1

the Rev. Cecil Brereton, for much kind assistance rendered; and to the Hon. Photographer of the Sussex Archæological Society, Mr. J. C. Stenning, whose excellent photographs, specially taken, have greatly helped me in elucidating some of the details of the paintings. My thanks are also due to the Editors of the Archeological Journal and Sussex Archaeological Collections for their kindly criticism.

CURRENT ARCHEOLOGY.

A FIND OF BRONZE IMPLEMENTS NEAR BRISTOL Some interesting ancient bronze implements were found by a boy in the picturesque little valley known as Combe Dingle, about four miles north-west of Bristol. The find consisted of a bronze chisel and three ornamented flanged celts,' varying from 5 inches to 33 inches in length, and from 131 oz. to 43 oz. in weight. The smallest was beautifully decorated with a pattern formed of diamond shaped markings shaded with crossed lines, enclosed in a similarly shaded shovel-shaped frame, with double zigzag lines on either side. It somewhat resembled one figured by Sir John Evans from the Isle of Lewis, but was much smaller. The most interesting object in the hoard was a chisel-like implement 64 inches long, which seems to belong to an undescribed type. Sir John Evans, to whom a sketch was sent, wrote: I do not remember anything like the tool. It is of the same class as Figs. 196 and 197 in Ancient Bronze Implements, but the point is more like that of Fig. 220. I doubt whether it was used to extract cores" (the suggested use of those figured in Sir John's book)" as the celts belong I believe to an age when coring was unknown." With the implements was found a curious looking stone ball, of extremely hard nature, which Mr. Gowland, F.S.A., found on analysis to consist of iron ore (hematite); it seems to have been buried with the tools, probably as a curiosity, not showing any traces of use as a stone hammer. The bronzes are now in the possession of the Rev. S. N. Tebbs, of Westbury-upon-Trym.

CAERWENT.

The excavation of the remains of the Roman town of Isca Silurum, commenced in 1899 under the direction of

Similar to Fig. 14 on p. 53 of Sir John Evans's Ancient Bronze Im

plements, etc. of Great Britain and Ireland.

a Committee of which Lord Tredegar is President, was continued during the summer and autumn of last year, and has resulted in the discovery of the remains of no less than six blocks or houses, of which only two have so far been completely explored. Of these "Block I" consisted of two rooms only, and an annexe supposed to be a latrine; in one of the rooms were remains of two furnaces of unusual construction, evidently for some trade or manufacture. "Block II," a large and important building, has not yet been completely excavated, but will be finished when work is resumed in the spring; several tesselated pavements and other interesting features have been found, which will have to be dealt with. The most interesting building is that named " Block III," a house of most unusual type, if not unique in England. It consists of no less than sixteen rooms, mostly of small size, grouped round a courtyard or peristyle, which was open to the air in the centre. The ambulatory was paved with red tesserae, and covered by a lean-to roof of stone slates supported on ten columns, of which fragments both of shafts and capitals were found. On the east side was a corridor running the whole depth of the building, and separating it from the street. The remains of a very large latrine on the south of the house were well preserved, and resemble one found in Hadrian's Villa near Rome.

The city walls are in very excellent condition, nearly a mile in circuit, and from 20 to 30 feet high. The small portions that have at present been explored, have revealed some very interesting features, but as it is intended to continue the examination of both the south and west walls shortly, no account of them will be given at present. The same may be said of the city gates, of which one, on the north, has been partially excavated. Numerous coins and small antiquities have been found, and are deposited in the local Museum. Among these may be mentioned a slab of stone with a portion of a well-cut inscription, a dagger of unusual type with a bone hilt, a sickle, bill-hook, knives, choppers, and various other objects of iron; bronze fibulae, buckles, pins, rings, etc.; three engraved gems from rings, a bone charm against the Evil Eye (in the shape

of a hand), and a very considerable quantity of painted wall-plaster, some of which still remained in situ to a height of 3 or 4 feet from the base of the wall. The Committee hope shortly to publish their first Report, containing an account of Blocks I and III, to be followed by an account of Block II, and of the south-western portion of the city wall. The Treasurer, Mr. Alfred Hudd, F.S.A., Clifton, Bristol, will be glad to receive contributions to the Exploration Fund, which are greatly

needed.

RECENT EXCAVATIONS IN HERTFORDSHIRE.-RADLETT.

In December, 1898, a Romano-British potter's kiln was opened at Radlett, on the property of Sir Walter Phillimore, by Mr. W. Page, F.S.A. A small kiln was discovered in a sand pit, but was unfortunately destroyed, the workmen mistaking it for an old land drain. Sufficient, however, was left to show that it was similar to the kiln illustrated on Plate XXXVII, Fig. 3, or Mr. Charles Roach Smith's Collectanea Antiqua, Vol. VI. The second and larger kiln was found about 10 feet from the smaller. It was somewhat in the shape of a horseshoe, 6 feet at its greatest length inside and 5 feet 1 inch at its greatest width. It had a batter on the inside varying from 6 to 10 inches. The uppermost part existing was 3 feet 6 inches from the present ground level and about 1 foot 6 inches from the ground level of the Romano-British period. The kiln had evidently been constructed by cutting a hole in the sand, about 4 feet in depth, of the shape which it was to take, and against the sand there was built the wall of the kiln, consisting of small pieces of Roman bricks, varying in size, and set in clay, which was afterwards baked, making one solid piece of wall about 6 inches in thickness. The most interesting point with regard to these kilns is the fact that it was found possible to identify the name of the potter who worked there. This could be done from the large quantity of the impressions of his stamps, of which there were three varieties, all bearing the name CASTUS, upon the rims of mortaria.

Most of the pottery found is now by the kindness of

Sir Walter Phillimore preserved in the Hertfordshire County Museum, at St. Albans. For a full account of this discovery see Proc. Soc. Antiq., XVII, No. II, 261.

VERULAMIUM.

In the autumn of 1898, Mr. W. Page commenced some excavations in the glebe of St. Michael's vicarage, by kind permission and with the assistance of the Rev. C. V. Bicknell, the vicar, on the site of a large Romano-British building in Verulamium. A long wall 373 feet in length was opened, at each end of which were two walls 26 feet apart, evidently formerly an ambulatory, the inner walls of which showed the foundation for columns giving an inter-columniation of 13 feet 6 inches centre to centre. Connecting the ends of these ambulatories was the long wall above referred to, which was extremely massive, and was broken by two openings filled by a colonnade of five columns of peculiar construction. One of the bases of these columns remained; it was circular, 2 feet 10 inches in diameter, and was composed of Roman bricks triangular in shape, with one side curved to form the outside. A portion of a fluted column of the same diameter was also found. From the excavations, which were continued in the autumn of 1899, it appeared that this wall was the inner wall of a long ambulatory, 26 feet in width, backing upon which at the east end were a series of passages with coarse red tesselated floor 83 feet in length, and a large chamber 63 feet 9 inches in length, and 34 feet 6 inches in width internally, at the south end of which was an apse 17 feet across externally, and 26 feet in width, forming a platform 4 feet 8 inches above the floor of the chamber. The side walls of the chamber are of excellent construction, being as much as 9 feet 6 inches in thickness, and terminate with pilasters, the foundations of which are 5 feet by 4 feet, and are opposite to the similar foundations in the wall uncovered in the previous winter. These walls and that at the south end, all of which remain to a height of 2 feet and more above the floor level, were covered with plaster with the usual roll at the junction of the wall and floor. So far as the plaster remained in position