be on private property. Do not trespass.

Monument details

Summary

Walling of re-used Roman material, including the head of a statue, at the corner of Market Lane and Queen Street, Dover (building now demolished) (location accurate to the nearest 10m based on available information).

Monument Types

• WALL (WALL, Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)

Associated Finds

• SHERD (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
• STATUE (Roman - 150 AD? to 250 AD?)

Full description

If you do not understand anything on this page please contact us.

A late 2nd century head of oolite, now located in Dover Museum, was found in 1915 in a Roman wall at the Golden Canister grocers shop at the corner of Market Lane and Queen Street, Dover. The north side of the wall which, was 6ft thick in total, was found 14 yds up Market Lane but the south face had perished. The wall was faced with blocks of chalk and tufa bonded with a white mortar, while the core consisted of largely re-used Roman building material including; fragments of concrete, tufa, chalk, flint, tile, iron and slag etc. It ran westwards under an adjacent building and the foundations were not reached as they were situated beneath the limits of excavation (10 feet). The same wall was found in digging a manhole in Market Lane and also in digging a petrol pit on the east side of the lane. The site of the wall was occupied by the warehouse and offices of Messrs Warren and Reynolds Ltd. Its extension eastwards is marked by the manhole cover in Market Lane and by the petrol pits in the garage on the E. side of the lane, both at TR 31924136, which is 14.0m, N. of Queen Street. The oolite head, together with a fragment roof tile with 4 sherds of Roman Samian ware pottery which were uncovered in the same location are on display in Dover Museum. (1-4)

it is likely that this wall was part of the southern wall of the Late Roman Saxon Shore Fort.

<1> Kent Archaeological Society, 1920, Archaeologia Cantiana: Researches and Disoveries in Kent 1915-1919 Vol. 34 (Article in serial). SKE31792.

<2> Page, W. (ed), 1932, The Victoria History of the Counties of England: Kent Volume III, Haverfield and Wheeler: 44 (Monograph). SKE7810.

<3> E. G. J. Amos and R. E. M. Wheeler, 1929, Archaeological journal: The Saxon Shore fortress at Dover Vol. 86 (Article in serial). SKE31895.

<4> Dover Museum, 2017, Dover Museum Accession Books (Collection). SKE32383.

Sources and further reading