Exploring Kent's Past

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Monument details

Summary

A Roman cremation cemetery was found in 1867 during brickearth digging at Folkstone Road. Pottery, coins, a brooch and a necklet were found.

Monument Types

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

Associated Finds

• BROOCH (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
• COIN (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
• NECKLACE (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
• URN (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)

Full description

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Several Roman cremation burials were found in 1867 during brickearth digging in William Coleman's brickfield, Folkstone Road "about a mile west of Dover market square". Centred at TR 30534110, at the junction of Elms Vale Road with Folkstone Road, is a piece of ground, now playing fields, but formerly worked for brickearth. It is a little under one mile from the market square and was in 1843 (d) in the ownership of the Coleman family. There is little doubt that this is the site of the burials. There are no other known brickfields in this area in the 19th c. The finds were sent to Dover Museum but they are no longer traceable and probably were lost when the museum was partly destroyed during the last war. They included a barrel-shaped urn "cordoned somewhat in late Celtic fashion, which contained bones, a largish urn of red ware with bones and a fibula, several smaller urns of blackware, some with bones, a skull with a bronze circlet and some few coins of Severus, Posthumus and Constantine". (1)

<1> VCH Kent 3 1932 47 (REM Wheeler) (OS Card Reference). SKE51125.

<2> Dover Mus Acc Bk (OS Card Reference). SKE41496.

<3> Arch J 24 1867 279 (Dr Astley) (OS Card Reference). SKE36601.

<4> 1843, Tithe Map Dover 1843 (OS Card Reference). SKE50577.

<5> F1 ASP 16-JUN-64 (OS Card Reference). SKE42137.

<6> Field report for monument TR 34 SW 52 - June, 1964 (Bibliographic reference). SKE6000.

Sources and further reading