Books, Prehistory, Ten Years' Digging, Samuel Carrington 1849

Samuel Carrington 1849 is in Ten Years' Digging.

Books, Prehistory, Ten Years' Digging, Samuel Carrington 1849, Calton

On the 12th and 20th of January, we examined a barrow [Possibly Calton Green Barrow [Map]] close to the village of Calton, of a form rarely found in this neighbourhood, but occurring more frequently in Wiltshire, where it is denominated by Stukeley and Hoare, the "Druid Barrow" (Compare Elk Low [Map], Vestiges p. 45). It consists of a level plateau 18 inches high, encircled by a high verge 4 feet above the natural level, its diameter 16 yards. We found that repeated interments had been deposited within the area. The first discovered, was rather South of the centre, and was a skeleton with the legs bent at a right angle, with the trunk reposing on a quantity of charred wood placed on the natural level, from whence six pieces of calcined flint were taken, four only having the definite shape of instruments. From the head of this skeleton the ground inclining to the East, our trench was continued in that direction for about four feet, when we met with a large black stone placed on edge, near which were a few burnt human bones, and not far from them part of the unbumt skeleton of a very young person, with numerous rats' bones about it. At a short distance West from the centre, was another skeleton, also of a young person, placed in a flexed position, in a depression in the earth, accompanied by two neatly chipped instruments of calcined flint, and in some degree protected by a flat stone placed on edge parallel with the body. From following up these discoveries, the excavation had assumed an irregular shape, leaving the N.W. part of the area unexplored, which occasioned us to devote another day to the examination of that portion, where we discovered another skeleton of an adult, of slender proportions, lying extended on the back, with the head pillowed upon a flat stone, which afterwards proved the cover of a small cist. By the side of the body was a short thick-backed iron knife, which had been inserted into a wooden haft. The cist covered by the pillow stone, was sunk about a foot lower than the natural level; it was made by five flat stones placed on edge, some of them having pointed ends had been driven lower into the natural soil: it was small, measuring only 2 feet by 16 inches, and it was altogether about three feet beneath the turf. It contained a confused heap of badly preserved human bones, which, from the remains of the cranium (the best preserved amongst them) were pronounced to be the vestiges of a young person.

On an eminence near Calton, called the Cop, is a barrow about 20 yards diameter, and now two feet high, but probably lowered by the plough, which we opened on the 29th of January and 3rd of February; and which furnished an example of the careful interment of part of the head of an ox, a deposit we have found in a few instances before. (Vestiges, pp. 82 - 85 - 86, and Steep Low [Map], Sept. 1848). The outside of the mound was of stiff red earth, which was replaced by stones as the centre was neared, where we found the first interment, consisting of calcined bones simply placed on a flat stone, about a foot below the surface. About a foot lower, two flat stones appeared, covering a small quadrangular cist 2 feet 6 inches square, and 2 feet deep; three of its sides formed of stones placed on edge, the fourth neatly walled up to the same height, and having the floor roughly paved with small stones. It contained the skeleton of a young person about twelve or four- teen years of age, in good preservation, accompanied by two flints that had been wrought into form, with others more rude. Near this cist was another of circular shape, formed by stones placed on end, which appeared to have been disturbed; it contained the remnants of another skeleton, and a round flint. Proceeding a short distance further towards the edge of the mound, we came to a small cist, constructed by four flat stones, inclined together at the top, so as to protect the contents without a horizontal covering; within was the right half of the upper jaw of an ox, wanting the teeth, and a rude pieoe of flint which may be imagined to be an arrow-head. Near the surface, in the middle of the mound, was a heap of fine charcoal, in which was a piece of coarse pottery, and during the excavation we found tines and other parts of stags' horns. This, the fifth instance, of the intentional burial of the whole or part of the head of the ox, goes far to prove the existence of some peculiar superstition or rite, of which no notice has reached modern times.

Books, Prehistory, Ten Years' Digging, Samuel Carrington 1849, Throwley

On the 10th of February, we investigated a tumulus [Possibly Cart Low [Map]] midway between Throwley and Calton, 17 yards across and 3 feet high, wholly composed of earth of a burnt appearance throughout The principal interment was found about a yard from the centre, and consisted of a deposit of large pieces of calcined human bone, which lay within a circular hole in the natural soil, about a foot deep, of well defined shape, resulting from contact with a wooden or wicker work vessel, in which the bones were placed when buried, the vestiges of which, in the form of impalpable black powder, intervened between the bones and the earth. Upon the bones lay part of a small bronze pin, and a very beautiful miniature vase, of the "Incense Cup" type, 8⅛ inches high, 3½ diameter, ornamented with chevrons and lozenges, and perforated in two places at one side. Among the bones were two small pointed pieces of flint, and a common quartz pebble; and below the deposit was the shoulder-blade of a large animal, which has been designedly reduced to an irregular shape by the use of flint saws, or otlier instruments equally inefficient. At one side of this interment, were four other deposits of calcined bone, placed on the floor of the mound, here of rock, intersected by veins of clay, without any protection from cist or urn, but evidently deposited at one and the same time, as the heaps were quite distinct and imdisturbed, though very near to each other. They had been so thoroughly calcined as to be comminuted, and had almost reached the inevitable catastrophe of "dust to dust,"

Books, Prehistory, Ten Years' Digging, Samuel Carrington 1849, Wetton

In the first week of April, we made a second effort to open the Longlow Barrow [Map], situated on a mineral vein that has been so extensively worked as to render the extent of the tumulus almost undistinguishable amidst the mine hillocks. Owing to this, we missed the centre, although the mound was excavated to the depth of seven feet at least. We nevertheless foumd parts of two human skulls, one of them infantile, together with bones of the usual animals, calcined flints of good form and workmanship, and the points of a bone spear, and pin.

Books, Prehistory, Ten Years' Digging, Samuel Carrington 1849, Waterhouses

On the 7th of April, we opened a barrow [Stonesteads Barrow [Map]] in a field called Stonesteads, a quarter of a mile from the village of Waterhouses, measuring 17 yards across, composed of earth, limestones, and boulders. Slightly South-East from the centre of the barrow, upon a pavement of thin flat stones raised 6 inches above the natural level of the land, lay the skeleton of a tall and strongly-built man, apparently beyond the middle period of life, who had been placed in the common flexed posture, with the head towards the outside of the tumulus. Near his feet was the tusk of a large boar, rubbed down on the inner surface to abput half the natural thickness, near the shoulders were two instruments of burnt flint, one round ended, the other, part of a neat arrow-point; and a section about half-an-inch long, cut from a large rib, and neatly dressed round the edge of the cut surfaces. On the floor of the barrow were indications of fire, and a few pieces of calcined bone, which render it probable that there had been a more ancient interment in the barrow, which was about eighteen inches in central elevation.

Books, Prehistory, Ten Years' Digging, Samuel Carrington 1849, Lomberlow

The remainder of the day was occupied by another barrow on a rocky and elevated xidge in the neighbourhood, called Lomberlow [Map]. The mound, about 16 yards diameter, is crossed by a hedge and double stone wall, so tbat we could not dig out the middle, but we worked as near to it as practicable. It is composed of stones broken from the upper beds of the rocky masses around, mingled with soil just sufficient to fill the interstices, and stands upon a very uneven floor of rock, in a depression of which, enlarged by artificial means, a cist was erected of well-defined, rectangular form, composed of four massive stones, measuring inside three feet by two feet, and covered by three large stones laid across, two being of limestone, each a yard long by eighteen inches wide and six thick; the other, covering the joint, was a slab of sandstone, brought from the bed of the River Hamps, which flows through, and gives the name to the village of Waterhouses, about a mile from the barrow. The cist was south of the centre, and its covering stones not more than eighteen inches below the turf, though its floor was four feet; it was built with the longest diameter East and West, and was filled with earth, amongst which lay the skeleton of a full-grown young person, with the head to the West, and necessarily in an extremely contracted posture. At the shoulders we found a very good spear-head of mottled grey flint, and an uncertain instrument of white flint, very highly polished. Above the cist were numerous small pebbles, the leg-bone of a large dog, and a little charcoal.

Books, Prehistory, Ten Years' Digging, Samuel Carrington 1849, Cauldon

On the 14th of April, we examined the remnant of a barrow on the summit of a very high hill, called Cauldon Low [Map]. It is about 22 yards across, and is planted with stunted fir trees, for the protection of which a wall has been built round the tumulus, the stone having been supplied by its spoliation. Owing to this, we were unable to find more than a few calcined bones, pieces of pottery, rats' bones, and two instruments of flint, all which occurred near the centre.

On the 1st of April, another barrow in the same neighbourhood, called Farlow, was opened. It is 21 yards diameter, consisting of a level area surrounded by an elevated border, as the "Druid Barrows." Digging to the depth of four feet in the centre, through earth and stones, we discovered the skeleton of a young person laid upon the ribs of an ox or other large animal placed transversely to the human bones, at regular intervals side by side. At the North side of the barrow was a rock grave, the bottom of which was about two feet beneath the turf, containing the skeleton of another young person, accompanied by a very neatly ornamented vase, five inches high, and nine instruments of white flint, eight of which lay altogether in a corner of the grave, whilst the ninth was found near the middle. The vase retained its upright position, having been placed upon a flat stone, and likewise protected by another standing on edge by its side. On the South and East sides of the mound were remains of two other bodies, neither of which yielded any article worthy of notice. Part of the barrow had been disturbed about a year before by treasure-seekers, who having found a large urn with the upper part ornamented by chevrons, broke it to pieces, in order that each bystander might possess a memento of the discovery.

Books, Prehistory, Ten Years' Digging, Samuel Carrington 1849, Grindon

28th of April, opened a barrow, 13 yards across, and two feet high, situated in land called Ellmeadows, near Grindon, which appeared to have been previously disturbed. We made trenches in various directions, but found only the fragments common to all spoliated tumuli, namely, human bones burnt and unburnt, teeth and bones of rats and other animals, pieces of flint, coarse pottery, and pebbles.

Books, Prehistory, Ten Years' Digging, Samuel Carrington 1849, Alstonefield

We next examined a small mound on the highest point of land near the Load House [Map], in the neighbourhood of Alstonefield, where we found no perfect interment, but many small pieces of human and animal bone, including numerous rats' bones, and a few pieces of calcined human bone.

Books, Prehistory, Ten Years' Digging, Samuel Carrington 1849, Musden Third Barrow

On the 19th of May, we opened the third [Musden Third Barrow [Map]] of the group of barrows upon Musden Hill, which is a fine regularly shaped mound eighteen yards diameter, and five feet high, composed of nothing but stiff clayey earth. The natural soil was touched at the depth of four feet, and was changed to a red colour by fire, the traces of which, in the form of charcoal, strewed the surface for a considerable length. A round hole had been sunk about a foot through the upper stratuna of rock, near the centre of the barrow, which was filled with small stones and clay; a few burnt bones and some pieces of burnt flint, one of them part of a large instrument, were found about this part of the mound, but no interment was discovered although extensive trenches were made. There is little doubt of an interment by cremation being yet in some part of the barrow, which is one of the same class as those near Longnor, opened in 1848.

Books, Prehistory, Ten Years' Digging, Samuel Carrington 1849, Wetton Near Hill

At page 83 of Vestiges, is a notice of an excavation made at one side of a barrow [Wetton Hill Barrow [Map]] on the summit of Wetton near Hill, when after having found one interment, we desisted through meeting with the natural rock in front of our cutting, Mr. Carrington thinking it probable that something might yet remain, made a cutting from the opposite side on the 23rd and 24th of May, having previously made trials in different parts of the mound, which showed that in some places the materials were large stones, and in others gravel, both favourable indications. After removing stones to the depth of about a yard, we found a skeleton accompanied by one rude flint arrow; it lay on the left side, with the knees drawn up, and was that of a strong man in full vigour. The skull, with the exception of the lefl side, which was decayed from contact with the earth, is perfect, and of a shape very unusual amongst Celtic crania, being remarkably short and elevated, like the Turkish skull. It is amongst the number selected for publication in the Crania Britannica, as an example of the acro-cephalie variety. Proceeding forward, we found another skeleton, the feet of which were very near the head of the first, deposited in the contracted posture in a cist, roughly made of large limestones, and partly covered with others of the same kind. Before the face was a very beautiful vase, 4½ inches high, with a fluted border and four perforated ears, wHch will be understood from the cut. A piece of flint and a tine of stags' horn lay close behind the skull, and a few more pieces of flint were found near. The skull, in perfect condition, is that of an old man, some of the teeth wanting, the alveoli being absorbed, the rest exceedingly worn; it is essentially square and massive in appearance, and is of the platy-cephalic variety. It is engraved and fully described in the Crania Britannica, where its internal capacity is stated to be 80 ounces. When cleaning it, on the day after its discovery, the cricoid cartilage, in a state of ossification, fell from the interior through the foramen magnum, where it had probably been conveyed by the rats which hibernated in the tumulus.

The femur measured 18 inches. The occurrence of two crania of the most opposite extremes of aberration from the ordinary Celtic type, in one tumulus, is most remarkable, and cannot fail to interest craniographers.

Books, Prehistory, Ten Years' Digging, Samuel Carrington 1849, Ilam

On the 26th and 30th of May we opened a barrow [Hazelton Barrow [Map]] in the midst of a plantation on the top of Hazleton Hill, above Inkley Wood, at the back of Ilam Hall. It is a flat barrow, with a level summit 20 yards diameter, and varying from a foot to 18 inches in thickness, according to the inequality of the ground on which it stands, chiefly composed of earth, except round the edge, and where interment had taken place. The first discovery was at the West side, where a grave 6 feet long by 2 wide, had been cut 18 inches deep into the rock, then surrounded by flat stones placed on edge, and lastly, divided into two equal compartments by the same means. In one division was a deposit of calcined human bones, accompanied by two inferior arrow points of flint, and a broken pebble, also burned. The other contained wood ashes, earth which had undergone the action of fire, and a few bits of bone. From the appearance of the place, it is likely that the grave was first used as the place of cremations, and afterwards arranged as we found It, in order to hold the collected remains more compactly. A few feet from this deposit, and about 8 yards from the centre, we found a plain urn of thin pottery, about 7 inches high and 5 diameter, inverted over a few burnt bones which lay upon a flat stone - this very small cinerary um was broken by a tree having been planted above it. Eight yards from the middle, towards the South, in a depression of the floor, was a flat upright stone, by the side of which were some small pieces of a coarse urn, black ashes, burnt earth, a fine circular instrument, and numerous pieces of calcined flint: many large stones had been used in this part of the mound. Eight yards from the centre, towards the North-West, was a very similar deposit in a depression of the rock, surrounded by large stones; the articles were, a few calcined bones, a fine round instrument, and chippings of flint, and a piece of lead, either native or molten, weighing more than 3½ ounces.

Many more flints, including four more circular instruments, numerous pebbles, and a piece of iron ore, were scattered through the central part of the barrow, where not a trace of imburnt bone was found from first to last.

Books, Prehistory, Ten Years' Digging, Samuel Carrington 1849, Gateham

On the 31st of May we examined a flat barrow near Gateham [Map], about 15 yards diameter, much reduced in height by the frequent passage of the plough, which was formed of stones firmly embedded in earth. On the natural surface, in the centre, about two feet from the top of the mound, there was much charcoal, and a few feet West from it was the only interment found in the barrow, consisting of a few crumbling remains of calcined bone, placed beneath a broken urn, the upper part of which was ornamented with the chevron pattern in dotted lines; they lay near the surface, and below, on the floor of the mound, was a block of flint, which, with a chipped instrument and some pieces from other parts of the tumulus, was in its natural state, and not burnt, as barrow flints commonly are.

Books, Prehistory, Ten Years' Digging, Samuel Carrington 1849, Blore

2nd June, we opened a barrow [Net Low Barrow [Map]] near Blore, In a field called Nettles (Net Lows?) formed around a natural elevation, which is only slightly covered at the top; the entire diameter is 13 yards. On the S.W. side we found a cist, the outer side formed of a long stone placed on edge, the inner being walled from the surface to the bottom, which was paved with flat stones; the depth was 2 feet. On the floor was a deposit of calcined bones, and in a corner was a broken urn of red clay, containing a small vase, or "incense cup," in better preservation.

The large vase, originally about 9 inches high by 5 diameter, is of clay, plentifully mixed with sand and imperfectly baked, whence the surface is much disintegrated. It has been of good form and workmanship, having a deep border ornamented with diagonal lines disposed in triangles in alternate directions. The cup is of similar clay, 2½ inches high, 3 inches across the mouth, and quite plain. Nearer the edge, on the same side of the barrow, we found some remains of an unburnt skeleton, which had been previously disturbed, and not far from it were two articles indicating the interment to have been of late period; namely, the bottom of a kiln-baked vessel of blue clay, showing marks of having been turned on the potter's wheel, and a small iron ring 1¼ inch in diameter. Fragments of bone, burnt and unburnt, rats' bones, teeth of oxen, and pebbles were found throughout the cuttings.

Books, Prehistory, Ten Years' Digging, Samuel Carrington 1849, Stanshope

A singularly-constructed barrow [Possibly Stanshope Barrow 1 [Map]] on Stanshope Pasture, partially opened by us on the 20th July, 1846, was more carefully examined on the 1st, 4th, and 5th of June. The former excavations showed the mound to be almost all of natural rock, levelled and trimmed into a tumular shape. On the present occasion we succeeded in finding several interments, all of which had been deposited in clefts of the rock, in a way difficult to describe without reference to a plan, the clefts being quite natural, and running in different directions from the centre of the mound, which was altogether solid, except in these places, which had been successively occupied. The first contained two deposits of calcined bones; one, high up in the cleft, had been contained in an urn much broken, the other lay on the floor, which was partly burnt to lime, indicating, perhaps, that the corpse had been consumed on the spot.

The second place of burial was a cleft communicating with the first, four feet long, three feet deep, and one foot wide at the top, decreasing to six inches at the bottom; it contained a large quantity of calcined bones, accompanied by two instruments of flint, and two neatly made bone pins, one of which is partly drilled at the broadest end, they are, contrary to the usual custom, unburnt.

The third grave was a kind of cist, formed on one side by a ridge of rock two feet wide, separating it from the last, and on the other by a large long stone; it was covered by several large stones wedged in between the sides, and owing to the shape of the rock was widest at the bottom, where lay two skeletons, the largest of which had been slightly disturbed by the interment of the other, which was that of a young person. Innumerable snail shells and rats' bones covered the bottom of this grave.

The last interment here discovered, consisted of a very large and coarse sepulchral urn, inverted over a deposit of burnt bones, placed upon a flat stone; it was in some degree protected by an angle of the rock, in which it was placed, but being very near the surface the lower part was decayed by atmospheric action. It measures eleven inches in diameter at the mouth, and is quite unornamented.

Books, Prehistory, Ten Years' Digging, Samuel Carrington 1849, Bunster

6th of June, we opened a barrow [Bunster Hill Barrow [Map]] in a plantation on the brow of Bunster Hill, by the side of Dovedale; it was fourteen yards diameter, and three feet high, composed of earth with but few stones, and was completely honeycombed by rabbit burrows. The only interment was a full-grown skeleton laid on the natural surface, South of the centre, on the left side, with the knees drawn up, and the head to the outside of the mound; the femur measures seventeen inches, and the skull exhibits a frontal suture, although it would appear to be that of a person in middle life. Close to the head lay a small arrow head, and some chippings of flint, two larger pieces lying nearer the surface; just above the feet was a large flat stone, beneath which were a few pieces of burnt bone. We observed neither rats' bones nor the customary fragments of those of other animals in any part of the mound.

Books, Prehistory, Ten Years' Digging, Samuel Carrington 1849, Wetton

Several unsuccessful attempts to open the barrow at Longlow [Map], near Wetton, are noticed in the preceding pages, which failed from a great part of the mound being surrounded by mine hillocks, imder which it extended much further than was at first anticipated, in fact, a shaft had been sunk very near the centre of the tumulus. From a careful measurement of part of the barrow still remaining in its original condition, it appears to have had a circumference of ninety yards. It is chiefly composed of flat stones, many of which are large, and set on end, inclining towards each other at the top, by which mode of construction many vacancies are occasioned. Near the surface and at the edge the stones are smaller, and the interstices are filled with gravel and earth; the depth in the highest part was more than seven feet. Convinced that we had not yet found the principal interment, and as the presumed centre had been examined down to the rock, we excavated the S.E. side of the mound in the month of March of the present year, without finding more than detached pieces of human bone, and lumps of flint amongst a quantity of charcoal near the surface; and laying bare at the bottom, a low wall of square stones, altogether about four feet long and eight inches high. At length, on the 8th of June, after having expended part of the preceding day in excavation, we had the satisfaction of discovering a very large cist, or chamber, the first indication of which were two large stones lying parallel to each other in an inclined direction. They had originally constituted one stone only, forming one end of the cist which had been displaced, and each was seven feet long by five broad. At the foot of these appeared the end of another stone of almost equal size placed on edge, which proved to be one side of the sepulchral chamber; It was seven Inches thick. The opposite side was formed by a stone equally long, but about a foot narrower, and eleven inches in thickness. The stone forming the end inclined Inwards, having given way; it was five feet broad by six feet long, thus rendering the chamber, as originally constructed, six feet long, five wide, and about four deep. Excepting at a little vacancy at the end first discovered, where human remains were seen scattered amongst the stones, the chamber was filled In the upper part with earth and stones, below with stones only, which being removed, exposed a well-paved floor, covered from end to end with human bones, which lying altogether in the primitive contracted position, appeared to be in great confusion, though not so in reality. Two skulls lay close together, in contact with the side of the cist, beneath another skull (shortly to be described; In the middle lay the leg bones of one skeleton and the arms of another. One skeleton was situated rather higher up amongst the stones. Bones of the ox, hog, deer, and dog; also three very finely chipped arrow-heads, and many other pieces of calcined flint accompanied the human remains, which, as well as we could ascertain, represented at least thirteen individuals, ranging from infancy to old age, and including several females.

This is the first opportunity we have had of exploring an undisturbed cist in a chambered cairn of this peculiar structure, most of them having been destroyed for the sake of the stone, whilst this had one end only displaced, without injury to the deposits. It is on this account a discovery of unusual interest, and when compared with the results of previous and subsequent excavations in similar grave hills, yields to none in importance. A few general observations will render this clear.

The mound, composed of stone, enclosing a chamber or cist formed of immense slabs of stone, occasionally double, or galleried, indicates, in this part of the country at least, a period when the use of metal was unknown, the sole material for the spear and arrow being flint, which is often carefully chipped into leaf-shaped weapons of great beauty. The interments within these cists have in every case been numerous, and apparently long continued; they are marked by a strongly defined type of skull, styled by Dr. Wilson, kumbe-kephalic, or boat-shaped, the more obvious features being excessive elongation, flattening of the parietal bones, and squareness of the base, producing, when viewed from behind, a laterally compressed appearance, which is enhanced by the sagittal suture being sometimes elevated into a ridge. The adult male skull found in the centre of the Longlow cist has been selected to appear in the "Crania Britannica," as a typical example of this form. The crania of a female, and of a girl about seven years old, from the same cist, exhibit the same form in a remarkable degree, as do the others which are more imperfect. Crania from the chambered barrows at Bole Hill, Bakewell Moor (Vestiges, p. 47), Stoney Low [Map], Brassington Moor (Vestiges, p. 46), Bingham Low [Map], near Monyash (ditto, p. 103), Five Wells Hill [Map], Taddington (ditto, p. 91), are of the same type, which it has been suggested may not be Celtic, and which Professor Nillson places second in the order of antiquity of the ancient inhabitants of Scandinavia, where it seems they are found occupying similar cairns. Our observations seem to indicate a period more strictly primeval. The other bones are not large, though well formed; the points of attachment of the muscles are remarkably distinct.

Books, Prehistory, Ten Years' Digging, Samuel Carrington 1849, Ecton

On the evenings of the 11th and 12th of June we investigated a barrow [Probably Ecton Barrow 1 [Map]] on Ecton Hill, which was partially opened on the 18th of May, 1848. On the south side we found a deposit of burnt bones, which had been placed in a large urn, with a projecting border ornamented with diagonal lines, accompanied by two unburnt tines of the antler of the red deer. The urn was much broken when found. Towards the east side was a skeleton much broken and decayed, the head towards the outside; accompanied by a few burnt bones, fragments of earthenware, a few pieces of flint, and animal bones, including a boar's tusk. At the south-west side of the mound were more human bones, which had been disturbed by miners, who finding lead in the tumulus, had concluded it to be the site of an ancient bloomery or smelting-place, such being formerly established on hills for the sake of the draught; their locality is yet indicated by the word Bole, as Bole Hill, &c.

Books, Prehistory, Ten Years' Digging, Samuel Carrington 1849, Grub Low

13th of June we opened a small barrow, three feet high, and not more than ten yards across, called Grub Low [Map], situated between Grindon and Waterfall. It was mostly composed of the red earth of the neighbourhood, sparingly mixed with stones. In the middle were remains of two persons: one had been interred in the natural state, with the knees drawn up; the other had been reduced to ashes, which were distributed about the first, along with much charcoal; beneath the bones were two very neatly chipped leaf-shaped arrows of white flint, one of which had suffered much from the fire. The natural surface was much blackened with charcoal, and above the deposits fine gravel had been heaped almost to the summit of the barrow.

Books, Prehistory, Ten Years' Digging, Samuel Carrington 1849, Musdin Fourth Barrow

The fourth of the group of barrows on Musdin Hill was opened on the 16th of June. It is a flat-topped barrow, 25 yards across, about three feet high, and composed of earth, with a few stones about the various interments. About half way down, in the centre, we found a skeleton, near to which was a second much decayed, but apparently of a young person; by the side of the head was a pebble, and a circular ring of bronze, with a ribbed front, which, from the remains of the iron pin, we conclude to be a brooch. Beneath the head was another like it, in better preservation. The rust from the iron pins retained impressions of woven cloth and hair, but whether the latter results from contact with a skin garment, or the hair of the corpse, it is impossible to decide: the last is, however, most probable. Under the body was much charcoal.

Slightly further on, we found a large thin instrument of grey flint, which probably belonged to a decayed skeleton reposing near upon some stones, surrounded by rats' bones. A beautiful bronze dagger, five inches long, 2½ broad, with a rib up the centre at each side, and three rivets for the handle, the polished patina of which rivals malachite in colour, was found, in no very determinate position with regard to any of these interments, though nearest to the first; if, however, we take former discoveries as a guide, we should attribute it to the owner of the flint instrument.

Of the fourth interment nothing remained but some of the smaller bones. The fifth deposit, found in a bowl-shaped cavity in the natural surface, about nine feet from the centre, consisted of bones which had undergone the process of cremation on the spot where they were buried, the depression being lined with charcoal. They were accompanied by the remains of a peculiarly ornamented vase, with perforated bosses, which had been placed near a stone. The sixth was a skeleton, accompanied by two flints, one round, the other pointed, which lay about three yards from the last.

The small bones and teeth only remained of the seventh.

The eighth had also been buried entire, though part of the skull, the teeth, and the bones of the extremities, were the only remains. Near the head were two flints of mean quaUty, and a small neatly-ornamented vase, 4½ inches high, which stood upright about eighteen inches beneath the surface. The latter has been partly broken for ages, without coming to pieces, as there is a crack half an inch wide down the side.

The ninth was the most perfect skeleton in the barrow. It lay on its left side, with the knees drawn up, and the head to the centre. The upper part was much decayed: length of femur eighteen inches.

Of the tenth little was left.

The eleventh consisted of calcined bones and the remains of an urn.

The twelfth and last was another decomposed skeleton, lying on an accumulation of stones, and accompanied by some flint flakes. Most of the interments were within a little distance of the centre of the barrow, and were surrounded by small stones laid on a stratum of charcoal; they were unusually decayed, although the bones of rats found in contact with them were well preserved.

18th of June we opened a flat mound, with an uneven surface, 25 yards across, on the moor near Gateham. It consisted of loose black earth to the depth of two feet, next a bed of stiff white clay containing charcoal, and lastly a stratum of red clay. No interment was found, although there is a tradition in the neighbourhood that it is a place "where dead men lie."

Books, Prehistory, Ten Years' Digging, Samuel Carrington 1849, Holme End

On the evenings of the 20th and 21st of June, we opened a barrow near Holme End, called Lousy Low, which has originally been of some magnitude, but is now reduced, a cottage of one storey having been erected upon it. We made three parallel sections through the middle, where it is four feet high, and found in the centre one, upon the natural level, some pieces of an ornamented urn and two unburnt instruments of flint. The sections showed the materials of the barrow: the natural surface consisted of red sandy clay, on which was a layer of hard white clay, as in the preceding barrow, which, from being plentifully strewed with charred wood, we considered to have been partially baked. On this lay large stones, again covered with clay from eighteen inches to two feet in thickness, which formed the outside of the tumulus. No interment was found.

Books, Prehistory, Ten Years' Digging, Samuel Carrington 1849, Cauldon Hill Third Barrow

The third barrow of the Cauldon group was opened on the 30th of June. From its corresponding with the slope of the hill it is difficult to ascertain its diameter, but it had a depression in the centre, surrounded by an elevated circle seven yards across, and as far as the cutting extended the depth of artificial material varied from two feet to a yard. At the south-east end of our trench we found a broken cinerary urn, slightly ornamented, and some burnt bones; beneath this deposit was a small hole in the rock, filled with charcoal, which substance was likewise scattered throughout the barrow, and the earth was in some places burnt red. One flint arrow-point and some chippings occurred during the day.

Books, Prehistory, Ten Years' Digging, Samuel Carrington 1849, Blore

Lady Low [Map], near Blore, a bowl-shaped tumulus, 21 yards across and four feet high in the middle, was opened on the 2nd of July by carrying a trench six feet wide through the centre, without finding the interment, a few flints and some charcoal being the result of our labour.

Books, Prehistory, Ten Years' Digging, Samuel Carrington 1849, Calton Moor

On July the 5th we made an ineffectual attempt to open a barrow at Waterings, near Calton Moor House [Map], 25 yards diameter and four feet high, composed of very compact earth, which was rendered more difficult of removal by being traversed in all directions by the roots of about a dozen large sycamores growing on the mound. We found only some pieces of flint, traces of fire, and an iron ox-shoe, which, though comparatively modern, was found eighteen inches from the surface. We perceived, in one part of the rock, a depression at least two feet lower than the natural surface, which would probably have led to the interment had it been possible to follow it up, but the trees prevented this being done. On the same day, we made two small cuttings in the first of the Musdin barrows, previously opened by us on the 5 th of July, 1848. Near the edge we found a small cist, formed of four flat stones, reinforced by an outer range of others, all set on edge, and covered over by two larger slabs: around were rats' bones innumerable, and within was a deposit of calcined bones, accompanied by two flint instruments, also burnt, one of which is a very neatly chipped lance, made of rather unusual shape, three inches long, made from a large flake, smooth on one surface from being struck from a block, and laboriously chipped to a convex shape on the other. This is a type always found well finished, as in the specimen found in Ribden Low [Map], which is one of the most beautiful flints we have seen. The usual fragments of bone, &c., were found in the other cutting but no interment.

Books, Prehistory, Ten Years' Digging, Samuel Carrington 1849, Swinscoe aka Near Hill Barrow

On the 7th of July, we opened a barrow [Near Hill Barrow [Map]] on the Near Hill, Swinscoe, thirteen yards diameter, with a basin-like depression in the middle, five yards over and three feet deep. Having sunk to the depth of five feet from the basin, through earth and stone, a skeleton was found, the lower part of which only was undisturbed, the head and upper portion having apparently been long removed. Their fragments, with small pieces of burnt bone, Samian ware, and a piece of iron of no great antiquity, were found throughout the cutting from the surface downwards. The femur of the skeleton, wanting the joint at the knee, measures 18½ inches, and must have been near two inches longer.

Books, Prehistory, Ten Years' Digging, Samuel Carrington 1849, Mayfield

On the same day, we excavated Mayfield Low, a flat barrow, eighteen yards diameter, composed of sand and pebbles, in which a stone cist, containing an urn, had been discovered some years previously. We made numerous cuttings without much success, finding only a few pieces of an urn and some burnt bones near thee astern edge.

Books, Prehistory, Ten Years' Digging, Samuel Carrington 1849, Castern

On the afternoons of the 18th and 19th of July, we opened a barrow between Bitchin Hill [Map] and Castern [Map], eighteen yards diameter, and only about eighteen inches high, a great deal of the top having been removed for the sake of the stone. On the first day we removed a considerable area from the centre towards the south-east, the whole of which was strewed with human and animal bones, and other trifling remains common in most barrows. Amongst them was the decayed skeleton of a young person. The next day we continued our excavation in an opposite direction, where, about two yards from the middle of the barrow, was an oval grave, seven feet long by 3½ feet wide, cut in the rock to the depth of about two feet. It was filled with earth and stones, covering a large skeleton lying at the bottom, on its lefl side, in the usual contracted posture, with the head to the north. Near the shouders was a large and highly-polished stud, of jet or coal, 1¾ inches diameter, with two oblique holes meeting at an angle behind. A small piece of calcined flint was also found near the same place.

The femur measures nineteen inches. In the grave were many rats' bones, and above it were the remains of a young person, with bits of earthenware and burnt flints.

28th of July, we went to a mound at Windy Harbour [Map], on the Morridge range, near Cotton, which, although originally a barrow, had been completely destroyed by a limekiln made in its centre, as we soon found by excavation.

Books, Prehistory, Ten Years' Digging, Samuel Carrington 1849, Cauldon Hills

We afterwards opened a barrow on Cauldon Hills, in a lower situation than those before examined there. One-half had been removed down the level of the adjacent land, but its area was distinguishable by the smoothness of the turf and its freedom from thistles, which grow luxuriantly around: the height of the part remaining is near three feet, and the original diameter about eighteen yards. We cut through the higher part towards the centre, where rock appeared, but continuing forward to the part removed, many loose stones were observed, which were ultimately found to occupy a grave nine feet long by four wide, sunk four feet deep in the rock, which had unfortunately been disturbed by those who had removed a moiety of the barrow. We found, however, the remnants of a skeleton, the slender femur of which measures seventeen inches, and fragments of a plain globular, narrow-necked vessel of firmly-baked sandy ware, with a polished black surface, produced mechanically, and not by the application of glaze, which may be of Roman-British, or even Saxon manufacture.

30th of July, we examined one of a series of natural protuberances on the crest of a hill, near Stanshope, called Ottcliff Knoll, which seemed to possess a barrow-like aspect. There was a depression about a foot deep at one side, completely filled with small pieces of the bones of different animals, among which those of the rat were conspicuous; but in all other places the mound presented a rocky mass, thinly overspread with wiry turf, so that no other deposit could have been made.

Books, Prehistory, Ten Years' Digging, Samuel Carrington 1849, Deepdale

4th of August, we made a more complete investigation of the barrow at Deepdale, which was partially opened in 1845, when one extremity only of the grave was examined. It was now found to measure twelve feet in length by five in breadth at the widest end, and somewhat less at the other; its depth was 6½ feet, three feet having been cut out of the rock. The skeleton of a young person, and a few more pieces of the broken drinking cup found in 1845, were discovered at the broadest end; and some bones of a child, with casual flakes of flint, were found at the side, outside the grave. The skull of the young person who occupied the grave is remarkable for its elevatedform.

August 9th, we were disappointed, on excavating a small barrow on Archford Moor, called Smeetlow, to find that the whole centre was destroyed by a llmelin.

August 11th, having been repulsed in an application for liberty to open a mound in a heathy field at Eaves, near Cotton [Map], we amused ourselves with some unsuccessful digging in the Cauldon Hill group of tumuli, which on this occasion yielded only charcoal and pieces of bone.

Books, Prehistory, Ten Years' Digging, Samuel Carrington 1849, Throwley

18th August, we opened a barrow [Throwley Moor Barrow [Map]] on the hill behind Throwley Moor House, the dimensions of which are not ascertainable, from the greatest part of the mound being natural. We commenced digging on the north-west side, through earth one foot deep, beneath which was rock. We soon, however, arrived at a flat stone, placed upright beneath a wall that crossed the barrow; and having removed sufficient of the latter to allow us to proceed, found immediately below its foundation a large sepulchral urn, which, contrary to general usage, stood with the mouth upwards in a hole in the rock eighteen inches deep; the upper edge, from having been long exposed to the influence of the atmosphere from being so near the surface, was so much disintegrated as to be at first taken for charcoal, but we ascertained the diameter to be about fourteen inches; it is quite plain, and composed of coarse friable clay, of a brick red outside and black within. It contained calcined human bones, amongst which were the following articles - two fine pins, made from the tibia of an animal probably not larger than a sheep; a short piece cut from a tubular bone, and laterally perforated, possibly intended for a whistle; a bronze awl, upwards of three inches long, which has been inserted into a handle, and is now covered with a very dark and polished aerugo; a flint spear head; and a bipennis, or double-edged axe, of basaltic stone. All these, except the whistle and the awl, have been submitted to the fire, by which the axe had been so much injured that it was difficult to extricate it from its position under the bones at the bottom of the urn without its falling to pieces. The urn itself, being very thin and adhering to the rock, was taken out in small fragments. The few stone axes found during our researches have uniformly been associated with the brazen daggers, and were replaced by the plain axe-shaped celt at a slightly later period, but in no other instance have they accompanied an interment by cremation; indeed the instances in which the brass dagger has been found with burnt bones bear so small a proportion to those in which it accompanies the skeleton, that we may conclude there was a marked, though gradual change in the mode of burial introduced about the time when the knowledge of metallurgy was acquired. There is, however, evidence that the ancient rite of burial was resumed at a later period, dating but little, if at all, previous to the occupation of the country by the Romans.

Books, Prehistory, Ten Years' Digging, Samuel Carrington 1849, Mappleton

In a field called Callow [Map], at Mappleton, near Ashbourne, are three tumuli placed in a line about eighty yards from each other; they are all formed of sandy earth and pebbles. We opened that nearest to Ashbourne on the 28th of August; it is fourteen yards diameter, and two feet six inches high. On the natural surface the earth was darker in colour and finer than elsewhere, and mixed with a little charcoal; near the centre was a piece of an urn, some burnt bones, and flakes of flint. On the same day, we cut into that at the opposite extremity with no better success, finding only flints and charcoal, but no bones. The height of this mound, which has been frequently ploughed over, is two feet only.

1st September, we opened the centre mound, which had not been so much reduced by the plough; it is twenty yards across, and 3½ feet high in the middle, where is a large tree. The occupier of the land told us that he had some years ago dug down by the roots of the tree, and found what he considered human ashes and charcoal spread all over the floor of the mound, in the midst of which he discovered a piece of iron about four inches long, since lost. We examined the natural surface at the same point without detecting the least particle of bone, but noticed a thin layer of light-coloured sandy clay spread on the natural surface, which was the substance mistaken for human ashes. By under-cutting the tree a few calcined bones were found, and in another direction were some pieces of an urn, a few more bones, and chippings of flint.

Books, Prehistory, Ten Years' Digging, Samuel Carrington 1849, Blore

On the 15th of September we opened a barrow called Lady Low [Map], near Blore, not far from that examined on the 2nd July [Note. The barrow on the 2nd of July is described as Lady Low?]. It is twenty yards across, and has a central elevation of three feet and a half, formed of compact earth, burnt red about the middle, below which the earth was ash-coloured and plentifully mixed with charcoal down to the natural surface, where the latter was so abundant as to form a layer in some places several inches thick. A deposit of calcined bones occupied the exact centre of the mound; they were raised a few inches from the floor, and were embedded in charcoal. Amongst them were an arrow-head of white flint, a bone pin, and some fragments of very thin bronze, all much burnt Higher up we discovered, by cutting with the spade, a small oval cavity, eight inches long by four wide, surrounded by charcoal, which was quite empty, but suggested the idea of a wooden or wicker vessel that had been partly consumed and covered with earth. A few instruments of flinty and some very minute and indeterminate pieces of bronze, were found at no great depth below the turf, in the centre of the barrow.

September 22nd, we opened a barrow near Cotton [Map], called the Round Knoll, of the diameter of eighteen yards and five feet high, composed of clay, with a few sand stones, near the natural level. A kiln for burning lime had been made at the end, but as it did not seem to extend to the centre we made it the base of operations by cutting a trench to the centre of the mound, on a level with the bottom of the kiln. The rest of the barrow seemed never to have been disturbed, yet we discovered nothing but charcoal and rats' bones, which lay near the bottom of the kiln, which no doubt occupied the place where the interment had been deposited. On the same day we partially opened another mound nearer to Cotton, less than the last, and not more than eighteen inches high. We cut down in the middle, between two large stones placed on edge, which at first appeared to form a cist, but which we soon found had been converted into a limekiln by some utilitarian occupier of the land.

29th of September, we examined a tumulus at Pike Low [Map], between the villages of Waterhouses and Waterfall, which had likewise been destroyed by lime burning.

Books, Prehistory, Ten Years' Digging, Samuel Carrington 1849, Throwley

On the same day we opened another barrow on Throwley Moor, which, like the last in the same locality, is formed on an uneven protuberance of rock; it is thirteen yards diameter. About two feet from the surface, near the centre, we found a shallow rounded grave, about three feet in average diameter, the bottom covered with black ashes, amongst which were a few dislocated bones, above which were some large pieces of a plain globular urn of considerable size, which had been perforated at the side with two small holes, like a similar vessel found at Steep Low [Map], near Alstonefield, in 1845. At no great distance was ano ther depression in the rock, seven feet long and just wide enough to receive a human body, the broken remains of which were accompanied by a few calcined bones and one chipping of flint. A piece of the urn was found in the earth above.

Books, Prehistory, Ten Years' Digging, Samuel Carrington 1849, Cotton

October 13th, we opened a barrow at Three Lows [Either Three Lows Barrow 1 [Map] or Three Lows Barrow 2 [Map]?], between Cotton and Ramshom, which is a flat mound, sixteen yards across. We first removed a large space in the centre, where it was much intermixed with stone. At the natural level was a layer of grey earth a few inches thick, so compact as not to be penetrable by the spade, which was succeeded by soft red earth, covering a pavement of flat stones, where we found a small piece of fused lead. Proceeding northward, we perceived the stratum of grey earth to be broken up and mixed with charcoal, and found a good instrument of flint. Abandoning the north side, we excavated towards the south, and shortly discovered an interment of calcined bones, spread upon a layer of charcoal; they contained a spear-point of calcined flint, and two arrow-heads of the same material, unburnt.

Books, Prehistory, Ten Years' Digging, Samuel Carrington 1849, Stanshope

On the 17th and 24th of November we opened a barrow in the Ram's Croft Field, at Stanshope [Map], which is more than usually concave in the middle, the depression being thirteen yards across and almost three feet deep; the entire diameter of the mound is forty yards. We commenced digging in the middle of the bason, finding rock at the depth of two feet, whereon lay two parallel rows of rugged stones, about three feet asunder, which had probably formed a cist, as part of a skeleton, pieces of potteiy, and a flint arrow-point, together with rats' bones and charcoal, were found between them. On the rock was a thin layer of ash-coloured earth, as we thought resulting from the soil being saturated with water that had been poured upon a fire in which some bones had been calcined near this part of the barrow.

About three feet south-east of the centre was a deposit of burnt bones, lying in the earth about a foot beneath the turf, without protection. In the rock below were two circular graves, each about a yard diameter, and about four feet in depth from the surface of ther mound; they were about a yard asunder, and that to the south, being first examined, was found to contain two skeletons - one, which was that of a young person, lay at the bottom, and a little higher was the other, the remains of a child. Between the two was a large instrument of grey flint, rounded at each end, with other chippings; and close to the vertebrae of the child was a very beautiful drinking cup, 6½ inches high, with parallel bands or hoops of ornament, which stood upright when found. Above these interments, and within two feet of the surface, were the remains of another elegant drinking cup, ornamented with a chevrony pattern, the fragments of which, although lying altogether, and being carefully gathered, failed to supply more than two-thirds of the whole vessel. It is therefore probable that it had been broken before the interment for some reason with which we are unacquainted. An arrow-head of flint was found with it.

The other grave also contained the skeleton of a child, accompanied, like the former, by a neat spear-head of slightly burnt flint, and an equally elegant drinking cup, 6½ inches high, ornamented in a different style. In this case, it was placed at the head. The three cups are of the same clay, and are altogether so identical in fabric, though varied in ornamentation, that we may safely conclude them to be the work of the same artist. The graves were filled up with earth and stones. On the north side of the area, to which the labour of the two first days was confined, we found part of another skeleton, accompanied by bones of the water rat.

On the 2nd of September [Note. This is probably December], we resumed the examination. Whilst still within the central bason, we found, near to its western limit, some bones of a full-grown human skeleton, a horse's tooth, one instrument of calcined flint, and many unburnt flakes of the same. The lower part of the barrow in this direction was chiefly composed of large stones, with but little earth amongst them, which led us to suppose that there was no interment in their vicinity, as all the other skeletons were surrounded by small stones, mixed with earth. The east side, untouched before from want of time, was next examined, where, at the depth of two feet six inches, we found the disturbed remains of a young person, covered with small stones and earth, lying on the natural surface and accompanied by rats' bones, a piece of earthenware, and some small flints. We found that this skeleton had been disturbed by the formation of a grave close to it, cut nine inches deep in the rock, for the reception of a later interment, which was discovered immediately after. This grave was irregular both in form and depth, being deepest in the middle, so that the skull and opposite extremities were on a higher level than the rest of the bones. The skeleton, which was that of a tall young man whose femur measures 19½ inches, lay on the left side in the usual contracted position, embedded in earth which presented the appearance and was actually of the consistence of mud, arising from the percolation of water through the overlying mound. A rude piece of black flint lay under the upper part of the body, and at a higher level, above the right shoulder, was an elegantly-shaped bronze dagger, 4¾ inches long, with two rivets attached, between which are two holes that have never been filled with metal, but which may have served to bind the dagger more securely to its handle, by thongs of leather or sinews of animals. It presents the corrugated surface usual on bronze instruments that have been buried in their leather sheaths, and is further enriched by the impressions of a few maggots or larvae of insects. Several small pieces of flint wers found in this grave, which at one point was only about a yard from the second discovered by the first day's excavation.

Books, Prehistory, Ten Years' Digging, Samuel Carrington 1849, Wetton

On the 8th of December we reopened the smaller of the barrows at Three Lows [Either Three Lows Barrow 1 [Map] or Three Lows Barrow 2 [Map]?], which was examined without any decisive result, in the summer of 1848. We now discovered two interments in it, the principal being deposited in a cist made of four thin stones in the centre, close to where the former cutting was discontinued. Its dimensions were twenty inches long, seventeen wide, and twenty deep. It contained a deposit of calcined bones, with which were two neat pointed instruments of flint, a bone pin, and part of a small vase of dark-coloured clay, 3¾ inches diameter, with a broad border two inches deep, very carefully ornamented: all these, including the vase, had passed through the fire - that, probably, which had consumed the dead; and it was owing to this that the whole of the vase was not to be found. South from the cist was the skeleton of an aged person, lying within a foot of the surface, surrounded and covered with stones, the head pointing north-west. Nothing was found with it. Outside the cist we observed two pieces of pottery and two flints. The mound was composed of earth, sprinkled with charcoal in all parts except where the interments had been laid.

Books, Prehistory, Ten Years' Digging, Samuel Carrington 1849, Warslow

On the 24th of December we examined a barrow [Possibly Warslow Barrow 1 [Map] which does have a wall over it, or Warslow Barrow 2 [Map] which is near Copse Field?] on an eminence near Warslow, called the Cops, having a wall built across the middle. We found the floor of the mound depressed in the centre, where, at the depth of four feet from the summit, were two skeletons of young men, lying on their left sides, about a yard asunder. One of them possessed a single instrument of flint, the other had two; and in both cases they were deposited under the skull.

Calcined bones were found from the surface downwards, but not in any quantity except about half way from the surface, where some lay together, with a flint arrow-point amongst them. Small pieces of pottery, fragments of human bone, tines of stags' horn, and a piece of animal bone, artificially pointed, were picked up at a higher level than the place where the skeletons lay. The interior of the mound was of stone, with some earth; the outer parts were of more unmixed and compact earth.