- The earliest was a Roman coin, discovered where the Roman Roads Association has long believed a Roman road led from Charmouth to the coast. This is the first physical evidence that has ever been found of a Roman presence in Charmouth.
- An extremely well preserved 18th Century coin marked the Georgian period when the cottage where it was found was built.
- At the same cottage, an American coin dated from the time of the Second World War and the build up of American troops along this coast.
Alas the second weekend of the dig was not as productive as the first but not for the lack of enthusiasm from the dig participants! The exposing of the ‘Abbey’ wall was interesting and the contrast with a nearby section raised intriguing questions about its construction. That will be explored on a further weekend.
The ‘big thing’ from the Big Dig could be the “Roman coins” but we are being cautious about this for the present until all the finds have been fully examined and assessed. Another metallic circular disc with similar markings was found in a totally different type of site to that where the one was found the previous week. It was found with a metal detector and was given to the Dorset Diggers to be sent to an expert. We very much hope they are historic coins but it’s far from certain.
Again many thanks to the Dorset Diggers and the volunteers for their hard work, time and not least their gardens in order to make this project possible. Information on the finds will follow once they have been examined by experts.
