Researches and Discoveries in Kent
RESEARCHES AND DISCOVERIES IN KENT 1 ACHEULIAN HAND-AXES: HERNE BA Y/RECUL VER Over the last ten years, several individuals have brought Acheulian hand-axes and other worked flints to the Thanet Trust for recording. These had all been found on the beach between Herne Bay and Reculver, where they had eroded from a feature exposed in the cliff strata. This feature, situated somewhat to the east of 'Bishopstone Glen', appears to be an eroded section through the bed and banks of a watercourse, one of at least four fluviatile channels under the Head Deposits. Although known and periodically observed for many years, these features may now be lost to erosion, as no new finds have been presented for some three years. Thirteen hand-axes and other worked flints are shown in Figs. I, 2, and 3. The axes fall within the Ovate, Ficron, and Intermediate type groups. This apart, the writer offers no further comment, as the corpus of material from Bishopstone Glen, Reculver may be the subject of a future publication (pers. comm. J. J. Wymer). DAVE PERKINS THANET TRUST 369 RESEARCHES AND DISCOVERIES 10cm. Pig. I. Bishopstone Glen hand-axes (nos. 1-3) 370 RESEARCHES AND DISCOVERIES 10cm. Fig. 2. Bishopstone Glen hand-axes (nos. 4-8) 371 RESEARCHES AND DISCOVERIES 10cm. 11 13 Fig. 3. Bishopstone Glen hand-axes (nos. 9-13) 372 RESEARCHES AND DISCOVERIES IN KENT 2 ACHEULIAN AND LATER PREHISTORIC FINDS: BROADSTAIRS In March 1998 the Trust for Thanet Archaeology produced a deskbased study considering the archaeological implications attending construction of a superstore and its facilities on land framed by Rumfields and Westwood Roads, St Peter's, Broadstairs. As a consequence, the Trust was commissioned to evaluate the site by trial tr nch, this work being carried out in November 1998. Forty-eight trial trenches each 1.5 x 20m were cut in a preset pattern, being ex cavated to chalk bedrock or a 'natural' horizon of Thanet Beds sad up to 2.5m deep over chalk. Although the archaeological evidence recorded was thin and widely dispersed, remains ranging in date from the Early Bronze Age to medieval were recorded. 369 RESEARCHES AND DISCOVERIES Construction of the ASDA Superstore and its infrastructure began in April 1999. During the period 19 April to 18 June 1999, a team composed of archaeologists from both the Thanet and Canterbury Archaeological Trusts worked their way across the site ahead of the construction teams, using the method of strip-plan-excavate. Archaeological finds and remains indicating periodic use of this tract of land over thousands of years were encountered. During the excavation of a hut or working area floor (Late Bronze Early Iron Age) a small flint hand-axe of cordate type was found. Chronologically, this artefact can be attributed to the Hoxnian Interglacial- Wolstonian Glaciation periods, c. 250,000-130,000 BC. The provenance of this find is open to question, but it can only have come to its resting place by human agency, and this admits of two possibilities: l) That it was picked up and kept as a curiosity or charm, in which case it may have been transported a considerable distance, perhaps from outside Thanet. 2) That it comes from one of the site's surviving pockets of 'clay-with-flints' (vestigial Palaeolithic land surfaces) so that it may have only been moved a few metres in the process of clearing fields of stones. Other prehistoric remains were distributed all over the site, but the main concentrations were: - in the eastern half of the area, posthole groups representing two hut circles, ditches, and a few pits. - in the southern part, two large deep cut features, possibly the mouths of vertical workings to obtain flint. - at the middle of the site, a scatter of postholes and pits along the north-south axis. - in the western half of the site, scattered pits and features with the main focus in the north-western corner. DAVE PERKINS THANET TRUST 373 RESEARCHES AND DISCOVERIES 3 LATE NEOLITHIC AND BRONZE AGE BARROWS: NORTH FORELAND The fondly-remembered St Stephen's College having closed, most of the school buildings have been demolished, leaving only a listed G _ eorgian house standing, and the site awaits urban development. Smee the whole of North Foreland Hill, including the College site falls within the multivallate defensive ditches of a prehistoric settle- 373 RESEARCHES AND DISCOVERIES ment1, evaluation prior to development was considered essential. In February 1999 a Thanet Trust team evaluated the site, cutting twelve trial trenches in the remaining 'green field' areas. A wealth of archaeological features were recorded, most of them pits and postholes, apparently belonging to a settlement of the Late Bronze-Early Iron Age period, c. 600-350 BC. One 'pit' however was found to be a 'flat grave' containing a crouched burial. At the time of writing, teams from both the Thanet and Canterbury Trusts have just finished a 'strip and map' operation at the St Stephen's site. This has revealed two large (20m diameter) round barrows, presumably belonging to the Early Middle Bronze Age, and a smaller barrow thought to be of Late Neolithic Beaker date. There is also part of an Iron Age ditched enclosure holding three square settings of four postholes, presumably hut sites. Additionally, over 600 features have been recorded on the site, some randomly scattered, others in complexes of postholes and pits. DAVE PERKINS THANET TRUST 1Archaeologia Cantiana, cxii (1993), 411; cxv (1995), 475. 374 RESEARCHES AND DISCOVERIES 4 PREHISTORIC OCCUPATION EVIDENCE; MEDIEV AL TILE: YORKLETTS An extensive evaluation of an area covering over 130ha ( centred upon TR 095 618) comprising field-walking, geophysical survey, topsoil artefact assessment and trial trenching (all specifications agreed with the KCC) was carried out ahead of a proposed waste management scheme. Documentary sources and a walkover survey had suggested that evidence of medieval and/or Romano-British pottery kilns might be present. Fieldwalking, and geophysical survey, located a concentration of medieval and post-medieval tile at the west of the site and post-medieval or modern fired-clay originating off-site. Low density prehistoric flintwork and burnt flint was recorded. Some fragments of Roman tile were consistent with deposition during manuring. Trial trenching at the west of the site located two pits containing residual medieval and post-medieval sherds. Finds from the remnants of a buried soil in the centre of the site indicate several episodes of low-level activity from the later Neolithic through the Bronze Age to the late Iron Age/early Roman period. Hollows containing significant amounts of burnt flint may have been truncated pits. There was one localized area of Bronze Age activity involving burning. MARTIN CONNELL RPS CLOUSTON 374 RESEARCHES AND DISCOVERJES 5 EARLY IRON AGE SETTLEMENT: MARGATE In 1998 Kent County Constabulary had plans drawn up for a large office block extension to the police station at Fort Hill, Margate. The area to be occupied by the building was thought to have high archaeological potential, as Iron Age and Roman remains had been discovered nearby on a number of occasions between 1894 and 1985. Against this, it was known that the slope of the chalk hillside had been terraced in a series of steps to accommodate brewery buildings, this development sequence commencing in the Tudor period, and terminating with the demolition of the Georgian/Victorian brewery complex in the 1980s. Archaeological watching brief work by volunteer groups in 1984-85 suggested, however, that Iron Age features might have survived on the 'tread of the step' of the major terrace. Accordingly, the Heritage Conservation Group, Kent County Council, requested an evaluation prior to development, and this was agreed and funded by the County Constabulary. The evaluation was carried out by the Thanet Trust in September 1998. Six trial trenches were cut, of which only one revealed archaeologically interesting features - postholes and a ditch-section yielding Iron Age sherds. Predictably, these remains were in the 'tread of the step' area. The Thanet Trust team returned to the site in late November 1998 with a mandate and specification to excavate an area measuring 70 x I Orn. This was covered by a demolition layer up to 0.7m deep, consisting of building debris and glass sherds from tens of thousands of bottles! Below this, was a hard chalk surface cut with features, most of which had been to some degree truncated. In all, 43 features were recorded, of which 26 were postholes, and 17 were pits. Most of the postholes fell within two groupings presumed to represent huts, while the pits, varying considerably in depth and diameter, were interpreted as storage pits for cereal grain. They had, however, in most cases been backfilled as middens. Ceramic sherds, artefacts, and environmental materials were recovered from most features, these remains being attributed to settlement during the Early Iron Age period, c. 500-350 BC. The ceramic assemblage shows close stylistic links with north-east France and contains a quantity of unusual material (pers. comm. N. Macpherson Grant) so that the Thanet Trust hopes to present a paper on the Fort Hill excavations in a subsequent volume of Archaeologia Cantiana. On commencement of construction, the Trust was called back to reord a 'grave.' This was found to be the surviving base of a pit with midden backfill greatly truncated by terracing, in which reposed the well-preserved skeletal remains of a male adult. The position of the 375 RESEARCHES AND DISCOVERIES bones strongly suggested that the cadaver had simply been thrown into the rubbish! Similar casual Iron Age disposals were encountered by the Trust at the South Dumpton settlement site, Broadstairs (unpublished). DAVE PERKINS THANET TRUST 376 RESEARCHES AND DISCOVERIES 6 LATE BRONZE AGE/IRON AGE OCCUPATION: BOUGHTON MONCHELSEA An evaluation was carried out on a site in Boughton Lane (TQ 768 524), 0.8km north of the Boughton Quarry camp, a late Iron Age oppidum with significant occupation evidence. It is also near known Romano-British remains including buildings, a bath-house and burials. Thirteen trenches were excavated and revealed numerous features, eleven containing datable finds and fifty which were undatable. No Romano-British material was identified but it is possible that some of the undated ditches were connected with field systems of that period. Three phases of late Bronze Age/early Iron Age activity were diagnosed with potential enclosure ditches and ring ditches suggesting possible settlement. Tap slag and the complete base of a non-tap slag developed-bowl hearth furnace confirmed that various smelting processes had taken place using readily available local boxstone. Late Iron Age pottery within the ploughsoil, including 'Belgic'-type sherds, may indicate that these fields were part of an agricultural system attached to the nearby oppidum. All features had been truncated by subsequent ploughing activity. MARTIN CONNELL RPS CLOUSTON 376 RESEARCHES AND DISCOVERIES 7 TWO LA TENE I BROOCHES: WALDERSHARE AND PRESTON-BY-WINGHAM Two small bronze brooches of La Tene I type have recently been found by metal detectorists at two locations in east Kent. Discovered within the plough-soil, it seems probable that both represent isolated casual losses but, nevertheless, they make a very useful addition to the corpus of Iron Age metal-work known from the County. The accompanying illustrations (Fig. 1) have been prepared by Miss Jo Bacon. Brooch no. I was discovered by Mr Brian McCoy during a rally at Waldershare Park, near Dover, in September 1996. Details of the find were recorded by the author at the time (Find no. 554) and the object has kindly been donated to Dover Museum. It was found some 680m north-west of Waldershare House, in 376 RESEARCHES AND DISCOVERIES 1 Fig. I. La Tene brooches from east Kent. (I) Waldershare, (2) Preston-by-Wingham. Scale I: I 2 the bottom of a dry chalk valley (TR 2829 4818). The find-spot lies just within the parish of Eythorne at an elevation of 85m OD. The brooch is 36mm in length and is slightly worn and distorted; the pin and all the spring except one coil are missing. The arched bow is circular in c:oss-section and is lightly decorated with two groups of transverse moulded ndges and incised lines. On the foot, which returns parallel to the base line, there is a small, undecorated oval disc, with a splayed projection beyond, forming a flattened, thistle-shaped terminal. From this, the piece would appear to belong to Hull's type IBb (Hull and Hawkes, 1987, 95-106), probably datable to the fourth century BC. Brooch no. 2 was found in 1998 by Mr Mick Millard whilst searching land at Preston (Wingham), some 13km north of Waldershare. The find-spot lies east of !he illage on a low plateau at about 15m OD (TR 2528 6060). The sub-soil here is bnckearth. The brooch is in the possession of the finder (hls reference no. 63). As surviving, the brooch is 37mm in length, although most of the pin and most of the foot are missing, and only two coils of the spring remain. The Well-arched bow is circular in cross-section and is relatively thick at the centre, with a marked taper towards both ends. The coils of the spring are fairly large, with a diameter of I 0mm. 377 RESEARCHES AND DISCOVERIES The bow shows traces of fine decoration although the details have been obscured by surface damage and corrosion. Still visible at the base of the arch at either end are a pair of incised, curving transverse lines, bounding an arc of minute punched dots and an incised narrow arc. It seems likely that these elements originally formed part of a more elaborate design, now otherwise lost. The brooch belongs to Hull's type I A (Hull and Hawkes, 1987, 72-86) and is probably datable to the second half of the fifth century BC. Brooches of La Tene I type appear to be generally rare in Kent, despite the numerous metal-detector finds being recorded within the County. A very similar example to the Preston brooch was found in excavations on the Romano-Celtic temple site at Worth, some 10km to the south-east (Hawkes, 1940, 120). Another decorated brooch of Hull's type 1 A has been found at Boxley, near Maidstone (Kelly, 1991 ). A piece decorated with coral insets (Hull's type I Ca) comes from Mill Hill, Deal (Parfitt, 1995, 95), about 8km to the east of Waldershare. Transverse, as opposed to longitudinal, decoration on the bow, as seen in both the present pieces, is somewhat unusual but also occurs on the Worth and Boxley finds. A closer parallel for the Waldershare decoration is provided by a brooch from the River Thames at Brentford Ferry, believed to be a foreign import (Hull and Hawkes, 1987, no. 2924, pl. 29), although both east Kent brooches are without doubt of local manufacture. KEJTH PARFITT Hawkes, C. F. C., 1940, 'The Marnian pottery and La Tene I brooch from Worth, Kent', Journal of the Society of Antiquaries, 20, I I 5-21. Hull, M. R. and Hawkes, C. F. C., 1987, Corpus of Ancient Brooches in Britain, BAR 168. Kelly, D., 1991, 'Archaeological notes from Maidstone museum', Archaeologia Cantiana, cix, 339-40 (incl. fig.). Parfitt, K., 1995, Iron Age Burials from Mill Hill, Deal (British Museum Press). 378 RESEARCHES AND DISCOVERIES 8 IRON AGE AND LATER POTTERY: EASTRY The archive of documents together with fieldwork and excavation finds made by the late Dr J. Ogilvie (of Guilton, Ash) have been donated by his widow to the Dover Museum. Amongst this material are the finds made in 1981-3 from surface collection and limited trial-trenching along the northern edge of Ovenden's Hammill brickpit (NGR TR 291 567). A number of multiperiod pits and ditches were recorded, producing just over 1,000 sherds of pottery. 378 RESEARCHES AND DISCOVERIES Unless further work is done in the general area of this site there is insufficient feature data and material to warrant a full report and no funded synthetic surveys in progress into which the finds could be incorporated. Nevertheless, the overall assemblage does contain aspects of value to regional studies and the following brief tabulated summary and notes are offered as a record. Three main site phases are represented- Early Iron Age, Late Iron Age-Roman and Earlier Saxon. The assessments given in the table are based on sherd frequency, size and condition. The estimates of duration of occupation, based on sherd frequencies and condition (per context) and their associated dating, are open to question. TABLE l. CERAMIC PERIODS REPRESENTED Period Post-medieval Late medieval Medieval Early-mid Saxon Mid-Roman Belgic/Early Belgic Late Iron Age Middle Iron Age Early Iron Age Late Bronze Age Sherd Total 4 6 10 5 28 73 388 75 I 325 1 Assessment Manuring scatter on settlement fringe? ditto Settlement fringe? Occupation for ? no more than c. 25 yrs Settlement, termination/shift after c. 250 yrs ditto ditto ditto Suspect Settlement of c. I 00-150 yrs duration Slightly suspect, cremation burial or occupation? Early Iron Age, c. 550-350 BC. A series of pits and other contexts frequently produced fairly fresh and unworn material; the associated numeric frequency of both contexts and sherds ensures that the recovered material comes from within the main activity zone of an early Iron Age farmstead or settlement. The assemblage is dominated by coarsewares but also contains good-quality finewares including a fine angle-shouldered bowl and a bodysherd from a redfinished (haematite-coated) bowl. This sherd and the presence of some coarsewares with rusticated surfaces (deliberately-applied grip-enhancing clay) are typical of eastern Kentish early Iron Age assemblages (Macpherson-Grant, 199 I) and provides the overall dating. Over 130 sites of this period have been recognized and Hammill brickpit is a useful addition to an under-represented part of the north-east Kent landscape. Late Iron Age-Roman, c. JOO BC-AD 200. This second and longest phase embraces three different ceramic traditions: pre-'Belgic' style late Iron Age represented by purely flint-tempered wares, 'Belgic'-style grog-tempered wares, and Romanized native or Roman wares. There is sufficient of the first element to confirm farmstead/settlement inception c. I 00, or more probably, c. 75 BC. The start-date for the main adop- 379 RESEARCHES AND DISCOVERIES tion of 'Belgic' -style wares in East Kent is still debated - but certainly by c. 75 BC the style was dominant. There are one or two primitive forms that might pre-date c. 50/25 BC, but the majority of the material is well-finished and associated with Conquest-period native fine sandy wares and pre- or Conquest-period Gallo-Belgic and early Roman imports. There is no reason to doubt that occupation continued throughout the later first century BC, but the quantities and date phases per ware suggest that the main phase of activity (including a possible degree of settlement expansion) was from c. 25 BC, or more probably between c. AD 25-75. Sherds from a Terra Nigra platter and a Terra Rubra butt-beaker and a rather unusual Dressel 25 wine amphora suggest a reasonably prosperous settlement acquiring its better quality wares, together with its salt supply (represented by the remains of small mass-produced, possibly footed, containers from the North Kent marshes) from a nearby market. Continuing native occupation into the Roman period is uncertain, though the lower sherd count should represent either a degree of settlement re-arrangement (with main focus and rubbish disposal elsewhere) or a gradual reduction in population from c. AD 75 or 100. No pottery firmly post dating c. AD 200-250 was recovered. Earlier Saxon, c. AD 550/600-700. A small quantity of organic-tempered pottery was recorded including one sherd from a sub-biconical jar with simple vertical and linear decoration, suggesting a date emphasis between c. AD 575-650. The sherds are reasonably large and fresh and therefore likely to derive from adjacent occupation, though the low sherd count and the absence of either variety in fabric type or condition could indicate only short-term occupation. These sherds imply occupation settling into either the remains of a previously well-managed Roman landscape or around the edges of one that was tended to some degree by a remnant sub-Roman population. In turn they imply the landscape remained managed throughout the later Roman period, i.e. that the post-c. AD I 00 ceramic quantity fall-off and suggested end-date of c. AD 200 could reflect a genuine original shift in settlement focus, rather than total abandonment. This small assemblage is a welcome addition to the growing regional evidence for rural Saxon occupation. Main settlement foci have been either recognized or accurately surmised. The Hammill brickpit ceramic evidence adds to a growing picture of a much greater degree of sixth-century settlement infill than suggested by other archaeological evidence or the fifth-century trauma implied by the documentary record. NIGEL MACPHERSON-GRANT Macpherson-Grant, N., 1991, 'A re-appraisal of the prehistoric pottery from Canterbury' in Canterbury's Archaeology 1989-199 I {Canterbury Archaeological Trust), 38-48. 380 RESEARCHES AND DISCOVERIES 9 LATE IRON AGE POTTERY: DARTFORD Archaeology South-East (a division of the Field Archaeology Unit, University College London) undertook a watching brief at the end of 1994 and beginning of 1995 during the construction of a new golf course at Darenth Road, Dartford. During the topsoil stripping for the seventh green two archaeological features were observed and excavated (located at c. TQ 5503 7294). They were found to be two small prehistoric pits containing pottery and animal bone. A fuller account of the work is given in the archive report (Stevens, 1995). The smaller pit contained one rim sherd from a late Iron Age cordoned shouldered jar, typical of the Aylesford - Swarling types of the late first century BC. Also present were seven body sherds in a different late Iron Age fabric, similar to Farningham Hill Fabrics H6 - H8 (Couldrey, 1984). The second, larger, pit contained a more diverse assemblage of fabrics, although none of the 52 sherds show any diagnostic features. However, all the pottery dated from the late Iron Age; a number of the fabrics can also be directly paralleled with those identified at Farningham Hill (ibid.) A total of 22 fragments of bone were recovered from the larger pit, of which 16 pieces were identifiable to species and type. Cattle (Bos taurus) and sheep or goat (Ovis/Capra) predominated, and two fragments of pig bone (Sus scrofa) were also present. The only evidence of butchery was a single cut mark to a Bos rib fragment. Signs of weathering suggest that the bones had been left exposed before deposition. The presence of Iron Age pottery at the site, and the occurrence of material of similar date from Farningham Hill suggests that the Darent Valley was an area of extensive activity during the late Iron Age. SIMON STEVENS LUKE BARBER LUCY SIBUN Couldrey, P., 1984, 'The Iron Age pottery' in B. Philp, Excavations in the Darent Valley, Kent, 38-70. Stevens, S., 1995, A Watching Brief at Dartford Sports and Social Club, Darenth Road, Dartford, Kent. SEAS Archive Report No. 175. 381 RESEARCHES AND DISCOVERIES lO A 'BELGIC' CREMATION: DEAL In March 1997 Mr Trevor Oku was engaged in excavating a new grave at Deal town cemetery when he discovered a complete pot, together with the remains of two brooches, about 1.3m below present 381 RESEARCHES AND DISCOVERIES ground level. He took the pot to Dover Museum, whose staff consulted the author. Occasional finds have been made during grave digging there over many years (Fig. I) and several of these have been described earlier (Parfitt, 1989). The modem cemetery lies some distance inland of Deal town-centre, on level ground (about 7 metres OD) at the foot of the Mill Hill chalk ridge. The subsoil here is brickearth. An inspection by the author revealed traces of a pit in the southwest face of the still open grave, containing calcined bone and more pottery. Clearly representing an early cremation burial, the feature was sealed by a layer of clayey hill-wash almost Im thick. By digging into the face of the grave-pit it was possible to recover all the other archaeological material and to produce a partial plan of the burial deposit (Fig. 2). Further fragments of pottery and burnt bone were recovered from the adjacent spoil-heap. The site was located near the south corner of the modern cemetery {Plot 2E 6142), some 230m to the south-west of the centre line of Hamilton Road (NGR TR 3695 5136). A roughly circular pit about 0.5m in diameter and 0.18m deep, with sloping sides and a rounded base had originally been dug into the surface of the natural brickearth to contain the deposit. About one-third of this pit had subsequently been cut away in the recent grave digging. Where undisturbed, it could be seen that the base of the original burial pit was covered with a layer of cremated bone, resting on top of which were several pottery vessels (Pots b, c and d). These consisted of an unbroken foot-ring tazza (Pot b) and a small squat bowl (c), together with a quantity of other sherds (d).All the vessels were made of grog-tempered fabrics, typical of the late Iron Age/early Roman native potting tradition in east Kent (Thompson, I 982). The original pot recovered by Mr Oku (a) had lain on the northeastern side of the pit, apparently upside-down. It consisted of a complete decorated ovoid beaker in Terra Rubra. Upon cleaning and restoration, the sherds originally designated Pot 'd' were found to represent two separate vessels - a complete foot-ring bowl (di) and a foot-ring platter (d2), of which only about half was recovered. Lying on the base of the grave, it was clear that the cremated bone had never been held within any of the pots. Such an arrangement has been previously recorded in cremations at nearby Mill Hill (Parfitt, 1995, 29). Most probably, the bones were originally contained within a cloth or leather bag. In grave 4 at Mill Hill such an organic container had fairly certainly been closed with a copper-alloy brooch and in this context it is significant that amongst the bones Mr Oku had found were a pair of Colchester brooches ( e I and e2), strongly suggesting a similar arrangement here. 382 • 2E 6465 (1987) • 2E 6142 (1997) 0 Houses RESEARCHES AND DISCOVERIES Mill Road School Deal Cemetery Key: I.A. Pottery Lodge House :c ., h Trench \ • = Cremation Burials l ( 100 Metres 200 Fig. I. Plan of Deal cemetery showing locations of archaeological discoveries 383 N ' RESEARCHES AND DISCOVERIES e1 e2 Fig. 2. Grave goods (plan 1:20): pottery (1:4): brooches (1:1) 384 a C RESEARCHES AND DISCOVERIES The pottery Valerie Rigby The burial seems to have originally contained five pottery vessels (Pots a, b, c, di and d2) of which only three now survive complete. All are wheel-thrown. The typology includes parallels with previous finds at Deal (Parfitt, 1995), Camulodunum, Essex (Hawkes and Hull, 1947), St Albans (Stead and Rigby, 1989) and Thompson ( 1982). A full discussion of the fabrication technique, typology and chronology of previous discoveries was published in Parfitt (1995). a. Ovoid Beaker Camu/odunum I 12Ca/KHL GB 24, small version, in TR 3 - fine-grained silty matrix with occasional red argillaceous pellets; orange ware with smoked grey exterior haze; polished finish. Decoration - notched rouletting in uneven horizontal hoops. Condition - complete; chipped rim and spalled hole on the shoulder. Source - imported from the Marne-Vesle potteries in Gallia Be/gica. Date - the range for the basic form is c. I 5 BC - AD 60; the shape and decoration of this example indicates a date of manufacture in the pre-Claudian period. b. Foot-ring Tazza Camulodunum 210/KHL 2D3/MHC grave 4.a, a narrow variant, with tall foot-ring, and double cordon at the waist. Grog-tempered Ware - heavily tempered with black argillaceous fragments, the matrix is not obviously micaceous; grey core, light brown surfaces; smoothed interior masking throwing rings, smoothly burnished exterior. Condition - complete; chipped rim. Source - local. The earliest ceramic prototypes were imported from Gaul in the final quarter of the first century BC. c. Ripple-shouldered bowl, Thompson E3-I/MHC context Xl8. Grogtempered Ware - similar fabric, finish and firing to (b) above; black argillaceous fragments and some coarse sand; grey core, light brown surfaces; unfinished interior, smoothly burnished rim and base. Decoration - burnished chevrons on matt ground. Condition - complete; chipped rim. Source - local; the vessel-form is characteristic of assemblages in the region. d I. Conical bowl, with shallow foot-ring and raised cordon on the interior. Grog-tempered Ware - fabric, finish and firing similar to (b) above; abraded surfaces, but traces of burnished finish inside and out. Condition - restored to virtually complete; complete when buried and fragmented in situ. Source - local. d2. Foot-ring Platter, Thompson G 1-1 or G 1-4/MHC context X22, widelyangled wall with a slight off-set below the lip. Grog-tempered Ware - fabric, finish and firing similar to (b) above; abraded surfaces but traces of a smoothly burnished finish inside and out. Decoration - narrow band of black coating over lip, probably an organic carbon-like bitumen. Condition - less than half of. the rim circuit survives, but probably complete when deposited in the grave. Source - local. 385 RESEARCHES AND DISCOVERIES The brooches Keith Parfitt Two damaged copper-alloy brooches, recovered by the workmen, are heavily corroded and broken but neither seems to have been burnt, indicating that they had not been cremated with the body. e I. One-piece Colchester brooch with a slightly tapering, curved bow of octagonal cross-section. Camulodunum Type Ill (Hawkes and Hull, 1947, 308- 10). The hook, wings and four of the original eight coils of the spring survive. Pin and catch-plate missing. Surviving length: 67mm. Traces of punched ring-and-dot decoration at the top of the bow (cf. Tester and Bing, I 949, fig. 6, no. 3). e2. Similar to ( e 1 ). Most of the hook, wings, spring, pin and catch-plate missing. Surviving length: 74mm. A further forty-eight small copper-alloy fragments were recovered from amongst the excavated cremated bone which are fairly certainly derived also from the brooches. They include two fragments of coiled spring, two short lengths of pin and many small fragments of flat sheet, which must represent the remains of the missing catch-plates. Colchester brooches are now a common and widely distributed type, standardised during the late first century BC and early first century AD. Locally, brooches of this type have been found in cremation burials at Mill Hill (Parfitt, 1995, I O 1-2) and Sholden (Ogilvie and Dunning, 1967). The cremated bone Trevor Anderson A total of 546g of cremated bone was recovered. The majority of the fragments were off-white and calcined, suggesting a high firing temperature in a well oxygenated environment. Most skeletal elements were present (Table I). Unfortunately, the highly fragmented nature of the bone meant that forty per cent could not be identified. TABLE 1. SKELETAL ELEMENTS BY WEIGHT (GRAMS) Skull Ribs 60 33 Vertebrae 4 Pelvis 20 Upper limb Lower limb Total fragments 209 Total weight 546g 63 157 The largest fragment, some 91 mm in length, is the lower shaft of a left humerus (upper arm). Its extreme gracility suggests a juvenile. However, its fused epiphysis, as well as the fusion of the available vertebral end-plates, Indicate that we are dealing with an adult. The extreme sharpness of the cranial sutures suggests a young adult, probably under 30 years. The gracitity of the adult arm bone supports the diagnosis of a female. There was no evidence of any pathology on the fragmented remains. No teeth were recovered. 386 RESEARCHES AND DISCOVERIES In modern crematoria somewhere between 1.6 and 3.6kg of bone is recovered from an adult body (McKinley, 1989). As such, it appears that this sample represents approximately one-third of what would be expected from a gracile adult. The missing bone may be readily explained by the difficult circumstances of the recovery. The most recent cremation grave found in Deal is a useful addition to the corpus of lron Age burials recorded over the years. It adds a pre-Claudian Gallo-Belgic import to the existing sparse list of thirty-two comparable Gaulish imports for the South-East, with Deal second only to East Hall, Murston, in total number of vessels and form-range (Parfitt, 1995, 179-93). The question of how the grave goods related to the deceased will always remain open; for example, whether the offerings were personal possessions of the deceased or contributed by the mourners; whether they represented a funeral feast for the dead or the living. Whatever the place of offerings in the burial ritual, practically, they represent a sacrifice of material resources by the mourners. Four local vessels in 'Grog-tempered Ware', with similar fabrication techniques, finish and firing to previous finds, add a useful association of one of the latest brooch-types to be introduced in the pre-Roman period, a Gaulish import and locally-made vessels (Parfitt, 1995, 43-4). Although the number of recorded Late Iron Age cremations with grave-goods is small, they are comparatively rich in pairs of bronze brooches and so provide a sequence from the early decades of the first century BC beyond the Roman conquest. They demonstrate strong contacts with northern Gaul; the brooch- and pot-types are Gallic in cultural affinity, and are unrelated to insular variants found in inhumations. Brooches in pairs are evidence also for a marked change in fashion. From the early first century BC, cloaks or capes were worn with a central opening, fastened in place with a pair of brooches at the shoulder while previously they had been draped with a side-opening and secured on one shoulder using a single brooch. Sporadic Late Bronze and Iron Age pottery assemblages in eastern ent include vessels made with local materials by potters so skilled m continental fabrication techniques that they must have learned !heir craft abroad. Because of its close proximity to the continent, it ts tempting to see the revolutionary change in burial rites and the ultral changes illustrated by the Deal cremations as the result of 1mm1gration from Gaul. Of the three cremation burials now recorded from the Hamilton Road cemetery, the present example appears to be the earliest. It has been previously inferred that a small, dispersed Roman cemetery 387 RESEARCHES AND DISCOVERIES existed in the area (Parfitt, 1989, 126) but the dateable material from the present burial strongly suggests that the origins of this cemetery lie in the pre-Conquest period. In the Deal area, late Iron Ageearly Roman cremation burials following the well-known Aylesford tradition and directly comparable to the present find have been previously discovered on the Mill Hill chalk-ridge, about l km to the south-west (Parfitt, 1995, 29) and at Sholden, some 1.5km to the north-west (Ogilvie and Dunning, 1967; Thompson, 1982, 820). A feature of the Hamilton Road burial is the absence of a ceramic vessel containing the cremated bone. Instead, the ashes seem to have been contained within some sort of cloth or leather bag, probably closed with the pair of Colchester brooches. Such an arrangement can be matched by at least three of the burials on Mill Hill (Parfitt, 1995, 29) and may have been the case at Sholden (Ogilvie and Dunning, 1967, 221 ). Similar un-urned cremations have been recorded at Cheriton, Folkestone (Tester and Bing, 1949; Grave group IV with two Colchester brooches) and, further afield, in the large cemeteries at St Alban's (Stead and Rigby, 1989, 83) and Westhampnett, West Sussex (Fitzpatrick, 1997). The first cremation burial discovered at Hamilton Road was found in 1893 when modern grave No. WL 4 (behind the superintendent's lodge) was being excavated (Fig. I ). Lying about 180m north of the present burial, this cremation may be dated to the later second century and was found to have been cut into the top of a substantial earlier ditch, running north-east by south-west. The same ditch was subsequently recorded in a pipe-trench dug in Hamilton Road itself (formerly Cemetery Road; Chapman, 1921, 10-11: Parfitt, 1989, 123). In February 1997, shortly before the present burial was discovered, the author was invited to examine a narrow pit dug in connection with the under-pinning of the rear wall of the superintendent's lodge (now a private residence). The pit lay across the projected line of the ditch and revealed layers of in-fill to a depth of at least I.6m below present ground level. The lowest deposit consisted of a dark brown silty clay with beach cobbles and this produced a single, thick wall-sherd from a 'Belgic' grog-tempered pot. The upper filling produced four pot-sherds, all fairly certainly of early Roman date. The theory put forward that this major ditch represented part of the fortifications thrown up by Caesar (Chapman, I 921, 122) may now be readily discounted. The dating evidence from both the most recent work and the earlier observations suggests that this ditch was dug sometime during the late Iron Age and as such it must be more or less contemporary with the present burial. It now seems most likely, 388 RESEARCHES AND DISCOVERIES perhaps, that the ditch represents part of the enclosure around a farmstead (Parfitt, 1989, 126). The present burial could have formed part of an associated cemetery lying close by. KEITH PARFITT Chapman, H. S., 1921, The Story of Do/a (London). Fitzpatrick, A. P., 1997, Archaeological excavations on the route of the A27 Westhampnett Bypass, West Sussex, /992, vol. 2, The cemeteries (Wessex Arch. Report 12). Hawkes, C. F. C., and Hull, M. R., 1947, Camulodunum: First Report on the Excavation at Colchester 1930-39 (Society of Antiquaries report No. XIV) McKinley, J., 1989, 'Cremations: expectations, methodologies and realities' in C. A. Roberts, F. Lee and R. Bintliff (Eds.), Burial Archaeology, Current Research Methods and Developments, (BAR S211 ), 65-76. Ogilvie, J. D. and Dunning, G. C., 1967, 'A Belgic burial group at Sholden; and a Belgic Tazza from Mill Hill, Upper Deal', Archaeologia Cantiana, lxxxii, 221-6. Parfitt, K., 1989, 'A Roman cremation and other finds from Deal', Kent Archaeological Review, 96, 123-8. Parfitt, K., 1995, Iron Age Burials from Milt Hill, Deal (British Museum Press). Stead, I. M., and Rigby, V., 1989, Verulamium: The King Harry Lane Site (English Heritage Report No. 12). Tester, P. J. and Bing, H. F., I 949, 'A first century urn-field at Cheri ton, near Folkestone', Archaeologia Cantiana, !xii, 21-36. Thompson, I., I 982, Grog-tempered 'Belgic' Pottery of South-eastern England (BAR 108). 389 RESEARCHES AND DISCOVERIES 11 ROMANO-BRITISH CREMATION: BO BBING Archaeology South-East (a division of the Field Archaeology Unit, University College London) excavated the remains of a RomanoBritish cremation on the line of the proposed A249 lwade Improvement Scheme in December 1994. The find had initially been identified by Dr Robert Baxter, Chairman of Sittingboume Archaeology Group, and was located to the north-east of the new Bobbing roundabout (NOR TQ 889650). Despite the site being disturbed by groundworks associated with the road scheme, a burial group comprising four pots was excavated. The largest of these (Vessel No. I) contained cremated human bones. Th remaining three pots appear to have been accessories to the main burial. A sub-circular pit (Context 2) had been dug specifically to acommodate Vessel No. I. This partially destroyed cut was the only pit located during the investigation. All of the other collected sherds 389 RESEARCHES AND DISCOVERIES were spread over an area of exposed sand measuring approximately 5m square (Context 1 ). No evidence was found for any additional grave goods, burial enclosures or structures associated with the actual rite of cremation. Context 1 also yielded a 28mm-long struck flint of probable Mesolithic origin. The pottery Luke Barber Nearly all the sherds recovered from the site of the cremation belong to one of the four cremation vessels. Only three other sherds were located in the vicinity of the burial but are all from different vessels, and are thus unlikely to be associated with the cremation group. These sherds consist of the rims from a Black-Burnished Ware 2 (BB2) beaded and flanged bowl and a Hadharn flagon. A single Late Bronze Age or Early Iron Age flint-tempered body sherd is also present. The largest of the four cremation pots contained the actual cremation (Fig. 1, No. I). All the vessels are incomplete, although two have reconstructible profiles (Fig. 1, Nos 1 and 2). Two of the vessels have totally lost their upper halves, probably the result of later cultivation (Nos. 3 and 4, not illustrated). o 5cms Fig. l Bobbing cremation pots 390 RESEARCHES AND DISCOVERIES All the vessels would fit into a mid-second to mid-third century AD date bracket. I. A narrow-mouth jar with thickened everted rim in a medium to hard-fired sand tempered ware with occasional sub-rounded quartz inclusions to 2mm. Core colour varies from light to mid grey with dull brown margins and patchy dull red brown to dark grey surfaces. Decoration consists of burnishing and cordoning on the shoulder. Late second to mid-third century AD. 2. A small jar with everted rim in a medium-fired fine fabric with few visible inclusions. These consist of sub-rounded light grey grog/clay pellets to I mm. Light to mid grey core with mid to dark grey surfaces. Upchurch-type ware. Second to third century. 3. Jar with missing rim in the same fabric as No. 2. Upchurch-type ware. 4. Base of ajar in medium-fired grog-tempered fabric. Temper is of moderate dull red sub-rounded grog inclusions to 2mm. Core and inner surface colour is dark grey with a buff grey outer face. The Cremated Remains Lucy Sibun The cremated remains were found in association with Vessel No. I. Although the surrounding matrix did allow for good preservation, the material is very comminuted with a fragment size range between 2-67mm in length but with an average size of 20mm. All the material had been cremated, but there was evidence for differential burning within the assemblage. A large percentage of the bone is twisted and distorted which would suggest that the bones were subjected to a relatively high heat. The small size and fragmentary nature of the material does suggest that the bones had been deliberately crushed after burning, perhaps in order that they might be placed into the vessel. here possible, fragments were separated into skeletal elements, primarily skull and long bones with all fragments identified as human. The entire skeleton seems to be represented with evidence of the skull, vertebral column, ribs, long bone shafts and epiphyses and a number of phalanges. The cremated remains weigh 1.36kg of which 90g were skull fragments. It was concluded that one individual was represented by the material. Although it was not possible to determine the sex of the individual the presence of a fully developed third molar indicates an adult. After the Roman Conquest the rite of cremation became common throughout the south-east of England. Indeed, it was to remain the principal funerary practices until the late third and fourth centuries.' The cremation was in close proximity to a known find spot of Late Iron Age and Romano-British material. In 1900-190 I fragments of two large vessels of Celtic date, together with 'lumps of clay having holes through them' were found during grave digging in the new 391 RESEARCHES AND DISCOVERIES churchyard at Bobbing. 2 Romano-British pottery has also been recovered to the south of the site, behind Bobbing School. These previous discoveries, together with the present finds, suggest a Romano- British occupation site lies in the area. CHRISTOPHER GREATOREX ARCHAEOLOGY SOUTH EAST 1 P. Drewett, D. Rudling and M. Gardiner, The South-East to AD /000 ( 1988), 233. 2 Archaeologia Canliana, xxv (1902), Ix. 392 RESEARCHES AND DISCOVERIES 12 ROMAN BUILDING MATERIAL: WYE. Observation of a small service trench cut by Transco in July 1999 revealed Roman building material from a disturbed context. The trench lay on the northern verge of Churchfield Road, outside nos. 70-2, close to the kerb. The trench was less than 1 m square and had been dug to a depth of 0.5-0.8m. Examination of the spoil produced almost 3kg of Roman brick and tile presumably from a previously disturbed context at, or near, this spot. The tile has been examined by Louise Harrison of the Canterbury Archaeological Trust who reports that the material is fresh and unabraded and bears no trace of mortar. The twelve fragments comprise one piece of brick, five tegula fragments, one imbrex and five miscellaneous pieces. Four fabrics can be identified amongst these pieces, two of these being similar to products of kilns at Canterbury. 1 A third fabric may be from Canterbury or from Wye itself where tile kilns are known to have existed at least from the fourteenth century at Naccolt, 2km to the south.2 A fourth fabric is paralleled in London and this fragment may suggest trade in tile over some distance. Three tegu/ae fragments have flange profiles consisting of a type which has occurred commonly on Roman sites in Kent, including Ickham, Ash and Canterbury. No other tile had diagnostic features such as signature marks or flange profiles, as in the case of the tegulae. Mr J. Bradshaw has provided details of local finds which indicate that Roman occupation debris has previously been noted in Wye approximately I 00m to the north-west and a similar distance southwest. These find-spots lie a significant distance from the major building at Harville farm, south-west of the village, and the Roman industrial site to the north•west of the station. 3 These latest finds suggest that a further focus of activity existed on the low hill overlooking the Stour, nearer the present centre of Wye. CHRISTOPHER SPAREY·GREEN CANTERBURY ARCHAEOLOGICAL TRUST 392 RESEARCHES AND DISCOVERIES 1 F. Jenkins, 'A Roman tilery and two pottery kilns at Durovernum (Canterbury)', Antiquaries Journal, xxxvi ( 1956), 40-56. Idem, 'Two pottery kilns and a tilery of the Roman period at Canterbury (Durovernum Cantiacorum)', Archaeologia Canliana, lxxxiv (1960), 151-61. 2 Victoria County History, Kent, iii, 393. 3 Described in Archaeologia Cantiana, lxxxv (1970), 178 and lxxxvi ( 1971), 237. 393 RESEARCHES AND DISCOVERIES 13 ROMAN VILLA SITE (ABBEY FARM): MI NSTER-IN-THANET The training excavation, Phase 4, was carried out between 22 August and 3 September, I 999, being attended by thirty trainees. The research objectives for this phase were: I) To deal with two small unexcavated areas within the villa, and to re-expose the apsidal extension to the southern end of the west wing for further work. This tidying up operation yielded no surprises. 2) To examine the 'garden' areas to the north, east, and west by trial trenching. This revealed a number of interesting features, among them pebble laid 'paths,' a possible well shaft and, beyond and parallel to the northern 'garden wall' foundation, a ditch of possibly defensive function. The latter had been backfilled during a demolition phase on the villa site, and its fill proved rich in sherds and artefacts. 3) To look for and sample building remains situated about 1 00m southwest of the villa, close to Bedlam Court Lane. In the event, these remains proved much more extensive and impressive than had been expected. A stripped area of roughly 15 x I Sm exposed a series of partly robbed out wall foundations, overlaid in one place by (presumably Roman) masonry. No estimate of the extent of 'Building Four' could be made from the work of I 999, but it became clear from the presence of a hypocaust, tesserae, and painted wall plaster, that it had been a building of some importance. A return to the Abbey Farm site in the year 2000 is prohibited, as the eld crop will be potatoes. Further work in 200 I may well be possible, and meanwhile the director and supervisors of the project have commenced post-excavation processing and assembling the framework of a publication. DAVE PERKINS THANET TRUST 393 RESEARCHES AND DISC OVERIES 15 BRITISH-MADE SIL VER SPOON: BARHAM DOWN So far as it is possible to tell, the earliest British-made silver spoon, which is not a Roman derivative, is the extraordinary parcel-gilt example displaying bizarre zoomorphic motifs that was found in 1856 on the Broome Park Estate, Barham Down. Nothing was discovered with the spoon to indicate burial date or provenance. In 1916 the 'Barham Down Spoon' was sold by the original owners, the Oxendens, at auction realizing a then record price of £325 (say £40-50,000 at today's prices). Apparently it is now part of the Sir Charles Jackson Collection of early spoons on loan to the National Museum of Wales, Cardiff. This remarkable spoon was probably made by a Pictish metalworker, possibly from Caledoni in north-east Scotland, around the seventh century AD. Although the spoon's finial may have been inspired by a Teutonic source (Northumbrian), there can be little doubt that all the other decorative elements exhibit features in common with the animal motifs carved on the mysterious Class I Pictish Symbol Stones, scattered throughout north-east Scotland. Just as most of these are incised with a variety of animals, real and mythical, usually in combinations of between two and four, so the Barham Down spoon is graphically embellished with distinctly Pictish-inspired zoomorphic motifs of the most varied kind. Eighteen centimetres long, including the bowl of five ems, the Barham Down Spoon is finely cast and chased, quite large, about the size of a sixteenth century knop spoon (Fig. 1). The stem is straight and rounded, rather than circular, incised with bands in three sections. The finial is formed as a tablet, enclosing a striated quadruped with sharp claws, its head pointed with open jaws and a 'staring eye'. It is possible that the creature is from a Celtic-Northumbrian source, such as the lion symbol of St Mark and/or the frieze animals depicted in the 398 RESEARCHES AND DISCOVERIES iiPJ'_;;;:-f1. "· AJ,_ ; l , I I , . ) Fig. I. The Barham Down Silver spoon disputed Book of Durr ow. 1 Indeed, in some respects the artistry is similar to the spread-eagle porcine escutcheons supporting the St Ninian's hanging bowl, considered to be of Northumbrian origin.2 The bowl and stem of the Barham Down Spoon are strengthened by a joint fashioned as a fierce Celtic, albeit Pictish-style, monster's head, its _jaws seemingly swallowing the stem. The bowl is possibly the animal's body, the underpart having an applied tail and pair of spread legs, perhaps representing a dragon? Nearby the 'dragon's head' is 399 RESEARCHES AND DISCOVERIES another creature with a long neck partly resting in the bowl and ending in a fantail - possibly The Divine Bird of Celtic mythology.3 (Based on part of an article in the Antique Dealer and Collectors Guide - February I 996 - by permission of the Editor.) ERIC J. G. SMITH 1 D. Wilson, Anglo-Saxon Art ( 1986), 33-6. 2 R L. S. Bruce-Mitford, 'The St Ninian's Isle silver hoard', Antiquity, xxxiii, 1959, 245, fig. 4. 3 P. E. Ellis, Dictionary of Celtic Mythology (1992), 25. 400 RESEARCHES AND DISCOVERIES 16 THIRTEENTH-CENTURY SEA DEFENCES: SANDWICH In July I 998 the Trust for Thanet Archaeology carried out investigatory work on the 'Monk's Wall', part of a medieval thirteenth-fourteenth century sea and flood defence system situated on the flood plain of the Stour north of Sandwich. Investigation was made necessary by the imminent construction of a roundabout on the Sandwich bypass designed to improve access to Pfizer Limited and relieve traffic congestion. Although the roundabout slip road passes through a break in the wall made for military purposes during the 1914-1918 War, it was thought that ends of the wal\ on either side of the breach might be damaged during construction. The northern end was therefore made subject to investigation and recording. The wall and its inner and outer parallel draining ditches was sectioned, and the bank of the wall was found to be almost 8m wide, rising to a maximum height of I. 75m from the buried alluvial surface on which it had been laid. It was found to have been constructed from a greybrown sandy silt containing occasional small chalk nodules. This was interpreted as derived from the Thanet Beds sands, presumably brought from the Sandwich area. No traces of internal structures such as wattle fascines were observed, but intense worm action in the bank would have precluded survival of such traces. One feature was recorded during reduction of the section. This was a bowl shaped pit 0.79m in diameter and 0.12m deep. Its fill consisted of oyster shells in a matrix of wood ash. While of unknown date, its depth in the bank was commensurate with the construction phase, suggesting that the work-force lived on site. Ditch sections revealed that periodic recutting deep into the alluvial clay had continued at least until the 1950s, demonstrating that the Monk's Wall was still playing an important role in drainage management after six hundred years. DAVE PERKINS 400 THANET TRUST RESEARCHES AND DISCOVERIES 17 THE NORTHWOOD BRASSES: MINSTER-IN-SHEPPEY It is now generally considered that the monumental brasses commemorating two members of the Northwood family are of French origin. 1 The effigy of a man in armour is thought to represent Sir John de Northwood, who died in 13 l 9, although the brass was engraved c. 1330, while the other effigy is probably to Elizabeth, wife of Roger de Northwood, who died in 1335. Although the brasses are now laid side by side on a single slab, the figures were originally placed on separate slabs with accompanying inscriptions, shields etc. The effigy of Elizabeth Northwood is virtually complete, but that of Sir John has been subjected to two restorations. The effigy of Sir John measures 1700 x 425mm and that to Elizabeth 1550 x 425mm. On l O October 1511, the churchwardens of Minster-in-Sheppey petitioned Archbishop Warham that 'where, of long tyme ago, in the said chapell, a knight and his wife [were] buried, and their pictures upon theym were sore worne and brokene, that they may take away the pictures, and lay in the place a playn stone, with an epitaphy who is there buried, that the people may make setts and pewys, where they may more quietly serve God, and that it may less cowmber the rowme' .2 The result of their presentation was that the church authorities decided the brasses should be repaired, and not removed. 3 Considerable damage must have occurred to the brasses for the churchwardens to petition the Archbishop for permission to remove them. But did it refer to the Northwood brasses? There is some doubt that these brasses were the subject of the petition. The 'monuments' described by the churchwardens were said to be in a 'chapel!' whereas the brasses were originally placed in the centre of the chancel. Their pictures were 'very sore worne and brokene', but neither brass shows any sign of wear, even after 650 years. Perhaps the churchwardens were exaggerating the damage in order to get the brasses removed. The description could refer to an incised slab, which seems unlikely, as such monuments were not popular in Kent.4 Also, would pews have been placed in the chancel at that date for use by parishioners?5 The brasses were subsequently repaired and an 'epitaphy' placed with the figures, which was recorded in the Visitation of Kent,6 taken in 1619, and by John Weever, in his Ancient Funeral/ Monuments, published in 1631.7 The renewed inscription erroneously suggests that the effigies commemorated Roger Northwood and his wife Bona. The Visitation mentions the figure of the Knight,8 which is 'cross Legged' and 'the Originall inscription wch was in an auntient character being defaced and the letters pulled out, some have in a more Moderne Letter patched a peece of Brass at the head of the Monument...'. From this description, we have important evidence that the legs of the knight were crossed. So had they been renewed by this date? It would appear so, but it would be foolish to rely on this evidence alone, and we must look at something more tangible - the restored legs themselves. Before being repaired, the brass of Sir John was 401 RESEARCHES AND DISCOVERIES made up of at least four separate plates, two of which were Jost by the beginning of the sixteenth century. The plates originally comprised (Fig. I): I) the upper half of the effigy from head to waist; 2) a central strip on which was engraved the sinister arm of an engrailed cross; 3) the lower half of the trunk; 4) the legs and feet. We now tum our attention to the restored legs to see whether the style of engraving is able to help in dating the restoration. J. G. Waller noted the similarity between the lion that was to be found at the foot of the brass to Piers Gerard, 1492, in Winwick church, Lancashire.9 ln this case the comparison is rather superficial, the lion at the foot of the Gerard brass being shown in profile, and seems to be almost tame, when compared to the Northwood example. Five further brasses bear comparison with the Minster example: Lullingstone, Kent, 1487; 10 Lillingstone Dayrell, Buckinghamshire, 1491;11 St Michael Penkivel, Cornwall, 1497; 12 Ashby St Ledgers, Northamptonshire, d. 1485 (engraved c. 1506);13 Mamble, Worcestershire, c. 1500.14 The lion at Lullingstone shows characteristics that can be seen on the Minster lion - a long curly mane, a cross on the scabbard chape and short spiky grass. Both the lion at Ashby St Ledgers and at Minster are shown in a very much debased form. The engraving of the mail and spurs on the St Michael Penkivel example are also similar. Mamble has a lion with a long curly mane and long tail which ends in a fleur-de-lis shape. Finally, the lion below the feet of Sir John Crokker, 1508, at Yealmpton, Devon, shows the same similarities as the lions mentioned above. 15 Below the effigy of Thomas Colte, 1471, at Roydon, Essex, 16 is a well-drawn lion with long mane and uplifted tail, surely an original model for all the lions mentioned above? ln conclusion it is worth noting that the Northwood lion looks very much like a dog, possibly a talbot. The most likely scenario for the restoration would appear to be as follows. In 1511 the churchwardens were forced by the church authorities to repair the two brasses, or a surviving member of the Northwood family paid for the work to be done on the monuments of his ancestors. This resulted in both brasses being taken up and sent to a suitable brass workshop in London. New legs were added to the male effigy, although the central strip of brass, bearing the dexter arm of the Northwood cross, for reasons which are not clear, was not renewed. Both effigies were then placed side by side on a new slab, and the inscription to Roger Northwood and Bona added. The whole composition was then returned to Minster church. 17 Confirmation that the brasses were placed on a new slab comes from a drawing by 402 RESEARCHES AND DISCOVERIES 1 2 3 4 403 Fig. I. Construction of the Plates used for the Brass to Sir John de Northwood RESEARCHES AND DISCOVERIES D. T. Powell, 18 published here for the first time (Plate I). Powell visited Minster in December 1805, and proceeded to draw the brasses. What he recorded is revealing, for both the brasses to the North woods are placed together on a single slab, the whole composition being surrounded by an empty marginal fillet, which would suggest that the slab was secondhand. The inscription recorded by Weever is nowhere to be seen and certainly no indent for it is shown. The brasses underwent a further restoration in 1881 when J. G. Waller once again took them up, providing new engraving to replace the missing portion of the Northwood arms, repaired other small pieces of lost engraving, and relaid the figures in a new slab of Bethersden marble. (It is presumed that the old 'secondhand' slab is still beneath the pews in the chancel.) From the evidence presented here, it would appear that the first restoration of the Northwood brasses was carried out within a year or so of Archbishop Warham giving his verdict to the churchwardens. It would be interesting to know exactly what part the Archbishop played in the restoration. It is hoped that the publication of additional information relating to the state of the Northwood brasses in 1805 will stimulate further research into the history of the monuments. The author is grateful to the British Library for permission to reproduce Plate I. PHILIP WHITTEMORE 1 Gaignieres records a group of French effigies that have a shield placed in front of the body. See Jean Adhenar, 'Les Tombeaux de la Collection Gaignieres Dessins d'Archaeologie du xviii Siecle' in Gazette des Beaux Arts, lxxxiv (1974), especially nos. 635,668, 710 and 719. 2 Quoted in J. G. Waller, 'The Brass of Sir John de Northwode in Minster Church, Sheppey', Archaeologia Cantiana, ix (1874), 148-63. l Ibid., 151. 4 F. A. Greenhill, The Incised Slabs of Leicestershire and Rutland (1958), 215, lists very few slabs in Kent having effigies. 5 Long backed benches were introduced as part of church furnishings in the late sixteenth century. 6 British Library Add. MS. 1106, fo. 42b. 7 Page 283. 8 As note 6. 9 Illustrated in J. L. Thornely, Monumental Brasses of Lancashire and Cheshire, (1893, reprinted 1975), 65. 10 Illustrated in M. Norris, Monumental Brasses: The Memorials ( 1977), II, fig. 156. 11 Illustrated in W. Lack, H. M. Stuchfield and P. Whittemore, The Monumental Brasses of Buckinghamshire (1994), 135. 12 Illustrated in W. Lack, H. M. Stuchfield and P. Whittemore, The Monumental Brasses of Cornwall (1997), 142. 13 Illustrated in Norris, op. cit. (note I 0), fig. 180. 404 RESEARCHES AND DISCOVERIES PLATE I D. T. Powell's drawing of the Northwood brasses in I 805 405 R ESEARCHES AND DISCOVERIES 14 ibid., fig. 176. 15 Illustrated in Transactions of the Exeter Diocesan Architectural Society, v, Part II (1845), pl. 13. 16 /bld.,fig.174. 17 For an alternative view on the sixteenth century restoration see M. Norris, op. ell. (note 10), I, 278-9. The late Dr Norris was in favour of the restoration being carried out c. 1581-2; but this dating does not take into account the possibility of a later workshop being conversant with a number of earlier engraving conventions, e.g. the depiction of mail, grass etc. The present writer subscribes to the view that the repair was effected c. 1515. 18 British Library, Add. MS. 17733, fo. 195r; C. Stothard, Monumental Effigies ( 1817), 15, and second edition ( 1876), 90, drew the brass, and although the central strip was missing, its position was indicated by means of broken lines. Unfortunately, the work contains no letterpress, so it is not possible to ascertain the condition of the brass when drawn by Stothard. 406 RESEARCHES AND DISCOVERIES 19 LEAD MEDALETTE: SHOREHAM The Secretary of the Shoreham and District Historical Society reports a find made in his garden. It is a small disc almost exactly one inch in diameter and shows the figure of Justice on the reverse side, in classical drapes with sword and scales, and the bust of Queen Elizabeth I on the obverse, full face with a large ruff and crown. The inscription on the reverse reads 'CONCILIO NIL NISI' and the much smaller inscription on the obverse reads 'God Save the Queen'. The item is dated on the reverse' 1589'. It is in good condition and easily legible (Fig. I). The British Museum describe it as a 'lead medalette' and believe it is not a coin or token but a commemorative piece struck for 'political reasons', possibly to celebrate the defeat of the Armada. The finder lives in a former coachman's cottage adjacent to the 409 Fig. I. Lead medalette, Shoreham RESEARCHES AND DISCOVERIES Victorian mansion of 'Darenth Hulme', built in 1867-9. It lies on a chalk hillside overlooking Shoreham and the finder believes there was no building on the site pre-1860s. The Tudor disc is the only pre-Victorian find made on the property. Dr Mike Still, the Honorary Curator of the KAS, queries the British Museum's assessment that the Shoreham disc is a commemorative piece relating to the Armada as this was defeated in the previous year. The object could have some commemorative function hinted at by the Latin phrase 'Nothing unless by union' - accompanied by the figure of justice, but the meaning is obscure. Even if the item is commemorative, it may also have served a practical use as a jetton (castingcounter) for working out accounts on a counting board. There is an extremely brief reference to the existence of jettons made of lead (rather than of copper-alloy) in the time of Elizabeth 1. 1 There is no proof, however, that jettons of this period were used as commemoratives. It appears that even those jettons referring to episodes in English history were usually made in mainland Europe, although the phrase 'God Save the Queen' in English suggests that this particular example was made in this country. EDWARD JAMES 1 F. P. Barnard, I 917, The Casting-Counter and the Counting Board, 32. 410 RESEARCHES AND DISCOVERIES 1 20 'STIRLING CASTLE'; GOODWIN SANDS Members of the Kent Archaeological Society may recall that Thanet Archaeological Society owns the wreck of Stirling Castle, a 70-gun Ship of the Line lost on the Goodwins in the Great Storm of 1703, and rediscovered in 1978 (see Archaeologia Cantiana, cxviii, 357). After being resubmerged in the sands for almost twenty years, Stirling Castle started to emerge in 1998, giving reason to hope that she might be again exposed as in 1978, see the writer's 'artists impression' drawn in that year (Fig. 1). This proved to be the case, and full use was made of the opportunity by 'Seadive Organisation' a local amateur diving group, who obtained a licence to survey the wreck from Department of Culture, Media and Sport on the advice of the Advisory Committee on Historic Wrecks. 'Seadive' was joined in 'Project Man-o-War' by volunteers from the United States (Maritime and Historical Archaeological Society) and members of the British ADU (Archaeological Diving Unit). Conditions of underwater visibility proved moderate to good, and the ship's hull was exposed from stem to stem along the port side. 410 .i,.. ..... - THE WRECK OF H.M.S STIRLING CASTLE . - . : ' '•. '-., H.M.S STIRLING CASTLE A THIRD RATE SHIP OF lllE LINE OF 70 GUNS WAS BUILT AT DEP'TFORD IN 1619 BY JOHN SHISH. SHE WAS EXTENSIVELY RmITED AT CHATHAM IN 1691 AND SANK DURING THE GREAT STORM ON ZTrn NOVEMBER 1703 4 '-.. THIS RECONSTRUCTION BASED ON DIVERS REPORTS SHOWS HOW THE WllECK OF STIRLll'G CASTLE MA V HAVE APPEA.RED ON DISCOVERY IN 1979 GIVEN THE IMPOSSIBLE CIRCUMSTANCE OF' PERFECT VISIBILITY Fig. I. The wreck of H.M.S. Stirling Castle THE GRF.AT STORM OF 1703 WAS THE CAUSE OF BRlT/llNS .. CREAn:sf NAVAL DISASTER. SHIPS WRECKtollu\T NIGHT • lNCUJDED THE THIRD RATES NORTHUMBERLAND,ST!RLINC CASILE, AND' RESTORATIO, AND 111£ FOURTH RATE MARY, WITH THE LOSS OF OVER 1100 MEN. lll'IO RESEARCHES AND DISCOVERlES American marine archaeologist Bill Otley described conditions at the stern to the writer, where the ship's massive rudder stood, thirteen feet tall, still hinged on its pintles and gudgeons. State of the art equipment for survey and photography were employed, so that far more was achieved than was possible in 1978. Numerous artefacts, including cases of muskets, were recorded scattered about on the ship's upper deck wreckage. While 'Project Man-o-War' had no mandate to lift artefacts, two objects were seen to be in peril of being lost from the wreck due to deep swell effects or sand surges. At time of writing it was being proposed that a lateseason dive be organised to lift the objects for conservation and recording. DAVE PERKINS THANET TRUST 412