Reviews

REVIEWS Anglo-Saxon Charters. I: Charters of Bochester. By A. CampbeU (Ed.). 10x6 in. Pp. xl+70. Oxford University Press, 1973, £3.00. Members of the Society wiU be dehghted to encounter an important new series in which Kent comes first. In other series Kent has either appeared late or (one fears) wiU never appear. Yet in this case, Rochester appears first; and Christ Church, Canterbury, is among the three volumes advertised on the jacket as 'forthcoming'. But the enthusiasm with which the book is received grows less as one studies it. The volume contains thHty-seven charters in Latin or in Enghsh; and it is good to have them together after having pursued them hitherto through the pages of Kemble, BHch, and Thorpe. But two charters are missing whose inclusion we were entitled to expect. FHst, the forged grant of Freckenham by Alfred, which is mentioned in a footnote: yet other forgeries are included, and this text is less accessible than some others that are included. Second, the 'Bridge charter'. Admittedly, it has been argued that this may be post-Conquest: yet it was 'Anglo-Saxon' enough for Miss Robertson; and it does exist in an Old Enghsh text. It is odd that it should not even be mentioned Hi a Corpus. The text of each charter is derived from one or more of three sources: loose charters Hi the Cotton coUection, Textus Boffensis, and Begistrum Temporalium (which is tiresomely called Liber Temporalium). The editorial pohcy is to print the text of the earhest manuscript, giving some variants in footnotes. It is possible that this is the way to produce a text nearest to the original: but an editor is not entitled to assume this without argument. No account is taken of the fact that the latest witness (Begistrum Temporalium) comes from the episcopal archive, whUe the others come from the Chapter. It is, therefore, possible that Begistrum may represent another and better tradition than the other witnesses. Its latinity is certainly better. Must this be due to improvement by the bishop's clerks? The present editor assumes that the errors to be found in the capitular tradition are original— even In nominae Hi no. 24. But, even if Begistrum is dismissed as an independent witness to the original text, more of its readings should have been recorded to assist those who are not skilled Hi the art of emendation. Variant forms of place-names should also have been reoorded. And the printing of charters from Textus is not as accurate as the editor suggests. He prints cediUas to indicate diphthongs, as Hi Textus: but he has not observed that the scribe distinguishes between the diphthongs ce and ce by writing two forms of cediUa. Moreover, 229 REVIEWS endorsements are omitted; and erasures and palimpsest passages in Cotton charters are not mentioned Hi the notes. Each charter is supplied with an Enghsh summary. But this cannot always be rehed upon. For example: In nos. 7, 21, 24, uiculus is translated 'viUage' without explanation. Yet in no. 7 the 'viUage' is inside the waUs of Rochester; in no. 21 it is the land Hi Crow Lane; and Hi no. 24 unum uiculum dimidium ciuitatis Hrobi becomes 'half a village', which is absurd. Moreover, several grants are said to be 'near Rochester' although (at least to the modern reader) they are in Rochester; and one of these is Hi fact part of the site of the priory. The mtroduction (which is Hi another respects helpful) contains some other odd topographical observations: 'Doddingherne' is 'unidentified'; and Fawkham is 'neighbouring' to Bromley. The conciseness of the comments on authenticity is welcome. But that on Ethelbert's aUeged charter is erroneous and inadequate. The object of its fabrication cannot have been to own a charter 'comparable with those owned by Canterbury', since Canterbury had none such, as far as we know. And the charter should not be dismissed on the general grounds set forth by Levison without reference to the contrary opinion upon the general question contained in Dr. Chaplais' articles Hi the Journal of the Society of Archivits. It is sad to have to offer these criticisms; and it should be said that, Hi spite of its shortcomings, the book is a useful tool for the historian of medieval Kent and deserves a place Hi every Kentish Hbrary. It is to be hoped that the Canterbury volume will deserve unqualified praise. BERNARD WIGAN The Coal Duties of the City of London and their Boundary Marks. By Martin NaU. Pp. 29,3 figs. 1972,50p. (PubUshed by the author.) This smaU pamphlet commences with a review of the coal dues and theH uses Hi rebuUding London after the Great FHe and also London Bridge. The boundaries of London for this purpose varied from time to time, but were redefined Hi 1861 and a number of boundary posts were erected, wherever a road or raUway crossed these boundaries, and over thirty remam within the ancient county of Kent. The majority of these posts were in cast Hon, but the railway ones were Hi granite, and a sketch of each type is given. The major part of this pubhcation consists of a complete hst (with National Grid References) and a very useful bibhography. Mr. NaU is to be congratulated for the diligence with which he has studied this byway of our history. K. W. E. GRAVETT 230 REVIEWS Lamberhurst School. By WiUiam Morland. 8 J in. X 5 J Ha. Pp. 44, 5 figs, and 2 pis. PhUhmore & Co. Ltd., Chichester, 1972. (N.p.) Mr. WiUiam Morland, whose booklet The Church In Lamberhurst was reviewed in Arch. Cant., Ixxxiv (1969), has now -written a work of simUar cahbre on the vUlage school. It is a weU documented and clearly expressed history of the Voluntary School in Lamberhurst from its inception as a National School in 1833 untU its incorporation in the Kent maintained system as a 'controUed' school in 1949. The author begins with the earhest known reference to education Hi the parish when in 1712 Lady Hamby left £6 annuaUy for teaching smaU chUdren to read. In 1833 a start was made at establishing a school under the auspices of the National Society, the three trustees being the Rev. Robert Hawkins, Edward Hussey and WUUam Alexander Morland. There were differences and disputes from the beginning, but the school was eventually buUt and stUl stands dominating the rise in the viUage street with a certain dash of architectural pretension in its spHe-capped clock tower. To cater for chUdren under seven, 'Mrs. Morland's Infants' School' (now the Youth Club) was buUt in 1854 on the opposite side of the road and continued to function until 1876. The human interest is weU developed, as in the account of the wrangles between the vicar and his feUow trustees over the management of the school. On one occasion His Majesty's Inspector reported favourably except that the Infants' School was 'sometimes lacking in vigour', and poor Mrs. Henley, who was beloved of her pupUs, was consequently cautioned by the managers. There are achievements to be recorded with pride, as when in 1914 a productive garden was created in a few months from a piece of rough field by the exertions of the pupUs. Seasonal occupations unfortunately played havoc with attendance, and at tHnes boys had to be lectured for making a noise in the road or restrained from bringing catapults into the classroom. Today there is stUl a Morland on the Board, mamtaining the tradition of the family association with the school for nearly a century and a half. Not least in then services to the place is this latest labour of love Ha recording its history and commemorating the worthy part it has played Hi the life of the viUage. P. J. TESTER Appledore, Kent: A Short History. By SH John Winnifrith. 8\ X 5-ff in. Pp. 90, 10 pis., 2 figs., privately pubhshed, 1973, £1. This is a weU-produced and documented booklet dealing at some length with the history of Appledore from Romano-British times to the nineteenth century and a model of its Mnd; it deserves to be widely 231 20 REVIEWS read and ought to become soon out of print, if only because any profit from its sale is to be appHed to the restoration of Appledore church. The author has clearly taken a great deal of trouble with the various periods of his short history, though it must be recorded that where he has rehed on outdated information, as Ha the case of the Romano- British period, he is on treacherous ground. However, this does Hi no way detract from the pleasure the reading of this booMet gave at least one reader. A. P. DETSICAS The Queen's Own Boyal West Kent Begimental Museum. By K. J. Collins, M.A. 8 in. X 5£ in. Pp. 18, pi. 8. Enghsh Life Pubhcations Ltd., Derby. 1973. 15p. The booklet on the Royal West Kent Museum at Maidstone and its contents is an exceUent account of the most interesting coUection of rehcs preserved there, not only belonging to the West Kents but also to its predecessors the 50th and 97th Regiments of Foot. Illustrated by photographs of high quaHty, it makes no attempt to be a regimental history but explains clearly and weU just what the visitor may expect to see. Mr. Collins is to be congratulated on what it is hoped wiU be the first of a series of booklets describing the various treasures of the Maidstone Museum. A. C. HARRISON Mosaics in Boman Britain. By Anne Rainey. 8 | in. X 5f Hi. Pp. 205, 27 plates and 64 drawings. David & Charles, Newton Abbot, 1973. £3.75. This volume is a very useful gazetteer of Romano-British mosaics aimed at the 'mterested amateurs who have no classical background', as the author so engagingly puts it in her foreword; it sets out to convey elementary information and Hi this it succeeds admHably. One of the vUtues of this book is that it assembles conveniently for reference aU the known mosaics of Roman Britain, and this alone should make it indispensable for speciahst and amateur alike. Printed pleasingly Hi offset htho, Mrs. Rainey's book contains a useful mtroduction of her subject and Hsts the mosaics in the alphabetical order of then find-spots rather than by county; it also Hicludes a glossary of technical terms most of which are iUustrated by drawings of rather variable quaHty, a selected bibhography and an index. As a quick guide to these mosaics and in anticipation of the corpus of 232 REVIEWS Romano-British mosaics now in preparation, this gazeteer is to be recommended to aU mterested in the subject. A. P. DETSICAS Sturry—the Changing Scene. Edited by K. H. Mcintosh. 9 in. x 6 in. Pp. 112, 45 photographic and other illustrations + a map. Sturry, 1972. (N.p.) The story of this Kentish vUlage is here covered by tbirty-five contributed articles varying in subject from flint implements and Roman roads to accusations of 'incipient idolatory' in the parish church in 1873 and a first-hand account of an aH raid in 1941. Some of the contributors are of high standing in historical and antiquarian cHcles and the book is generaUy above the standard often found in such publications. The proceeds of the sale go to the parish church and copies are obtainable from the Vicar or the Editor. There are, of course, the predictable notes on the Doomsday (sic) entry, the parish church and local worthies, but there is much else, including accounts of farming and natural history, with records of sporting activities, the last iUustrated by nostalgic team photographs. Although the subjects are arranged Ha chronological order, there is no attempt to compUe a connected history of the locahty. It is aU very readable, and as interesting in many respects to those who Hve outside Sturry as to its present inhabitants. In the description of the Palseohthic implements found by Dr. A. G. Ince and others in the Sturry gravel pits, it should be noted that the terms 'CheUes' and 'Le Moustier' are not used today with the same meaning as when those discoveries were made and pubhshed Hi the 1920s. One might also observe that the correct title of the pubhcation referred to in the first footnote on p. 7 is the Antiquaries Journal. P. J. TESTER Boman Boads in Britain. By Ivan D. Margary. 9J Hi. X 5 | Hi. Pp. 550, 23 plates and 17 maps. John Baker, London. 1973. £5. This is a very welcome thHd edition of our vice-president's classic work on the Romano-British road system. I t is in effect a re-printing of the 1967 one-volume edition, though the opportunity has been taken to add a separate section at the end of the book containing references to work done since the second edition. It is a weU-produced book and to be highly recommended to those who do not aHeady possess a copy; it is bound to be soon out of print! A. P. DETSICAS 233 REVIEWS Prehistoric Man and his Art—The Caves of Bibadesella. By Professor Magin Berenguer, translated from the Spanish by Michael Heron. Pp. 168, 30 monochrome plates, 12 hne drawings, 4 maps. SouvenH Press, 1973. £2.50. Probably few people may have made a pUgrimage to study the prehistoric cave paintings of Cantabria Hi north-west Spain, and to those who have not this book provides an alternative pleasure. Not only does the author conduct the reader through the caves to examine progressively the paintings upon theH waUs; he describes with clarity the background to the prehistory of Man, the periods that led to his appearance as a thinking and reasoning being, and his rapid advance to the creation of artistic things, in primitive sculpture and Hi painting. Man of the Upper Palseohthic is seen Hi this study to have been a creature of comphcated impulses in his hfe and thought, the creator of the unique language of art as a vehicle of visual communication, a portrayer of naturahsm which may have been combined with magic and ritual. EspeciaUy interesting is the chapter which the author devotes to Man himself as drawn by the prehistoric artists, with Ulustrations gathered from both Spanish and French caves; his suggested division into two differing yet contemporary types of human beings is intriguing. The eight caves of RibadeseUa in Asturias, which are introduced to the reader in this book, display an array of animals beautifully drawn and life-like—reindeer, bison, and horse—that rival the best examples at AltamHa, which is itself a museum of prehistoric art. AltamHa, RibadeseUa, and Lascaux are probably the three most important centres of this art so far discovered in the world, and the contiguity of the group of caves at RibadeseUa suggests that this was a closely inhabited area in prehistoric times. This book is translated mto clear language, scholarly and yet suitable for the ordinary reader who wants to know more of prehistoric man and especially of his art. The bibhography is comprehensive, particularly with regard to cave sites in Spam, and it Hicludes the famous name of Henri BreuU, doyen of prehistoric cave art. Pubhshed at a modest price, it can be recommended warmly. G. W. MEATES Southern England: An Archaeological Guide. By James Dyer. 7f in. X 5 in. Pp. 380, pis. 76, maps and plans 38. Faber & Faber Ltd., London. 1973. Paper covers, £1.95. This is the eighth of the series of archseological guides issued by the pubhshers and is a worthy addition to its predecessors. To any archseo- 234 REVIEWS logical 'tourist', mterested Hi the prehistoric or Roman periods, it provides exactly the right information—location, including map reference, brief but adequate description of the site and, in most cases, reference to relevant pubhcations. The plates are generaUy weU chosen (Grimspound is an exception), the plans clear and informative and, in this reviewer's opinion, it represents good value. A. C. HARRISON The Boman Land Surveyors: An Introduction to the Agrimensores. By 0. A. W. DUke. 8 | in. X 5 -^ in. Pp. 260, 1 colour frontispiece, 33 plates and 53 text figures. David & Charles, Newton Abbot. 1973. £1.75. Professor Dilke's book, first published in 1971 and reviewed elsewhere (Antiq. Journ., hi (1972), 378-9), has now been re-issued in paperback form. Little more need be added to what Has aHeady been said, apart from remarking that it is a pity that the vexed question of remains of centuriation in this country (e.g. at Cliffe in Kent, and at Ripe in Sussex) is uncriticaUy accepted by the author as proved. Professor DUke voices (p. 193) his misgivings because 'Rochester was not a colony' but aUows himself to be convinced because 'this in itself is not an obstacle to such a scheme having existed'; unfortunately, the 'evidence' upon which aU this is based (Arch. Cant., Ixv (1952), 150-9) is not as convincing as the author of this book would have us behove. A. P. DETSICAS Archaeological Theory and Practice. (Ed.) D. E. Strong. 6 x9 in. Pp. 308, pis. 20 (1 frontispiece+3 in colour), figs. 59. Seminar Press, London and New York, 1973. £5.50. To mark the occasion of the retirement of Professor W. F. Grimes from the directorship of the Institute of Archseology in the University of London, his colleagues have presented him with this Festschrift, edited by the late Professor D. E. Strong. It is a very fitting tribute to the recipient, and the variety of the contributions contained in this collection of essays renders ample witness to the breadth of Professor Grimes' archseological interests, which he did so much to foster during his tenure at the Institute. The twenty-three papers in this volume reflect the work in the various departments of the Institute, and among them are to be found studies on envHonmental work, archseological science, primate fossUs, the flint industries in the Swanscombe area, island south-east Asia and the settlement of Australia, an important paper by Professor J. D. 235 REVIEWS Evans on the problem of quantifying pottery studies, which should reverberate beyond the chronological Hmits of the pottery concerned, several papers on near-eastern archaeology, and a history of fibulae. Professor Strong contributes a study of 'museums' in the Roman world, whUst Mark Hassall argues cogently against the view that a cohors urbana may have been stationed Hi the Cripplegate fort and suggests that its garrison is more hkely to have been the provincial governor's guard composed of detachments drawn from the legions serving in Britain, and Richard Reece suppHes a topical study on the purchasing power of money after the Diocletianic reform of the coinage. For medievahsts, there is a paper on medieval technology, and two concluding studies wUl attract those mterested in the archseological apphcations of various photographic techniques. I t seems that, Hi order to keep the cost of pubhcation within the reach of the many who should read this book, it was decided to use the American system of references at the end of each contribution, but some contributors have additionally been allowed footnotes denoted by asterisks, daggers, etc., which lend the volume an archaic appearance; and whatever economies were thus effected must have been offset by the odd choice of the more expensive art paper for the printing of the entire volume which, if nothing else, makes it rather heavy to handle. I t is a pity, too, that many Hritating printer's errors refuse to be ignored (some papers are clearly better proofed than others) and culminate Hi the mis-spelling of the publishers' name! However, mention of these minor blemishes must not detract from the real value of this symposium as a mUror-image of the teeming research quietly undertaken at the Institute whose status will remain a glowing testimonial to the energy, drive, sympathetic understanding and scholarship of the man whom this collection honours. A. P. DETSICAS 236