With panoramic views across the South Dorset Downs and Weymouth Bay, Jordan Hill Roman Temple is a Romano-Celtic temple which rests upon Jordan Hill towards the East of Weymouth. The Roman temple is thought to have been built around the 4th century AD, at a time when the Roman occupation of Britain was coming to an end, and is a good example of Romano-Celtic temples of that era.

Jordan Hill Fort

First excavated in the 19th century, a pit was discovered beneath the south-east corner of the temple’s sanctuary, with alternating layers of charcoal, ash and roofing slabs. Pits like this were often used by the prehistoric Celtic peoples for ritual offerings, which suggests that some of the old Celtic pagan rituals survived within the Roman Empire, even after the establishment of Christianity. This makes the Jordan Hill Roman Temple somewhat different from some other similar temples in that it seems to show a fusion of Roman and Celtic cultures, at a time when it was originally thought the old pagan ways had been lost.

The Jordan Hill Temple and Fort is now under the control of English Heritage, and visitors can visit free-of-charge at any time of year at any reasonable time during the day.