KAS Newsletter, Issue 93, Summer 2012

Your Quarterly Newsletter www.kentarchaeology.org.uk INSIDE THIS ISSUE DUTCH GABLES IN KENT SUMMER 2012 ISSUE NUMBER 93 4-5 Marden hoard 6-7 What’s On 8-10 You & Your Society + Committee Round Up 14 Visual Records 15 Letter + MAAG 2-4 Dutch Gables 10-11 Notes from the Archive 12 - 13 New Books 16 Knole Visit Turn to Page 2 2 Summer 2012 - KAS Newsletter - www.kentarchaeology.org.uk Distinctive features of vernacular buildings of the 17th and first half of the 18th century of the eastern coastal counties, from Yorkshire down to Kent, are the pediments and curves of Dutch, Flemish and Huguenot – strictly speaking – Netherlandish, gables. An enquiry about a former farmhouse at Hopes Lane, Northwood led to a five-year retirement study of these buildings. With the assistance of KCC’s Historic Buildings List, numerous books on all aspects of building (some ignoring, and others only mentioning in passing, Dutch gables - but two stressing the need for a study), I set about the task. A paper on buildings (1) with Dutch influence inspired me to do the study and analyse the gables. After many years in estate agency in Thanet, I understood that these buildings (around 180 in Kent) were the result of Protestant refugees from Catholic oppression in the Spanish Netherlands. It transpired that I was wrong and the picture is considerably more complicated. Studies of Arch. Cant. and other sources showed that refugees/ immigrants from the Low Countries have been coming over here from at least the 12th century up to World War Two, when 60,000 arrived. Buildings with these gables were only built over roughly 150 years. After the English Civil War and Charles I’s execution in 1649, many royalists fled to the northern provinces of Holland, which had gained their independence the year before. On the restoration of the monarchy in 1660, they returned to England, having acquired a taste for many things Dutch, particularly their art and architecture. Like the fad in the 19th century for all things Chinese, ‘Dutchness’ became fashionable. As well as art and architecture, horticulture and pottery were imported and copied (2). William of Orange (a province in North Holland) was offered the throne of England in 1689, thus furthering the Dutch influence. It is no coincidence that the main period of Dutch gable construction is from 1660 to 1720, but they appeared before that. The generally quoted earliest building with a date (in wall anchors) is 1657 (Longport, Canterbury), but there are earlier examples. The best known in Kent, albeit on larger houses, are at Knole (additions dated 1603/5), Ford Front page: Hopes Lane, Northwood, Ramsgate, showing bricked-up windows, ‘M’ in flint and double ogee curves unique in Kent Broome Park , south of Canterbury 1635-8. Some of the best early brickwork in England according to Pevsner The Dutch & Flemish Gables of Kent By Gordon Taylor PART ONE THE BACKGROUND www.kentarchaeology.org.uk - Summer 2012- KAS Newsletter 3 Place, Wrotham Heath (same date and both on dormer windows only) and the wonderful brickwork of Broome Park, built 1635 to 1638. Outside of Kent they are found as early as 1571 in Trerice, Cornwall, and Kirby Hall, Northants from around 1580 and at Montacute House, Somerset at 1598. So examples, therefore, from the late 16th century can be expected on vernacular buildings; two ‘possibles’ are single-storey cottages at St Nicholas at Wade on Thanet, namely Pepper Alley (originally three humble cottages) and Elder Cottage. The mix of brick and flint in diapering on the latter is similar to the diapering on the 15th century Tonford Manor, Canterbury. The Dutch were known for their drainage expertise and were in England in the 1560’s. They are famous for drainage works in East Anglia (Vermuyden and others spending many years there in the late 16th and first half of the 17th century), but they also carried out schemes on a smaller scale in Essex (Canvey Island) and in Kent (Wantsum Channel). In the former area, buildings can possibly be linked to them – a cottage (1713) reputedly having ‘Niet zonder Arbyt’ (nothing without work) over the door in Fen Drayton, Cambridgeshire. Possibly the St Nicholas examples mentioned above are from a similar source. I visited East Anglia to compare styles. Traders from the Low Countries were also responsible for houses with Dutch gables as at Kew Palace (formerly ‘Dutch House’ 1631), SW London “built for Samuel Fortrey a Flemish merchant whose family had escaped religious persecution in France” (3). Topsham, a port in Devon, has a row of these houses also attributed to traders from across the North Sea. Traders may have been able to afford to build themselves a house – it is unlikely that refugees could. My study has shown, however, that the main reason for these curvilinear gables was fashion. Exactly 50% of the properties outside of the towns in East Kent have Dutch gables added to older buildings that were mostly timber framed, with Finglesham Farm having a further extension, this time in the Georgian fashion. St Peter’s Farm (Thanet) was built mid-17th century, had a porch added in 1682 and was refronted in 1710 in the fashionable Queen Anne style. Another example is Hode Farm at Patrixbourne; the original house has the earlier crow stepped gable of 1566 with a curvilinear extension dated 1674. People don’t change – fashion is important. My study has shown that the builders of Dutch gables in England developed their own distinctive style; those that try and match examples here with those in the Netherlands are mistaken and this view is echoed by others (4). In the Netherlands the gables mostly face the road, whereas here that is very rare - a row of three in Sandwich that did being demolished in the second half of the 20th century (5). The second part of this article (in the October Newsletter) will deal in detail with the pediments, dates and brick bonds. 1. by Arthur Percival MBE MA DLitt (1966). For his paper, ‘The Dutch Influence on English Vernacular Architecture with particular reference to East Kent’, Percival listed the properties with window hoods, pilasters etc., but included those with straight gables. He did list two that had had curved gables straightened that I would probably have missed. 2. Going Dutch by Lisa Jardine. Also: The Embarrassment of Riches – An Interpretation of Dutch Culture in the Golden Age by Simon Schama. Also: Holland & Britain by Charles Wilson. Various articles in Bygone Kent. 3. A History of the English House by Nathaniel Lloyd 1931 re-published 1985. 4. The Cape House & its Interior, 1985 by Obholzer et al. and Matthew Rice, Building Norfolk, 2008. Also: Kent Houses by Anthony Quiney pub. 1993 by Antique Collectors’ Club. 5. Arthur Percival. St Peters farmhouse, showing Thanet pediment 4 Summer 2012 - KAS Newsletter - www.kentarchaeology.org.uk Fig 1: Part of the hoard drawn by Rev. Beale Poste in 1858 Fig 2: Updated version taken by Ian Newton. edition of Longfellows Prose Works A community archaeology project in the Weald has won a national award for their work in locating the likely find spot of a nineteenth century Bronze Age hoard. The collaborative venture between the Marden History Group & Heritage Centre, and the writer, was given the award at the national conference of the Community Archives & Heritage Group (CAHG) last month. Marden History Group was also named ‘Community Archive of the Year’ - the first time these accolades have been awarded by CAHG. Eunice Doswell, from Marden, describes the three year project as “a story of community detective work to solve a Victorian mystery”. The mystery is in the published account of the discovery of the hoard – Late Bronze Age weapons, tools, ornaments and metal working debris found buried in an urn in 1858. The Rev. Beale Poste gives surprisingly precise details about where they were found, but neither the name of the farm nor the meeting point of the two rivers that he mentions make much sense. Those who later compiled the official record of the find were also confused by Poste’s geography. Could we do better and pin down the ‘crime’ scene? It didn’t quite work out as we’d imagined – more Columbo than Poirot or Miss Marple perhaps. Locating the farmer and the key witness was relatively straightforward as both were prominent landowners. Linking the farmer, Joseph Moren, to a plot of land called ‘Haye’ or ‘Hayeden’ that was close enough to two rivers was much more challenging though, even with the substantial local records that the Heritage Centre has collected. Subsequently, finding a transaction that included that land took nearly two years. We did uncover a land deal involving the witness, Robert Golding, from neighbouring Hunton. He’d exchanged some fields in Marden at almost the exact time the hoard had been recovered: his presence near the scene suggested he was a very credible witness. In the meantime we explored the discovery and hoard in more detail. The finds had ignited a lively debate about their dating within the British Archaeological Association. Poste claimed they were Roman while the Secretary of the Association, Syer Cuming, vehemently disagreed and sent samples of the surviving pot to Thomas Bateman, a leading expert of the day. From Cuming’s archived letters and published notes we were able to reconstruct the detail and flavour of what happened. The hoard has never been fully 3000 year old hoard wins new national award for Wealden community archaeology project. by John Smythe Fig 1 www.kentarchaeology.org.uk - Summer 2012 - KAS Newsletter 5 TEBUTT RESEARCH FUND Grants are available towards research into any aspect of the WEALDEN IRON INDUSTRY or subjects pertaining to it Applicants may be individuals or groups, and the application can include any associated expenses, such as travelling and photocopying. It is anticipated that some £500 plus will be available from the fund. The applicant should write a letter giving details of themselves together with relevant information concerning the research envisaged. David Brown, Hon Sec, Wealden Iron Research Group, 2 West Street Farm Cottages, Maynards Green, Heathfield, Sussex TN21 ODG www.wealdeniron.org.uk Registered Charity No. 281485 published; nor has it been seen by the public since at least the 1960’s, so we examined and photographed it in Maidstone Museum’s basement. It contains items that Poste didn’t illustrate or mention including, most notably, part of a flesh hook; the probable handle of a mirror, and a worked flint. The photos were put on a CD by our photographer, Ian Newton, as a virtual display of the hoard. The project also experimented with field-walking and geophysical surveying; searched aerial photographs, and even did some metal detecting, but it was the documentary research that eventually seems to have come up trumps. An inspired hunch led Trevor Simmons to track down the crucial paperwork in the archives of a major estate in the county, enabling us to narrow down the likely find spot to a single field. Strictly speaking it doesn’t prove that the hoard was found there, but this location does seem to convincingly pull together the various pointers provided by Poste. Further fieldwork is planned. The documentary search concluded with a talk on the original discovery, the hoard and more recent discoveries in Bronze Age Kent. Over 50 people came and discussed why metalwork like this was buried in the ground or deposited in rivers in such profusion in the later Bronze Age. The local press was also there. Present too for a one night performance were the entire contents of the hoard. Local people were able to look at the bronzes in more detail, and even handle them for the first time since 1858. Fig 2 6 Summer 2012 - KAS Newsletter - www.kentarchaeology.org.uk WHAT’S ON KAS EVENTS KAS at MAIDSTONE MUSEUM Kent Archaeological Society and Maidstone Museum supporting the 2012 Festival of Archaeology http://festival.britarch.ac.uk/ 14 – 28 July. Come and visit three new displays of archaeology projects in Kent; the Meades Anglo-Saxon cemetery, the Bronze Age Boat Project and the education work of Canterbury Archaeological Trust. On Friday 20th July the President will provide short guided tours of the new displays in the Withdrawing Room gallery. On the 20th and 21st July, visit the KAS Library where there will be displays of the work of the Society. On Saturday 21st Maidstone Area Archaeological Group will have a handling display in the Education Room and at 2.30 there will be a lecture on the East Farleigh excavation in the Museum Library. For more information please check the KAS website www.kentarchaeology.org.uk/index.htm KAS CHURCHES COMMITTEE VISIT Gravesend Sikh Temple (Gurdwara) Saturday 22 September Guided tour and a talk about Sikhism by a member of the temple. 2pm start outside the entrance to the temple, which is near the junction of Wellington Street and Saddington Street (postcode DA12 1AG; grid reference TQ 653 738). There is an adjacent public car park, and Gravesend Station is about 10 minutes walk. The temple has full disabled access. Note that there is a Code of Conduct which visitors should respect. This, together with maps and directions, will be available to applicants. Opened in 2010 and costing more than £13 million, the temple is one of the largest outside India. It took almost 10 years to build, and is clad inside and out with granite, marble and Kota limestone imported from India and worked by Indian stonemasons. It can house 1,200 worshippers in three large prayer rooms, and the roof has five elaborate domes. Further details can be found at www.gurunanakdarbar.org. The visit costs £5 including light refreshments. Please register by emailing or telephoning the Church Visits Secretary, Jackie Davidson: jacalyn.davidson@btinternet.com or 01634 324004. KAS LECTURES IN THE LIBRARY With Dr Jacqueline Bower Start date 24 September Morning 10.15 – 12.15 Anglo Saxon England and Jutish Kent, c.400-1066 This period is one of the fastest moving areas of study in English history, with frequent new discoveries and new interpretations. This class will look at the end of Roman Britain and the English settlement, the conversion to Christianity, Alfred and the Vikings and the Norman Conquest. Questions to consider will include how much continuity there was between the Romano British and Anglo Saxon periods, who were the Jutes, how did England become a unified nation and what the impact of the Danish invasions and settlement was. Afternoon 2 – 4pm Renaissance, Reformation and Reaction: Europe 1453-1720 The invention of the printing press was one of the most significant events in European history, enabling the spread of new ideas in the Renaissance and the Protestant Reformation. The Catholic monarchies responded by strengthening their absolutist rule, a process which reached its peak in the reign of Louis XIV of France. Russia and Prussia began their rise to become major European powers and the Ottoman Empire dominated the Middle East. This class will look at the internal affairs, international relations and economic development of the European nations in this period. Price £90. To book contact Joy Sage at the museum or on 01622 762924. KAS HISTORIC BUILDINGS COMMITTEE CONFERENCE COASTAL TOWNS OF KENT AND SUSSEX Saturday 20 October 9.30 am for 10 am start, 4 pm finish The theme of this year’s Conference is Coastal Towns of Kent and Sussex. Main topics include Sandwich by Sarah Pearson (author of The Medieval Houses of Kent: an Historical Analysis), and Rye and Winchelsea by David Martin (Senior Historic Buildings Officer, Archaeology South-East). In the afternoon there will be a talk by Peter Draper on: Inter-war development and the rise of suburbia, and short accounts of local research projects. Conference tickets £10 each. Lunch (buffet selection) available £7 each (vegetarian options). Tea and coffee provided on arrival and at the close of the day. Please download the booking form from the KAS website or obtain one by sending a SAE to Mr D Carder (KAS), 53 The Ridgeway, Chatham, Kent ME4 6PB. Deadline for applications is Monday 8 October. Further details will be included with tickets. KAS PLACE-NAMES COMMITTEE DAY CONFERENCE ON PLACE-NAMES Saturday 3 November, 10.30 – 4.30 At the Visitor Information Centre, 95 High Street, Rochester ME1 1LX. Speakers: Locative surnames on the move: when Kentish names leave Kent, and when newcomers arrive, Paul Cullen (Bristol Centre for Linguistics, University of the West of England) The Case of Northminster and other Thanet mythologies, Richard Jones (Centre for English Local History, University of Leicester) The Canterbury Cartae Antiquae Project: a major source of names, Liz Finn (Kent History and Library Centre) Place-names and boundaries, from Goudhurst to North Woolwich, Paul Cullen (as above) Tickets £12 each. Please download booking form from Events section on KAS website or contact Hon. Sec. Place-Names Committee, Val Barrand Davies, email: rattersnap@aol.com tel: 07947 583327. EVENTS AROUND KENT PRACTICAL ARCHAEOLOGY STUDY DAY ONE DAY ARCHAEOLOGICAL WORKSHOP Organised by Wye Rural Museum Trust and Canterbury Archaeological Trust, with input from the KAS, Dover Archaeological Group and Archaeology at Kent University, to provide practical experience in archaeological methods. Saturday 8 September, from 10.00 to 16.00 Agricultural Museum at Brook, near Wye, TN25 5PF The day will be run in TWO sessions: morning and afternoon, and ALL the workshops will take place in BOTH sessions. Timetable: 10.00 – 10.30 Coffee and registration 10.30 – 12.30 First Session 12.30 – 13.30 Lunch (not provided) 13.30 – 15.30 Second Session 15.30 – 16.00 Tea and way forward There will be FOUR workshops covering the following: »» Field walking »» Finds identification & recording »» Surveying www.kentarchaeology.org.uk - Summer 2012 - KAS Newsletter 7 WHAT’S ON »» Geophysics Resistivity &/or Magnetometry Participants are asked to select the workshops in order of preference (see application form). Due to limitations on group size early application is advisable. However, every endeavour will be made to ensure that participants have their first two choices. To that end, tickets will be allocated on a first come, first served basis and will be sent out in the last week of August. Cost £20 for the day. You are advised to bring a packed lunch. Application form is available on the KAS, Museum Trust and CAT website or direct from Dr S. Sweetinburgh, 11 Caledon Terrace Canterbury CT1 3JS; 01227 472490; s.m.sweetinburgh@kent.ac.uk. Please enclose SAE if using Royal Mail. Cheques made payable to CAT. RANDALL MANOR COMMUNITY ARCHAEOLOGY EXCAVATION 7 – 29 July This will be our seventh season investigating Randall Manor. Do visit us and take a guided tour of the excavations. This year we will launch the dig with a Medieval Re-enactment weekend on July 7 and 8. The site is open every day except July 13 and 23. Read the site blog on www.facebook.com/ archaeologyinkent. For more information contact Andrew Mayfield at andrew.mayfield@ kent.gov.uk or 07920 548906. COUNCIL FOR BRITISH ARCHAEOLOGY SOUTH EAST CONFERENCE Marking Past Landscapes (& AGM) Saturday 13 October Large Hall, Dorking Christian Centre, Dorking »» 2.00 Welcome by David Rudling »» 2.05 Geological Markers (provisional title) Roger Birch »» 2.50 Places of significance and transformation in the Medway valley: creating the earliest Neolithic communities in Britain. Paul Garwood »» 3.35 Tea and AGM »» 4.15 Netting the land – social context of prehistoric field systems. Judie English »» 4.55 Close Tickets £10.00 non-members, £8.00 members and students Bookings from: Mrs R Hooker, 59 Thornton Place, Horley, Surrey RH6 8RZ. Email: rosemary.hooker@blueyonder.co.uk STUDY DAY at All Saints’ Church, Lydd, Kent Saturday 22 September Perhaps better known as ‘the Cathedral of the Marsh’, Lydd church hosts a large collection of 17 brasses. This Study Day will include a range of lectures by scholars on the history of the church, the town, and its townsmen and women, and examine how the brasses and other memorials met the commemorative needs of the medieval and early modern parish. Delegates will also have the opportunity to examine the brasses which are normally hidden from view under the nave carpet. Cost £20.00 for members of The Monumental Brass Society, the British Association for Local History and the Romney Marsh Research Trust, £40.00 non-members. Concessionary rate of £15.00 available for full-time registered students. A booking form can be downloaded from http://www.mbs-brasses.co.uk/Lydd_-_ Saturday_22nd_September_2012.doc Please address any queries to Gill Draper on development.balh@btinternet.com LOOSE AREA HISTORY SOCIETY Monday 8 October ‘The Vestry Meeting’ by Dr Jean Stirk Monday 12 November ‘Glenn Miller Lives On’ by John and Sue Pearce Monday 10 December ‘A Country House Christmas’ by Pat Mortlock Meetings start at 7.30pm and are held at Loose Infant School Hall, Loose Road, Maidstone. Further information from our website www.looseareahistorysociety.webeden.co.uk or phone 01622 741198. Orpington and District Archaeological Society (ODAS) OPEN WEEKEND OF SCADBURY MANOR Saturday 8 and Sunday 9 September 2.00 – 4.30pm (last entry). Admission free. Follow a self-guided trail around the moated manor site, see ODAS’ excavations, explore the foundations of the Tudor kitchens and Great Hall of the house owned by the Walsingham family Refreshments, bookstall and exhibition about the history of Scadbury. WC on site. Access from the public footpath around the estate. Entrance to the site is where the footpath passes the moated site. The nearest access from the road is along the footpath at 14 St Paul’s Wood Hill; turn left along the circular footpath, 5 mins walk. From Old Perry Street car park, the entrance is around 30 mins walk along the footpath. There is some limited parking at the site for elderly/disabled visitors: apply with SAE to ODAS, 28 Church Avenue, Sidcup, DA14 6BU. For more information about ODAS and Scadbury see www.odas.org.uk. SOCIETY FOR CLAY PIPE RESEARCH CONFERENCE 15-16 September Vine Baptist Church hall, Park Lane, Sevenoaks, Kent, TN13 3UP. The Saturday programme of lectures will focus on the Kent clay tobacco pipe industry and will be complemented by displays. In the evening there will be an optional conference dinner at a local restaurant. A visit to a local historical attraction will follow on the Sunday morning. Non-members of the Society are very welcome to attend. Further information is available on the Society website (http://scpr.co) or from Brian Boyden (email: brian.boyden@dsl.pipex.com) or Chris Jarrett (email: cjarrett@pre-construct.com). THE COUNCIL FOR KENTISH ARCHAEOLOGY CONFERENCE RECENT RESEARCH ON ANGLO-SAXON KENT Saturday 20 October 2 - 5.30pm The Old Sessions Lecture Theatre, Canterbury Christchurch University, North Holmes Campus. Monastic foundation and the Christianisation of Anglo-Saxon Kent: A Review of recent excavation at Lyminge, Alexandra Knox, Reading University Kentish Anglo-Saxon acquisitions from the British Museum, Sue Brunning, British Museum Discovery of a Major Anglo-Saxon Settlement at Eynsford , Brian Philp Tickets £5.00 available from C.K.A. 7, Sandy Ridge, Borough Green, Kent TN15 8HP. (S.A.E. please). Website www.the-cka.fsnet.co.uk This information is correct at the time of publication. 8 Summer 2012 - KAS Newsletter - www.kentarchaeology.org.uk I still have a few outstanding non-renewals – if you wish to renew please send your cheque to me asap otherwise you will not receive a copy of this year’s Archaeologia Cantiana. If you do decide not to renew please let me know so that I can amend my database and not bother you in future. Please remember to send any changes of addresses etc. to me either by post or email. membership@kentarchaeology.org. uk I look forward to your continued support of our splendid Society. I am very pleased to welcome the following new members: Joint Members: Mr and Mrs M De La Mare, Hythe Mr and Mrs B Matthews, West Wickham Individual Members: Mr D Brown, Heathfield, Sussex Ms M O’Hare, Tonbridge Mr P J Titley, Longfield Mrs H Tolputt, Folkestone Mr J Weir, Chatham Mr A E L Williams, London SE12 The majority of new members have joined by downloading the application form from the website but it is equally important that blue application forms are available in other locations and taken to conferences etc. Please contact me if you would like a bundle. Shiela Broomfield, 8 Woodview Crescent, Hildenborough, Tonbridge, Kent TN11 9HD telephone: 01732 838698, email as above. MEMBERSHIP MATTERS Christopher Pout, former President and Andrew Moffat, former Honorary General Secretary of the Society were elected as Patrons of the Society at the Annual General Meeting. The meeting took place on the 19th May 2012 at Eliot College, University of Kent and was attended by 40 members. The Officers were re-elected and Dr Frank Panton and Mrs Shiela Broomfield were elected as Vice Presidents. Mr Mike Clinch and Mr Pat Harlow were re-elected to the Council. Following the formal business Members of the Council are Trustees of the Kent Archaeological Society and as such determine its policies and actions. If you are interested in standing for election as a Member of the Council, or would like to After a long and distinguished career with the Kent Archaeological Society, Mr Paul Oldham has announced that he will be retiring from the office of Vice President at the 2013 AGM. Mr Oldham was President of the Society from 1998 to 2005 and elected as Vice President in 2006. After much thought and consideration, to bring us into the twenty-first century we have decided upon a new logo. This is its first outing and we do hope you like it. A.G.M. Elects New Patrons Join the Council: Be Prepared Vice President Announces Retirement Have you just joined the Society ? Do you wish you could collect all the back issues of Archaeologia Cantiana? Now you can have 125 volumes of Archaeologia Cantiana at the amazingly low cost of £31 for individual members and £76 for institutional members on the KAS Sesquicentennial DVD. To order your copy, send a cheque payable to Kent Archaeological Society to Peter Tann, 42 Archery Square, Walmer, Deal CT14 7HP. members heard three inspirational presentations by Dr Sheila Sweetinburgh on Church Study Days, Mike Clinch on the formation of the Industrial Archaeology Committee and Peter Clark who gave an up to the minute report on the Boat 1550 BC project. nominate someone else to do so, it’s time to start thinking about it! Nominations have to be received in writing by the Hon. General Secretary by the 1st March 2013. YOU & YOUR SOCIETY www.kentarchaeology.org.uk - Summer 2012 - KAS Newsletter 9 The Education Committee has gained some new members, the most recent recruits being Martin Crowther (Education Development Manager, Canterbury Museums) and Abby Guinness (Community Archaeologist, Surrey County Council and Canterbury YAC leader) who came to their first committee meeting to hear about the scope of the committee and discussions for its future role. Currently, members are all busy with various projects; Kent’s two Young Archaeologist Clubs with their full monthly programmes, Thanet Trust for Archaeology with its project to develop resources from artefacts in store for Thanet communities along with other planned events and Canterbury Archaeological Trust, particularly with its ‘Boat 1550 BC’ European project (based on the Dover Bronze Age boat) and ‘Folkestone, A Town Unearthed’, now in its final year. EDUCATION COMMITTEE CHURCHES COMMITTEE Outing to Tonbridge If, like me, you had consulted your Pevsner before setting off on a wet and windy Saturday in April (what else) to visit Tonbridge School Chapel, you would have been in for a surprise. At first sight of the red-brick and sandstone exterior, with its statue of the chapel patron, St Augustine of Canterbury, blessing the cricket pitch, Pevsner’s description still stands, though some may have spotted the dark marks on the facade which tell of the1988 fire which destroyed the original 1900-02 building by Campbell-Jones. A war memorial sculpture of St George and three angels greets the visitor. In a foyer the school archivist had mounted a display illustrating the original building. This showed how completely the building was destroyed by the fire, which our knowledgeable On 14th April about 50 members and local residents assembled in Holy Trinity Church, Sandgate Road, Folkestone, a church built by the landowner, Lord Radnor, for the guide, John Smallbone-Smith, called ‘the best thing that ever happened to the chapel’! Many of us were inclined to agree with him. Instead of a dark Edwardian chapel reminiscent of Southbridge school’s pitch pine and Munich windows (Angela Thirkell’s Barsetshire school), the chapel opens up as one emerges from underneath its world class Danish-built organ into a light and airy space of beautifully panelled oak and tinted windows with the seating arranged collegially across the central aisle. The east end is open with a painted baldachin over the modern metal altar and a window containing Kempe glass which has been collected from various other places. The architect was Donald Buttress, who has worked at Westminster and Chichester. The Chapel serves a school population of c1000 and is used daily as well as for ‘occasional offices’ of baptisms and marriages. The Lady Chapel contains a mother and child statue by Peter Hill. Much of the work was carried out by local workmen and the modern features have been made attractive as well as functional. The directional loudspeakers have been very successfully integrated into the walls above the seating by covering them with what looks like a fine mesh which blends into the colour of the walls. The original roof had been barrel vaulted, but the new one (64’ high) is the traditional shape of praying hands. The cost of rebuilding this chapel was £7,000,000, but for once one can truthfully say it was money well spent. Our next port of call was the parish church of Tonbridge, where the first boys of Tonbridge School would have worshipped. Toby Huitson describes this visit. Tonbridge was once the largest parish in Kent. The church of Sts. Peter and Paul occupies a probable Anglo- Saxon site, and there is some evidence of Romanesque masonry in the chancel. The building was extended westwards in the thirteenth century, and the north aisle pillars show an interesting random polychrome effect using green and white stone. The mid-fifteenth century was a time of prosperity, attested to by wills for painting statuary and the installation of a rood loft, of which both no traces now remain. By 1663 there was a west gallery for use of the school. Such was the demand for space to accommodate the pupils that an additional south aisle was constructed in the late nineteenth century, a space enclosed in 1983 to create a separate meeting area. The present appearance of the church owes much to the work of Ewan Christian in the 1870s, and the colourful east window was installed in 1956. by Gill Wyatt and Toby Huitson Gratitude is expressed to Mrs Pat Mortlock for the informative talk, and to the church for the tea and cake served afterwards. Fig 1: Interior of St Peter & Paul, Tonbridge. Photo: Toby Huitson CHURCHES COMMITTEE Study day - ‘The Oxford Movement and its Legacy’. COMMITTEE ROUND UP Fig 1 Notes from the By Pernille Richards Halford L. Mills 10 Summer 2012- KAS Newsletter - www.kentarchaeology.org.uk growing population as the town expanded westwards; it was designed by Ewan Christian, consultant to the Ecclesiastical Commissioners. After a welcome by Mary Berg, Hilary Tolputt explained how ‘filthy, fishy Folkestone’ grew into a fashionable resort in the 19th century, largely due to the coming of the railway and the popularity of its healthy site and amenities. Sheila Sweetinburgh, one of the organisers, gave a detailed and intriguing exposition by 13th century William Durandus of the medieval symbolism of all parts of a church building. It was the publication of a translation of the first book (out of eight) of his ‘Rationale’ by the Camden Society which influenced the Oxford movement as churches were restored and new ones built in expanding Victorian towns. The main lecture was given by Dr Michael Chandler, former Dean of Ely and former Canon Treasurer at Canterbury Cathedral. He dealt with the 18th century background of the evangelical revival and the storm over Roman Catholic Emancipation in 1829 and the threat to the Church of England posed by the Whig reforms after the 1832 Reform Act. The Oxford Movement grew out of John Keble’s Assize Sermon on ‘national apostacy’ in 1833 and the series of ‘Tracts for the Times’, started by John Henry Newman. These were widely circulated giving rise to the alternative name of Tractarianism. Other authors contributed pamphlets on associated theological subjects. The main issue was whether the state should have authority over the church without the church’s approval; controversy dominated the church, the Tractarians being accused of seeking to introduce popery into the Church of England. After Newman’s Tract XC in 1841 the bishop of Oxford banned further pamphlets. Four years later Newman was converted to Roman Catholicism and the informal leader Dr Pusey, Professor of Hebrew, was silenced by the university authorities at Oxford when he preached a controversial sermon in 1843. Nevertheless, the movement continued, having an important influence on parish life outside Oxford. Dean Chandler then outlined some of the notable court cases of the period. These related to the spread of ritualism which provoked a backlash and the imprisonment of some clergy convicted of breaking the law. After lunch members were divided into three groups which rotated between workshops on documents illustrating the Oxford Movement in a Kentish parish, documents connected with the introduction of ritualism at Holy Trinity, and a study of symbolism in Holy Trinity guided by Imogen Corrigan. The day ended with a general discussion and thanks to the organisers. by Lawrence Lyle Fig 1: Hilary Tolputt’s lecture in Holy Trinity church “I should not be able to identify this place were it not for the assistance of the Late Halford Mills of Smarden,..” so wrote Dr. Gordon Ward in 1945 in his article on the Lost Dens of Little Chart in Archaologia Cantiana. The place in question was a holding near the charmingly named location ‘Stinckinge Pittes’ near Smarden. Gordon Ward had come across and utilised the large collection of manuscript notes accumulated by Halford L. Mills (1843-1931), who devoted many years to researching the History of Smarden with the intention of publishing a History as a tribute and follow on to The Antiquities of Smarden written by the Rev. Francis Haslewood and published in 1866. Mills was of an entrepreneurial nature and became a local historian late in life. He was born in Smarden in 1843, but left for London as a young man, where he became the proprietor of the Reformed Funeral Company, which specialised in cremations but also offered an embalming service. Mills had learnt this art at the United States School of Embalming. Mills also became involved with coach building and publishing and he owned a small farm near Chalfont St. Giles. Eventually he ceased to run the Funeral Company; it appears due to difficulties in business. He moved back to Smarden and in the 1920s COMMITTEE ROUND UP continued Fig 1 the Archive Mills of Smarden www.kentarchaeology.org.uk - Summer 2012 - KAS Newsletter 11 Fig 1: Halford L. Mills ( 1843-1931) courtesy of the Smarden Local History Society. Fig 2: Members of Smarden Local History Society at work. The Society welcomes visits from the public to their premises at Smarden Charter Hall on Friday mornings from 9.30 a.m. Closed Easter & Christmas. we find him living in Claggett House researching local history and seeking subscribers for his proposed book. A box of Mills’ papers containing letters and forms from prospective subscribers to his book have been found in the KAS Archive. The box also contained research relating to the Baptists of Smarden, fascinating information on local people, historic buildings, changes in farming locally and weather records. Sadly, Mills never did get enough subscribers to publish his book on Smarden’s History, although many did sign up, including the Hon. Henry Hannen, but he contributed to the local paper and published other works including a booklet on the Smarden Church Bells in 1922. The final item he published was an Article in Archaeologia Cantiana on The Dating of Timber Houses in the Weald of Kent which was submitted only a few weeks before his death on October 10th 1931. Mills’ papers were contained in a rather sorry looking box. It was water and soot stained from the 1977 Fire at Maidstone Museum and judging from the address labels it had travelled around a bit. A little research identified the papers as part of the ‘lost archive’ of the Smarden Local History Society. According to Alex Ferris from Smarden Heritage Centre, the first Local History Society in Smarden was established in 1931 by the Curate and Miss R a t h b o n e . Activities ceased during the war and in 1955 the Society was wound up and the archive of local history material, including the Mills papers, were dispersed. Some papers ended up at Kent Archives, some with private individuals and some with the KAS. In 1995 the Smarden Local History Society was reformed and has since gone from strength to strength. It has a very active membership and interest in Mills’ research has blossomed resulting in the return of most of the papers to Smarden Heritage Centre where they have been catalogued and archived to a high standard. A digital copy of his History of Smarden has also been published thereby belatedly fulfilling Mills’ ambition. The papers are a valuable resource for the study of the locality and contain wonderful details on all aspects of Smarden life. The information on local buildings has proved especially popular with residents researching their historic properties. It seemed right that the newly discovered box should join the main collection in Smarden Heritage Centre on loan. Alex Ferris said, “We are really pleased that the papers have come home to us, they mean a lot to us locally. We hope to build an extension to our facilities in Smarden Charter Hall so we will have more room for our growing Archive and artefact collection.” It is pleasing to know that other local historians will have cause to echo the sentiment of Gordon Ward and find Mills’ work useful. Fig 1 Fig 2 12 Summer 2012 - KAS Newsletter - www.kentarchaeology.org.uk NEW BOOKS BUCKLAND ANGLO-SAXON CEMETARY, DOVER. EXCAVATIONS 1994 (Keith Parfitt and Trevor Anderson). Canterbury Archaeological Trust ISBN 978-1-870545-23-5 The 1994 excavations at Buckland, Dover, uncovered another 244 graves in the extensive Anglo-Saxon cemetery first excavated by Professor Vera Evison in 1951–3. Just over two thirds of the burials contained grave goods. Several male burials contained a sword, others a spear and sometimes a shield. Women’s graves included brooches and beads and a variety of other objects. This detailed study of the cemetery, the individuals interred therein and specialist reports on their grave goods also includes specially commissioned reports on Anglo-Saxon costume and textiles and on the technology of the metalwork. There is an extensive illustrated catalogue of all the graves and grave goods. The excavation was undertaken by Canterbury Archaeological Trust with the assistance of the British Museum. The developer (Orbit Housing) has donated the entire corpus of finds to the British Museum and many of these will be part of the new displays when Room 41 (Europe: AD 300–1100) re-opens in 2013. Those with an interest in Anglo-Saxon Kent will know only too well the frustrations of obtaining the now out of print monograph on Evison’s excavations. It might be advisable to add this new book to your collection sooner rather than later! Normal price from Oxbow Books (01865 241249) £35.00 - special offer to KAS members of £30.00. Please quote code KASBUCKLAND when you email your order - orders@oxbowbooks.com or insert the code in the comments section if ordering online - oxbow@oxbowbooks.com Personal callers are also welcome at the Trust’s offices, 92A Broad Street, Canterbury. GAVELKINDERS to GENTLEMEN The result of a lifetime of research into the origins and early history of the Lushington family of east Kent. Over 30 family charts help the reader to follow the complex history of the family. The family’s progress, from the 13th century, is linked to local and national events, using a wealth of contemporary documents. A comprehensive index of families linked to the Lushingtons in the Alkham area will be of great value to all genealogists who are interested in this area of east Kent. Produced privately in two versions, A4 soft cover and PDF Disc. 332 pages; fully illustrated using contemporary sources and local history publications. Book - £38 + £6 p&p, or CD - £25 incl p&p, are available from the author: jrclushington@yahoo.co.uk www.kentarchaeology.org.uk - Summer 2012 - KAS Newsletter 13 NEW BOOKS DISCOVER MEDIEVAL SANDWICH Helen Clarke Sandwich today is a quiet town on the banks of the River Stour, where small pleasure craft tie up at The Quay. It is hard to imagine its wide expanse of water in medieval times, Sandwich Haven, which provided an anchorage for every sort of vessel from Anglo-Saxon longships preparing to take on Viking invaders to fleets of Venetian galleys laden with exotic cargoes. The present town is probably the most complete preserved example of a small medieval town in England. Its history has been the subject of a long-term collaborative project which brought together experts from many disciplines, and which has now been published in an academic monograph. The story is too interesting and important to be confined to a specialist academic audience however, and Helen Clarke has succeeded in this book in making the research available in an attractive, accessible and affordable form. The book describes medieval Sandwich and its development over the centuries. Its houses are its chief glory and many are illustrated in the book. The people of the town are also brought to life: mayors and MPs, brewers and bowling alley owners. All have left their mark. Oxbow Books 104pp, full colour throughout. £12.99. UNDERGROUND THANET Rod Le Gear Underground sites form part of Thanet’s rich archaeological heritage. Along with the natural sea caves that were carved into Thanet’s chalk landscape, chalk has been quarried, mined and tunnelled by man for thousands of years. Wartime threats led to refuges such as Ramsgate’s Air Raid Tunnel complex. Margate Caves and Shell Grotto show that tunnels and caves of earlier times were attractions for seaside tourists. Innumerable lesser known examples such as dene holes, seaweed tunnels, well shafts, mines, lime kilns and hidden chambers form part of the hidden history of the Isle of Thanet. Rod Le Gear, founder of the Kent Underground Research Group (KURG) and an active member of KAS since 1963, has produced a highly readable account of the history of underground sites in Thanet. With 90 pages of text, fully indexed and richly illustrated with full colour photographs and diagrams, Underground Thanet details the exploration of many of the sites by the author and KURG. Underground Thanet is the first of a new series of publications from the Trust for Thanet Archaeology. A5 format. £9.99 + £2.00 P&P. Special offer for KAS members of £8.00 + £2.00 P&P. Please state that you are a KAS member when sending in your cheque. Download order form from: http://thanetarch.co.uk/trust/sales/sales_img/UGT_web_order_form.jpg 14 Summer 2012 - KAS Newsletter - www.kentarchaeology.org.uk The Visual Records group meets on Wednesday mornings in the KAS Library in Maidstone Museum and works on indexing the Society’s collection of images. More than 20,000 images have been indexed so far and new ones are being added all the time. Many of these are part of the historic collection of images from the early 18th century to today, but new donations also add to the stock of images. Mike Perring has been part of the Visual Records team since the early 1990s when he was recruited by the then Hon. Librarian, Peter Draper, to work on indexing the collection of plates. “I came in to find images of Thurnham and started working with June Dyer on indexing plates. Later we moved on to indexing all images held by the Society,” recalls Mike. “The idea is, of course, to make people aware of what a good collection of prints, engravings, paintings and slides etc. we have.” Initially, the images were manually listed on index cards by volunteers, but soon the records were moved onto the computer and the Visual Records Catalogue can now be searched on the Society’s webpage. The remit of the team also rapidly grew from plates to the entire collection of images and maps. “We have a large collection of images of churches; the collection of V.J. Torr is very good as it records changes in the same churches over the years. Some of these churches now no longer exist; they were bombed during the war. Some of his photographs show bomb damage around Canterbury Cathedral” says Mike. The group is now embarking on a project to digitise images, especially watercolour paintings and the old glass plates, in order to make them more accessible. Many prints have been photographed and a programme of scanning glass plates and old photos has just commenced, initially focusing on photographs of old Maidstone and plates from Cobham. The plates are particularly rewarding as the images come up beautifully sharp on the computer. In due course it is hoped to share some of these images with members in the Newsletter and online. If you wish to consult the KAS Visual Records, or just want to come along to see what is going on, then come to the KAS Library in Maidstone Museum on a Wednesday morning between 10. 30 a.m. and midday and meet the group. Please remember your KAS membership card and sign in at the front desk in the Museum. Currently there are seven people working on the Visual Records in the Library on a regular basis, too many to mention by name, but all working on preserving and recording these wonderful images for the use of KAS members in their researches. Family in the Kent Hopfields from the Edwardian era The Leather Bottle Cobham 20,000 - Not out! The Work of the KAS Visual Records Team www.kentarchaeology.org.uk - Summer 2012 - KAS Newsletter 15 Insert: View of the excavation looking east, showing from right to left standing south wall of building 3, footings of south wall of building 2, conjectured wall of building 2A, with corn dryer in centre of picture, and north wall of building 3. The Maidstone Area Archaeological Group (MAAG) has been investigating a number of Roman buildings overlooking the River Medway off Lower Road, East Farleigh since 2005. This was initially reported in Newsletter no.76 with subsequent updates in no.79, no.82, no.84, no.86, no.88 and no. 90. Excavations in 2011 concentrated on excavating a further section of the Iron-Age ditch underlying the kitchen building (building 5) and uncovering the central section of the two barn buildings (buildings 2 and 3), which overlay each other. In building 2 the main door had a 3.2 metre wide opening located on the south side. The south wall extended further to the west than the east, indicating that it was not central. The floor was of beaten earth. The walls consisted of ragstone 450mm wide on a 600mm wide mortared foundation, on 700mm plus of trench-fill dry ragstone. North of this wall, and about 2 metres from it, is another wall built of dry stone 300mm wide on a 600mm wide large stone base. This is interpreted as the foundation of a timber framed building which superseded building 2. This in turn was demolished and replaced by building 3, a barn 28 metres long by 8 metres wide with a 3.6 metre wide doorway mid-way along the south side. The floor in the western side of building 3 consisted of compact burnt sandy-clay with a long flue corn dryer built into it. A clay ramp led down from the door on to the earth floor in the east side of the barn. Coins located in building 3 indicate that construction took place around AD 250. Only a few small finds were located in 2011. The buildings were backfilled for the winter. It was thought that the sale of the site would necessitate the excavation having to be closed down, however, the new owner is keen for us to continue our investigations. This year it is hoped to locate further buildings by the use of geophysics and trial pits. Excavation of the site has now resumed and anyone interested should contact maag.info@ virginmedia.com or 01622 762422. LETTER East Farleigh Fieldwork Update 2011 Dear Editor I have attached a copy of a photograph that I found in my mother’s papers. The print is only 3 ¼ by 2 ¼ inches and taken sometime during the 1930’s or possibly earlier. It is clear enough to show some details so I am sure it would be recognisable if the building is still around. It shows an old farmhouse - two timber framed buildings with a Kentish ragstone wall at the end, and an oast with a window inserted - not quite an early conversion but obviously no longer used as an oast. The site is likely to be in North West Kent as Mum came from Bromley Common. She was a keen walker so the area could be widened out from there. As she had mounted the photo in an album the picture must have had some significance to her so I am curious to find out more about it. I hope someone can identify the place. Pat Hopcroft Please contact the editor on newsletter@kentarchaeology.org with information. SCALE – 5 metres East Farleigh Roman Buildings Buildings 2, 2A and 3 Dec 2011 Published by the Kent Archaeological Society, Maidstone Museum and Bentlif Gallery, St Faith’s Street, Maidstone, Kent. ME14 1LH. 16 Summer 2012 - KAS Newsletter - www.kentarchaeology.org.uk If undelivered, please return to S. Broomfield, 8 Woodview Crescent, Hildenborough, Tonbridge, Kent TN11 9HD Copy deadline for the next issue is 1st Sept 2012 The editor wishes to draw attention to the fact that neither she nor the Council of the KAS are answerable for opinions which contributors may express in their signed articles; each author is alone responsible for the contents and substance of their work. EDITOR: LYN PALMER 55 Stone Street, Tunbridge Wells, Kent TN1 2QU Telephone: 01892 533661 Email: newsletter@kentarchaeology.org.uk With the co-operation of the staff at Knole, the KAS Historic Buildings Committee organised a visit to those parts of the building that are not normally available to the public and indeed, after the restoration work, will not be seen in their original state again. Comments from the group included the following:- “It was a most successful visit to Knole with a stunning tour guided by both the Property Manager, Helen, and the Archaeologist, Natalie, to parts that could not otherwise have been reached. We were indeed privileged to learn how the National Trust’s plans for the future of the property are being produced - depending as they do on the success of the NLF submission and a public appeal yet to be launched. It is good too, to know of the great care that will be taken to retain the unique atmosphere of the place, and that the present Lord Sackville is fully supportive of it all.” “As regards comment, ours would be simply that the visit was probably unique - just after the launch of the appeal for Knole - and an opportunity to see parts that are simply not going to be seen by the public for a long time.” “We climbed narrow staircases to attic rooms and galleries that showed the effect of the ravages of time and the results of an endless cycle of repairs and patches. Some had been used as repositories for unwanted furniture and pictures. Browsing through these evoked interest and curiosity. The specialist expertise of individual members of the group was in some cases able to suggest how items could be restored.” “Finally we climbed the spiral staircase to the top of the tower to view the deer park from an unrivalled vantage point.” There was a general request for more visits of a similar nature. Suggestions please! KNOLE VISIT By Christopher Proudfoot