This is a surviving 300m section of the "Roman Ridge" (or Roman Rig), a substantial linear earthwork running south from Dog Kennel Pond in Wentworth Park, South Yorkshire. The Roman Ridge as a whole is a major dyke system extending some 11 miles between Sheffield and Mexborough, and despite its name is now generally considered to be of late pre-Roman Iron Age date, probably constructed by the Brigantes or a sub-group such as the Corieltauvi border population, possibly remaining in use into the early Roman period (1st century AD).
Source: Pleiades — A Community-Built Gazetteer and Graph of Ancient Places. View the Pleiades record →
The earthwork is interpreted as a territorial boundary or defensive frontier work, perhaps marking the southern limit of Brigantian territory or controlling movement along the magnesian limestone ridge between the Don and Rother valleys. Its scale places it among the more ambitious native earthworks of northern Britain, comparable to the Grim's Ditch systems further south.
The Wentworth Park section preserves the bank and ditch profile reasonably well due to its emparked setting, though no modern excavation has been published for this specific stretch. Limited sectioning elsewhere along the Roman Ridge (notably by Preston in the mid-20th century and more recent work near Greasbrough and Scholes Coppice) has produced little dating evidence, leaving its chronology and precise function still debated.
This is a surviving 300m section of the "Roman Ridge" (or Roman Rig), a substantial linear earthwork running south from Dog Kennel Pond in Wentworth Park, South Yorkshire. It is recorded in the Pleiades gazetteer of ancient places as a site site from the Roman period in Britain.
Roman Ridge: section 330yds (300m) long, S of Dog Kennel Pond, Wentworth Park is classified as a Roman site — a civilian site in the Pleiades ancient world gazetteer. Roman Britain's archaeology encompasses thousands of sites ranging from legionary fortresses and marching camps to villas, temples and towns.
Several Roman sites lie within a short distance, including Roman Ridge: section 500yds (460m) long, N of Dog Kennel Pond, Wentworth Park (0.7 km), Roman Ridge: section 110yds (100m) long, 450yds (410m) NNE of Kimberworth Park Farm (1.3 km), Roman Ridge (Roman road): section 300yds (270m) long on Clay Hill (1.4 km). Aubrey Research maps over 2,200 Roman sites across Britain, drawn from the Pleiades ancient world gazetteer.
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Aubrey generates in-depth historical research for any address in Britain — drawing on Roman heritage, Domesday records, scheduled monument data, archaeological finds and medieval history to reveal the complete story of a landscape.
Research the area around Roman Ridge: section 330yds (300m) long, S of Dog Kennel Pond, Wentworth Park