Reviews

REVIEWS The Excavation of Roman and Medieval London. By W. F. Grimes. 7 x9¾ in. Pp. xxi+261, 102 plates, 53 figures (1 folder). Routledge and Kegan Paul, London, 1968, 63s. Excavations in the bomb-sites of the City of London were instigated soon after the last war by the Society of Antiquaries of London (not, incidentally, 'Royal', as the publishers' writer misquotes on the dustjacket the author's introduction) and led to the formation of the Roman and Medieval London Excavation Council whose aims were to record as much of the evidence as could be salvaged in advance of the developers' bulldozers and pile-drivers. This work was directed on behalf of the Council by Professor Grimes, and the present volume is an interim statement of the results obta,ined between 1947 and 1962. The book is profusely illustrated by excellent photogra,phs well reproduced, though occasionally marred by the use of such makeshift scales as brushes, trowels and shovels, and many of the author's wellknown drawings. As Professor Grimes so rightly points out (p. 10), there is hardly any unanimity as to the best method of representing an archreological section on paper; the illustrator is often faced with the dilemma of choosing between the naturalistic approach (what Sir Mortimer Wheeler in reviewing another work elsewhere has dubbed as 'pictorial smudgery') and the purely conventionalized drawing. Clearly, the author has a flair for giving an impression of the texture of a section, and here he compromises by often resorting to both methods for illustrating the same section. But his preference for la.belling layers in his conventional drawings instead of the more usual numbering has often given an overcrowded appearance to his drawings; often enough, too, the format of the book has imposed such a great reduction of the original drawing that the lettering becomes rather tiring to the eye (for an extreme example, cf. Fig. 38, p. 171). Surely Fig. 2, p. 16, if not a few others as well, deserved to be made into a folder without too great an increase in the price of the volume! The north point is not always shown on plans, though their orientation is often obvious enough, and few printer's errors were noticed: Ermin Street [sic], (p. 39), 'toward sthe' (p. 70), 'notsu:fficiently' (p. 137), an unnecessary ) in n. 1 (p. 204). The word 'altar' has been omitted from 1. 23 (p. 105), Piazza Amerino (p. 115) should read Piazza Armerina, Journ. Rom. Soc. III (1963), in n. 1 (p. 150) is, in fact, LIII (1963); though the usual abbreviation to JRS is not used, one fails to see how the Journal of 287 REVIEWS Roman Studies can fit the author's abbreviated form. 'Bellarmine' and bellarmine both occur, and samian is still Samian! Professor Grimes is at pa.ins to warn that much of what he has to say in this very interesting book may have to be modified when the detailed examination of the finds has been completed, and one would like to reinforce his caution that 'a fragment of bead-rim ... may imply a relatively early date, though this cannot be certain' by pointing out that such vessels are known to continue well into the second century A.D., as has been amply demonstrated at other sites (e.g. Southwark, Greenhithe, etc.). Some of the information, plans and photographs contained in this book have already appeared in another volume by the same publishers (cf. R. L. S. Bruce-Mitford (ed.), Recent Archaeol,ogical Excavations in Brit,ain, London, 1956, eh. VI); however, the opportunity has been taken here not only to enlarge on the sites briefly mentioned in 1956, but also to outline the results obtained in many others since then. Even in its limited scope, this volume amply underlines how much was achieved under very difficult (one suspects, even dangerous) conditions, which were clearly not made easier by the lukewarm support of those whose collections stood to gain most by so much unstinted effort. Archreologically, the entirely unexpected discovery of the Cripplegate fort, even though the loss of some levels renders the story incomplete, must have given the greatest satisfaction; yet, it was the excavation of the Mithraeum, heralded years beforehand by the Wallbrook relief, that was treated by press and public alike as of the greatest significance. In this respect, it makes sad reading to realize how much effort was expended for the benefit of the thousands of visitors whose interest found no reflection in their generosityunhappily, not a unique experience! But, besides these two major discoveries, there is such a wealth of information in this book, both on Roman and medieval sites, that it cannot fail to whet one's appetite for the detailed publication. A.P.D. Brit,ain in the Roman Empire. By Joan Liversidge. 7 x9¾ in. Pp. xx:xiy +526, 60 plates (1 colour frontispiece), 187 figures, 3 maps. Routledge and K.egan Paul, London, 1968, 105s. This large volume is .yet another recent addition to the gr9wing literature on Roman Britain and, to quote the author's introdu􀃨tion, aims 'to present as complete (my italics) a picture as possible of ij.fe M it must have appeared to the Romano-Britons'; thus, effectively, the author has handi<;iapped herself from the very start. For where archreology has not yet provide􀃩 the answer and dqoui:pentary eviqence is la,olpng, Miss Liversidge -has sought to. complete .her picture ..b y is8 REVIEWS admitting the evidence of Continental conditions as probably obtaining also in Roman Britain (particularly so in the chapters dealing with the professions); the author freely admits this (pp. 1-2), and she may yet be proven right, but it is the very ease with which she apparently' accepts such indirect evidence that makes one feel uneasy. The attempt to be as complete as possible has imposed on the author the twin strait-jackets of condensation and selectivity, leading to some curious results; it is very odd indeed, in a whole chapter on burial and the after life, to find not a single reference to the cemetery at Ospringe! More serious and, perhaps, practically unavoidable in such an enormous work of compilation is the unquestioning acceptance of information already published without apparently taking into account any subsequent revision; the danger lies in that the printed word may often become confused with fact. Thus, on a reappraisal of the associated pottery, the date of the probable Springhead bakery (p. 185) is questionable, and the dating of the Pudding Pan Rock wreck vaguely to 'some time in the second century' (p. 179) difficult to understand when it is now well known that the ship must have sunk later than C. A.D. 160. Condensation, in at least one instance, has led to inaccuracy; for the references to the Eccles baths need drastic correction. Even though the author seems to have taken into account only the first two published interim reports (incidentally, in p. 269, the years of the relevant Arch. Cant. volumes are 1963 and 1964, not as printed), notwithstanding that a third report had already been published well before her text was apparently completed in 1966, it is not accurate to write that the first baths were 'altered and considerably extended' (p. 257) when they were very likely burnt, certainly demolished and replaced by a second baths suite built in part over the first one, nor that in Period III (now VI) 'a large cold plunge ... was added' (p. 257) for, once more, it is the case of an almost entirely new and much larger structure. One or two discrepancies were also noted: in the case of the Classicianus tombstone (RIB 12), the British Museum drawing, following Cottrill (Antiq. Journ., xiv {1936), 5), restores I(NFELIX), yet the text {p. 12) follows Professor Birley's generally accepted restoration I(NDIANA) (loc. cit., 208), without explanation; the coffin illustrated in fig. 183 was clearly intended for the remains of Valerius Amandinus, not Amandus {p. 485). The book is very well illustrated by a large number of plates and text figures. Many of the excellent photographs are well known; in the case of the figures, some of which are not clearly printed (e.g. the merging borders in figs. 7 and 24), the obvious saving in the cost of production by using both existing line blocks and drawings especially commissioned for this work has inevitably entailed much unevenness. This would have been less obtrusive if the new drawings, though artis- 289 REVIEWS tically pleasing, did not lead one to suspect them as the artist's first excursion in archaiological illustration; often (e.g. fig. 113, Map m, etc.) the very heavy borders of the new figures give an unwelcome funereal appearance, the lines of the pottery drawings and others are too thick, occasionally mistakes occur (cf. fig. 68f, where both the ovolo and stamp are inaccurately drawn). Regrettably, there is a larger number of printer's errors than careful proof-reading should allow: 'Eph,e,rmeris' (p. 156, n. 1), 'Ashstead' (p. 288), 'corble' (p. 263), 'ancester' (p. 465), 'frquently' (p. 477), 'Klangenfurt' (p. 397), 'a throng of fisherman' (p. 363) [sic] alongside Diole for Diole (p. 411, n. 1), 'smith's guild' (p. 422), Tarvos for Tavros (p. 431), Alfoldi for Alfoldi (p. 446, p. 447, n. 1) and 'fumed' instead of 'fused glass' (p. 493)-yet, the most engaging one asks the reader (p. 55) to believe that the diameter of a wooden water-pipe was l¾ feet! Thank-offering and thankoffering both occur; and surely with joint papers, the excavators' is more correct than the singular form-though it may be argued against this that on p. 452 only one of the authors is mentioned by name, this is not so with the Shorden Brae mausoleum (p. 492). When all this has been said, however, one must hasten to place on record the admiration felt at the massive background reading upon which this work is founded, the sensitive interweaving of so many diverse threads into a coherent pattern, and great appreciation for this obvious labour of love in which some will find information less readily accessible elsewhere, others short-cuts and starting-points for fruitful enquiries. With a book conceived on such a grand scale, it is too easy to complain on the grounds of including much that may be less important than some omissions; yet, this volume richly deserves a wide circulation, and it is to be hoped that its price will not put it beyond the pocket of the many who could use it with great advantage. A mere glance down the list of its chapters should excite anybody's appetite for learning on Romano-British life and, so long as it is remembered that some of its contents may need either revision or be accepted with an open mind, Miss Liversidge's painstaking and methodical work will amply reward the reader who wm persevere through its many informative pages. A.P.D. Oatlwlic Dover. By Christopher Buckingham. Thomas Becket Books, Lydden, 1968. The main featme of this book is an excellent and readable account of the vicissitudes endured by adherents of the Roman Catholic faith in Dover from the Reformation to emancipation, and the progress of the Catholic Church there from that day to this. It is quite clearly based on careful research, but the absence of precise references is a serious fault. 290 REVIEWS A proliferation of footnotes is, as everybody knows, a great nuisance, but they are quite indispensable to the serious historian, and can reasonably be listed at the end of each chapter if one does not want them on the narrative pages. The bibliography given here is no real substitute. The introductory chapters leading up to the main theme deal rather sketchily with the Saxon and medieval church in Dover, and there is a more detailed account of the famous local martyr, Thomas de la Hayle (d. 1295) who, apparently, narrowly missed formal canonization. One could have wished that the author had submitted the story of King Eadbald's college of secular canons in the castle to critical examination, as there is serious doubt whether such an institution ever existed. King Wihtred's foundation on the site of the later St. Martin's le Grand is well attested, but it seems probable that in its early days this was a monastery rather than a college (see Gordon Ward, in Arch. Cant., lix, 25). A list of Dover parish priests from the thirteenth century to the Reformation and short accounts of two medieval chapels-Our Lady of Pity and St. Edmund-complete the book. St. Edmund's chapel (on which a detailed monograph is now available) is of particular interest to members of this Society since the first steps towards its restoration were inspired by olll' joint committee with C.P.R.K., and the architect in charge of the work, now successfully completed, was our member Mr. Anthony Swaine, F.R.I.B.A. C.R.C. Excavations at Faversham, 1965-The Royal Abbey, Roman Villa and Belgic Farmst,ead. By Brian Philp. 11 X8½ in. Pp. 92, 25 plates, 26 figures. Kent Archreological Research Groups' Council, Bromley, 1968, 40s. In 1954 at the :Maidstone Congress of the South Eastern Union of Scientific Societies the doyen of Kent archreologists, the late Frank Elliston-Erwood, read a paper on 'The Present State of Mona.stic Archreology in Kent' (published in The South Eastern Naturalist arul, Antiquary, lix, 2-14). I quote his comments on Faversham Abbey as they have some relevance in determining the importance of Brian Philp's work: 2s 'There is an almost complete absence of authentic material here. The site of the abbey is known and there are one or two buildings of doubtful purpose, but nearly all the investigation has been directed towards the Arden of Faversham matter, while the Abbey itself has been almost destroyed and its study neglected. Arch. Gant., xx:x:iv, 130-6. Recently a certain amount of casual 291 REVIEWS digging has revealed foundations, which, while at present not appearing to be related to any recognisable plan, indicate the possibilities of the site.' Indeed, the neglect ofFaversham Abbey could be instanced as being characteristic of monastic archreology in Kent over the past half century. The last relevant book comparable to Brian Philp's is the late Sir Alfred Clapham's Lesnes .Abbey, 1915, which Wa8 based on the excavations of Elliston-Erwood and other members of the Woolwich Antiquarian Society over several years. Since the 1939-45 War there have been signs of a revival of interest in the subject and this ha8 been manifested for instance at Higham's Benedictine Nunnery, Strood's Temple Place and, once again, Lesnes Abbey, which through EllistonErwood's devoted efforts has an excellent and lengthy Guide. Such was the situation when in December, 1964, the author accepted an invitation from the Ministry of Public Building and Works to undertake emergency excavations in Well Orchard (destined for private development) to uncover the parts of Faversham Abbey which might lie there. He was given eighteen days to do this-seemingly a farcical a.mount of time by the standards of Lesnes and St. Augustine's, Canterbury. Results were so good that the eighteen days were stretched to fifty-five, often endured in wretched weather conditions. The author dryly remarks that snow and rain fell on more than twenty days. The excavation spread into Sextry Orchard which was scheduled to become a recreation ground for Faversham Grammar School. Mr. Philp posits five periods of building-1148 (foundation), c. 1220, c. 1250-1300; c. 1250-1350, and c. 1400-1500. During the first period the church was started and grandly designed to be 361 feet in length. Probably because of a desire to provide space in the eastern arm for the royal tombs of Queen Matilda (died 1152), Prince Eustace (died 1153), and King Stephen (died 1154), the north transept was moved westwards and thus left the already-started eastern range of the cloisters completely out of line. The loss of the upper parts of the walls has left for all time the problem of how the night stairs came from the dorter into the church. Also during Period I the church acquired at its eastern end three apsidal chapels. These have a parallel at Chertsey Abbey. Early seals of Faversham Abbey show the church as having a central tower and two flanking towers at the west end of the nave. The bases of the western towers were found, but during Period II there had been replanning and they were placed on a new west end some 18 feet short of the termination as originally designed. During the course of this period the church was reduced in length to 260 feet. These are but a few of the worthwhile discoveries made during the excavation. When the Abbey emergency excavation had been completed in February, 1965, the contractors began to strip the topsoil from Sextry :292 REVIEWS Orchard. Our members, Messrs. Gravett and Rigold, visited the site on 30th June and by chance noticed signs of foundations in the orchard. These, when excavated, proved to be the remairul of a small Roman villa which had been imposed upon an earlier Belgio farming complex. The author distinguishes four periods in this occupation and dates them from Flavian times to 'sometime during the third century' (p. 62), though he freely admits to an absence of securely-sealed deposits for his dating (pp. 68, 70-71); faced with this difficulty, he resorts to other criteria which are debatable in the extreme. Granted that the Belgio ditches may have been filled in about .A..D. 50 (p. 62), what evidence is there to warrant the suggestion that the first house was built within the next twenty years and not for another century or so? Not all Belgic sites develop immediately into Romano-British villas! Granted, too, the apparent similarities between the plan of Faversham I, as published here, on the one hand and those of the villas at Lockleys, Park Street and Ditchley on the other, it is surely stretching typological analogy rather too far in order to date the Faversbam villa to c . .A..D. 70-100 on this basis alone. The pottery in Pit VI can scarcely be used to support such dating; for, though nos. 242-3 do begin to appear probably as early as Flavian times, they are certainly still to be found in late-Antonine contexts-moreover, no. 250, found in a deposit which the author dates to c. A.D. 200-225 (p. 84), is typologically of the same class as no. 243. Then, there is the difficulty of the unexplained passage between Rooms 2-3 and 4. The distinction between Periods I and II rests on the observation that the f ound.ations for walls of these two periods 'butt-up' and 'the joint ... was quite clear' (p. 68); yet, it is notoriously difficult, when dealing with foundations only, to be sure that an apparent joint is a true one and, if so, whether the lapse of time was significantly long to justify thinking in terms of re-building. Conversely, if this distinction is not valid, then Periods I and II would in fact represent the original house consisting of a central range of rooms, flanked to east and west by corridors, with the passage between Rooms 2-3 and 4 affording access from one corridor to the other; additionally, this would be more compatible with the pottery in Pit VI. There is, in this section, an indiscriminate use of 'wall' and 'foundation' when the text makes it clear that only the latter were preserved; more important, the tentative dating, e.g. 'the Period I villa was probably (my italics) built about .A..D. 70-100' (p. 68), often becomes established fact, e.g. 'the first Roman building on the site ... was (my italics) constructed about .A..D. 70-100' (p. 62). In general, it would not have detracted from the value of this book, if the Belgio and Romano-British sections were published elsewhere as a separate report. Mr. Philp has wisely tailored his book to suit his excavations. After an introductory chapter dealing with routine affairs, he passes on to a 293 REVIEWS second chapter which deals with records relating to the Abbey. It is short ( one and a half pages) and most of the facts support his excavation periods. Chapter Ill contains a detailed account of the excavation of the conventual church and the claustral buildings. Chapter IV attempts 'to reconstruct the plan of the rest of the monastic precinct'. This is followed by a Discussion which includes what is in fact a potted account of the excavation, the dating evidence and a comparison with monastic remains elsewhere. Chapter VI (pp. 39-61) is entitled 'The Finds' and consists of specialized accounts by experts such as Anthony Swaine, Calvin Wells, Stuart Rigo Id and John Hurst. There is a great deal of information here, embellished by clear-cut illustrations. Part II is entirely taken up by details concerning the Roman villa and Belgic farmstead. The book has a streamlined, modern look. The photographs are excellent as should be expected from one whose profession is photography. Plans and sections are clear and for Kent's monastic buildings I only know of one comparable overall plan which has given me as much pleasure-Sir Alfred Clapham's of Christchurch, Canterbury, in The Archaeological Journal, lxxxvi. This is the .first research report of the Kent Archreologioal Research Groups' Council. It has a tendency-I believe justifiable-to stress the aims, methods and deeds of the diggers who had a cold and hard stint with little prospect of spectacular rewards. Their leader was proud of them and now he thanks them publicly. If the report had been published in a learned journal, the editor's blue pencil would have been used extensively on such references, plates II and III would have been dropped as an expensive luxury and there would have been no place for the deserved dedication to Alan Christopher Jones whose untimely death deprived us of the services of a young man of exceptional promise in archooological drawing and draughtmanship. I had almost read through the book before having my .first shock, which occurred in the list of references. It was with sorrow that I saw that Alan Warhurst's and my note on the medieval pottery from Potter's Corner was seemingly attributed to Stuart Rigold (R. 72). But in spite of this setback to pride, I enjoyed Mr. Philp's book and appreciated the great amount of labour which has gone into it. He may have one consoling thought-that this work cannot be superseded. L.R.A.G. A.P.D. St. Margaret's Ohurch, Horsmonden. By Anthony Cronk. 7½x5 in. Pp. 87. Church Farm House, Horsmonden, 1967. 12s. The post-war years have seen a glut of parish church guides in Kent. Some have been downright bad, most have been conscientiously 294 REVIEWS written i n traditional style and a few have been outstandingly good because they have striven to give a modern presentation and have shown signs of considerable research work. Mr. Cronk's book comes in the last category. It does not look like a church guide from the musty past and bears comparison with the author's previous charming, bijou volumes on the hop industry and the town of West Malling. If anyone wishes to have a model of how to present and write a work which does not bore and which becomes almost compulsive reading, then this is it. I expect that most members of our society know the name Horsmonden from signposts when they are making their way to the south coast by car. I suspect that very few of them have visited the church which is quite remote from the present village, a relatively modern growth stimulated by the iron and cloth industries of the Weald. That is their grievous loss and should be rectified with haste. The author lives almost on the churchyard wall at Church Farm House and confesses that his collateral ancestor was that Dr. Geoffrey Amhurst, who was rector ofHorsmonden from 1616 until he was turned out in 1640. Dr. Amhurst was a follower of Archbishop Laud and inspired the local puritans to petition the House of Commons about his heresy which consisted of two enormities: 1. Our Communion Table is removed upp unto the wall at the east end of the Chancell and compassed about with waynscott ... 2. He doth goe upp to the said table to read greate parte of the service, and maketh obeysance to the table when he goeth to it and also when he retireth from it ... The attractiveness of Mr. Cronk's work lies in the skilful way in which he has dovetailed local history into his description of the church. A stained-glass window leads to some mention of Simon Willard (baptised in St. Margaret's in 1605) who went to New England to become a fighter against the Indians and to found the town of Concord. A tablet to John Read, factotum to the Marriott family, recalls his invention of a stomach pump which was instrumental in saving many an early nineteenth century life. The brass of Henry de Grofhurst, rector 1311 to 1361, inspires Mr. Cronk to write a whole chapter on one who was virtually the founder of the church as we see it and who was closely connected with the local lords of the manor of that name. The author also earns commendations by giving a plan of the church by Roy Bayes and by using as his artist (for nine sketches) Rosemary Everett, daughter of Sir William Smith-Marriott and designer of St. Margaret's strongly coloured east window. Such care has been taken in the production of this book that I feel churlish in pointing out that on page 22 a letter appears to be missing from 'sepelienum', that the black-letter inscription on page 73 would 295 REVIEWS look better with the addition of contraction marks and that 'kingposts' on page 65 should now be 'crown-posts'-but I hasten to placate the author by insisting that he begins his preparations for a second edition which will surely be needed. L.R.A.G. The Making of Early Englan