Archaeological Journal/Volume 29/Report of Annual Meeting held at Southampton
ANNUAL MEETING AT SOUTHAMPTON, 1872.
August 1 to August 8.
The Inaugural Meeting was held in the large hall of the Hartley Institution, at noon on Thursday, August 1. Lord Talbot de Malahide, accompanied by the Marquis of Bristol, the Lord Henry Scott, M.P., Sir E. Smirke, Sir J. Ramsden, Rev. W. Tilson Marsh, Mr. J. H. Parker, C.B., Canon Meade, Col. Pinney, and the officers and members of the Institute, were received by the mayor and chief members of the Corporation of Southampton, wearing their civic robes, and accompanied by their insignia of office. The Mayor of Southampton (H. J. Buchan, Esq.), being in the chair, rose and welcomed the Institute to Southampton. In so doing he expressed his deep regret at the unavoidable absence of the President of the meeting, the Bishop of Winchester, who had that morning been summoned elsewhere by legal process, and who, in common with other people, had no alternative but to obey. He was able to state, however, that his lordship fully intended to be with them as soon us he could, and that they would not be deprived of the pleasure of hearing an address from him. He was sure that nothing would give the Corporation of Southampton greater pleasure than to feel that the Institute would leave that town with agreeable feelings of satisfaction. It had been usual, in other places, to have a formal address presented to the Institute by the Mayor and Corporation, and one had been voted by the Corporation, but was nut ready for presentation; in lieu of which he hoped his words of welcome would be accepted as a temporary substitute.
His Worship vacated the chair, which was then occupied by Lord Talbot de Malahide, on behalf of the Bishop of Winchester, as President of the meeting, and in very cordial terms he acknowledged the wel- come of the Mayor and Corporation, remarking that he was very glad to hear that, notwithstanding the "improvements" in Southampton, they had still many interesting antiquities remaining in the town. After adverting to the early history of that part of England, his lordship spoke of the peculiar good fortune of the meeting in securing the presidency of the Bishop of Winchester, who had so often charmed them by his eloquent and instructive orations. Regretting much the circumstances which had interfered with the bishop's attendance at the opening meeting, he proposed that the Bishop be requested to take the chair when it was convenient to do so.
The Rev. Basil Wilberforce expressed his great regret at the unavoidable absence of the Bishop, who had been subpœnaed to Guildford in an action for libel. He had promised, however, to attend the Mayor's soirée that evening, and hoped to be with them on the morrow.
The Archdeacon of Winchester had been requested to say a few words of salutation to the archæologists on the part of the clergy, and he thought he had some right to do so, as the name of this Institute had been formed, after some discussion, at the house of his father-in-law. He well remembered the great meeting at Winchester some years since, and he thought they might now have a great meeting at Southampton. He continued: "When archæology was rightly understood, their acquaintance with the times that had gone by was really an instrument of life to them. They did not pore over the dust of antiquity to put their eyes out, but they inquired into antiquity with the view of ascertaining the power and the light which existed in days which had gone by. Therefore they took what was presented to them, not simply as records of time, but as records of human progress and thought, remembering that we were made by those who had gone before, and that it would be most ungrateful for us not to recognize the merits of our forefathers." After referring to the address delivered in 1845 at the Winchester meeting, by the Bishop, who was then Dean of Westminster, the Archdeacon proceeded to speak of the discoveries which had been made in the Cathedral there since that meeting, and chiefly in regard to the tomb of William Rufus.
Sir Edward Smirke acknowledged the welcome which had been so well expressed towards the Institute on the part of the clergy by Canon Jacob.
Lord Henry Scott, M.P., bade welcome to the Institute on behalf of the landed gentry of the county. He knew that the Institute would be heartily welcomed wherever they went, and he was sure the landed gentry would vie with one another in showing an interest in what the Society came to look at. He continued his remarks by a rapid sketch of the chief points of interest in the county, and its early historical associations.
Dr. Bond, Principal of the Hartley Institution, on behalf of societies of a kindred nature, had the greatest pleasure in welcoming the Institute among them. He assured them that they would look upon the Institute as missionaries, come to revive the drooping condition of archæological study among them, a revival of which they stood very much in need. They welcomed the Institute with great cordiality, and trusted that their visit would be the occasion of the establishment of a society specially devoted to archæological researches.
The Marquis of Bristol thanked Dr. Bond for his gratifying remarks on behalf of the local societies, which he was sure would be cordially received by the Institute, and sympathised in the wish that an Archæological society should be formed in Southampton. He regretted much that his stay with the meeting would be short, as he was very sure that they had a very instructive and interesting bill of fare before them. He might mention a subject he thought would interest them—that he had seen the draft of a bill drawn by Sir John Lubbock, having for its object the preservation of our national monuments, which would, he thought, be of great value to all archæologists, and which would be introduced in the next session of Parliament.
Mr. Stuart Macnaughten hoped he should have the pleasure of showing the remains of the Roman station at Clausentum (now Bitterne) to the Institute. He should be glad to see all who could come at the conclusion of the perambulation of the town that day, or at any period during the meeting.
Mr. Burtt then announced the further proceedings of the day, and the meeting terminated.
At three o'clock a large party assembled at the Bargate of the town, and under the guidance of Mr. J. H. Parker, C.B., made a perambulation of the remains of the walls and ancient defences of the town.[1] These enclose a roughly rectangular space averaging about 370 yards East and West, by 770 yards North and South. This area is divided longitudinally by the main street, but the Western part is the larger moiety containing the castle. There was an East and a West gate, but not at all opposite to each other, nor were the roads cruciform. There is no reason for attributing to this rectangular plan a Roman origin; it was probably dictated by the figure of the ground.
The earthworks of the castle were considerable. The naturally high ground was scarped and pared and somewhat raised, and near the centre of the area the highest point was surrounded by a circular ditch, the contents of which being thrown inward converted the raised platform into an artificial mound. This was doubtless the Saxon fortress. The later rectangular area was also well defended. It had the sea for its ditch nearly at the foot of the wall along the West and South fronts. Along the East a broad and deep ditch, wholly artificial, and in part at least admitting the sea, ran along the front of the wall, and divided the 
Plan of the ancient Defences of Southampton.
The mural towel's were chiefly drum, or half round. The North front is flanked by two drum towers, and West of the Bar is one, and East of it two, half round. Upon the East wall. North of the East gate, was one; and South of it, six, of which one remains, half round, and one rectangular. At the South-East angle, the South wall was prolonged eastwards as a spur tower, covering the ditch; this remains. Upon the South wall there were six towers, including the South flank of the spur gatehouse, and, on the opposite flank, the Bugle tower. All but one are half round. The West wall had many buttresses and few towers. There was one where the South wall of the castle joined the town wall; and near the North end is a fine half-round tower—an addition.
Passing to the details, the North gate, called the "Bar," is a large handsome structure aboat 60 ft. broad by 60 ft. deep in the centre. It is of two stages, pierced below by a central and two lateral passages, and contains above a chamber, 52 ft. long by 21 ft. broad, used for public purposes. In each wing is a staircase. That to the East is old; that on the West may have been so. The side passages are modern. They communicate with the central roadway by two cross arches on each side, of which the two next the North are original, and probably led into the flanking towers. An examination of the central passage shows the original gate to have been Late Norman; at least a round-headed portal there placed is probably in that style, though it has rather a Decorated aspect. Then in the Early Decorated time two bold half-round flanking towers were added, and still remain. At this time the rear was probably re-faced, and four windows and a centre niche inserted, and the council-chamber enlarged, and probably the East staircase added. The Norman gatehouse had an upper room, of which a round-headed door, with a foliated head, remains. Next, in the Perpendicular period, a bold projection, three sides of an octagon, was added to the front. The gateway thus advanced is flanked by two bold narrow buttresses, which run up to a very bold corbel table, having six machicolations in the central face, and three in each of the oblique lateral ones. The battlements are good Perpendicular, and carried round the rear towards the town; one embrasure is occupied by an alarm-bell. This gate has been much injured by restorations. The openings to the rear, archways and windows, have been re-faced; but they preserve much of their old type, and have a Decorated aspect. The main passage has been cut away and widened, and the portcullis grooves are gone. When the ditch in front was filled up, a century ago, all trace of the drawbridge was lost.
West of the Bar much of the wall remains, but is so blocked in by houses as to be visible with difficulty. Forty-six yards from the gate is the site of a half-round tower, beyond which the wall extends in a straight line to Arundel tower, so called from Sir John Arundel, an early governor. This is a drum, 22 ft. in diameter, which caps the North- East angle of the town. This tower is 50 ft. to 60 ft. high, and seems to rise out of a rectangular mass of masonry, possibly added to strengthen it. Here the internal level is 30 ft. or more above the external, being a part, no doubt, of the old earthworks.
Continuing along the West wall is a bold half-round tower, 20 ft. diameter and 30 ft. high, of excellent rough ashlar, with bold machicolations at the level of the adjacent curtain. This is Catchcold Tower. Built against the bank it looks solid, or like a bastion, but it is said to be hollow, though how entered does not appear. This tower, with the adjacent wall for some feet, is apparently a Perpendicular addition to what seems to be a Decorated wall. Beyond the tower is a flight of modern steps, ascending 30 ft. to the summit of the wall, which is there common to both town and castle. The wall then runs forward obliquely, probably to allow of the inclusion of the earthworks of the castle. It seems in substance Norman. The salient is capped by a rectangular buttress, the hollow angles of which on each side are crossed by low pointed arches, pierced as garderobes, as at Porchester. This buttress tower is of Decorated date.
Then follows about 134 yards of straight wall, probably Norman, about 38 ft. high, and backed to the summit with earth. Upon it a small rectangular buttress marks the junction of the North wall of the castle with the town-wall. Further on are five rectangular buttresses of various dimensions. The three first are evidently additions upon the Norman wall; the rest seem original. Part of the wall here is divided into two stages by a bold horizontal bead. Below are two narrow windows of about 18 in. opening, resembling largo loopholes, and which seem to have had square heads. Above are traces of two windows, apparently round-headed. There must have been an interior chamber, now closed. The central buttress is broad and flat, and here are traces of the old water-gate of the castle, which must have been reached by steps, the ground behind being above 30 ft. high. Close North of this water-gate is a large vaulted chamber, built against the town wall, and now closed. This part of the wall ends in a rectangular projection, probably the root of a tower, marking the junction of the castle South wall with the Town wall. From hence the wall is low and thin for a short distance, marking the end of the castle ditch, and on the rising ground of its counterscarp is the root of another square tower, marking the recommencement of the regular town wall, which then turns inwards so as to protect Biddle's Gate. This gate opened into a steep and rather narrow ascent called Simnell Street.
At Biddle's Gate commences a very curious part of the wall, which, as far South as a little beyond Blue Anchor postern, is unlike anything in England. The original wall, here about 30 ft. high and 4 ft. thick, with the soil nearly level within and without, seems to have served not only for the town wall, but for the wall of several dwelling-houses within it, the doors and windows of which are visible in the wall, though now closed up. These openings show the wall to have been Norman, and of a moderately early period. This wall was not found sufficiently strong for the purpose of defence, and a second wall, also 4 ft. thick, was built against it on the outside. But this second wall was built like an aqueduct or arcade on tall and slender piers, from which spring arches mostly semicircular, but some pointed and two probably much later, above which was the parapet. The arches are about 12 ft. span. The result was to increase the rampart to a walk of 5 ft., with a parapet of 2 ft., and probably a rear wall of 1 ft. An arcade so placed afforded great shelter for those attacking the wall from without; but to obviate this, while the piers touched the wall, a space like that for a portcullis, a chase about 2 ft. broad, was left between the arch and the wall, by means of which any one standing at the base of the wall could effectually be molested with missiles or a long pike. Eighteen arches of this arcade remain. The arrangement is a very curious one, and supposed to be singular. This masque or outer wall may be of late Norman date, but is possibly Early English. The piers interfere much with the earlier doors and windows. The wall where double is 35 ft. high. There are traces of some kind of building outside a part of the wall.
A hole broken through the wall into Blue Anchor yard, shows the rear of the wall, and a little further South is Blue Anchor postern, an original archway in the wall, much cut about and enlarged, but of which the portcullis chase worked from the battlements still remains.
From the postern a very steep winding narrow lane leads up into the town, between lines of ancient houses, of which two, one on each side, next the gate, are Norman. Both are curious, but that on the South side especially so. It is the shell of a Norman house, of the age of the older part of the wall. It is called locally King John's Palace, but is in truth an ordinary Norman private house, and a very curious one. The principal room was on the first floor. The roof is gone, but the door and windows remain. These are coupled, small, round-headed, and divided by a short column, with a slightly sculptured capital. The space within the walls is 43 ft. by 45 ft. There is a good Norman fireplace, with hood and flanking columns. In the South and part of the East wall is a mural gallery. The house on the Northern side of the lane is 44 ft. by 15 ft. There is a good view of the town wall, and a plan of the two houses, in Parker's "Domestic Architecture of the Middle Ages" (vol. i. p. 34).
South of the postern the wall ceases to be double, and is all of one date, and about 6 ft. thick. In this part is a flattish rectangular mural buttress tower, much blocked in with houses, but having its South hollow angle crossed by a garderobe. Near this is a high pointed doorway, evidently an insertion, of 24 ft. opening, leading into Collis-court, and about 60 ft. further is the West gate-house.
This is a perfect and plain rectangular gate-house, 30 ft. deep by 24 ft. broad, without buttresses, flush with the wall outside, and of bold projection within. It is pierced by a high pointed vault, of 12 ft. opening. The passage has been a good deal mutilated with a view to widening it. Near the centre was a good recessed doorway, the profile of the head of which is still traceable where it has been roughly cut from the wall. Between this and the inner face are two square portcidlis grooves, and just within the inner entrance is a chase, 18 in. broad, over the head of the arch. In the vault, in front of the central door-case, are nine holes, about 4 in. square, three in the crown line, and three along each haunch. These latter converge towards the central line.
The gate-house has a portcullis chamber on the first floor, and a second floor above this. An open stair against the south side leads to the battlement, from which a door, an insertion, opens into the portcullis chamber. These upper rooms are plastered and papered, and nothing can be seen in them.
South of this gate the wall gradually sinks, and finally has been pulled own and removed. It may be traced as far as the site of a half-round tower, and some remains of an arch. Beyond this, also, the line of the wall may be traced as far as the site of Bugle tower, 180 yards from the West gate, and which caps the South-West angle of the town.
The South wall is almost wholly destroyed, and the foundation either removed or covered up by the broad and handsome quay which now intervenes between the base of the wall and the sea. This front was more or less convex, or rather polygonal, the angles being capped with drum towers. There are some traces of the South gate-house. In the rear of this part of the wall are the site of St. Mary Magdalene's Hospital, and in Porter-lane what was called Canute's Palace. A representation of the South gate before 1784 is preserved by Grose. It had a low, broad Edwardian arch, with bold machicolations above, and toward the East it was protected by a long flanking wall, parallel to its approach. It was removed 1830-40.
Forty yards from the South gate was another half-round tower, and thence the wall ran straight East for 83 yards, when it reached the South-East angle of the town. In the rear of this part of the wall, in Winkle-street, is "God's House," a Norman church, now restored very badly, and converted into a French Protestant place of worship.
At the South-East angle of the town, in the end of the East wall, is a gate, called God's House Gate, or South Gate, but which should be called Spur Gate, as it opens upon a work of that class. This gate-house is rectangular, quite plain, and without buttresses, having two upper floors. Its dimensions are 28 ft. broad by 23 ft. deep, and the South end projects as a low salient of two faces, upon the South wall, now removed. The passage is vaulted with a high pointed arch 12 ft. broad. Like the West gate, it had a central recessed doorway, now much cut away, and two portcullis grooves. The vault in front of the door is supported by two, and in rear of it by three, cross-ribs. Altogether in substance this gate-house resembles that of the West gate, and is of Early Decorated date. Its front may have been rebuilt when the Spur tower was added.
The spur-work projects from the Northern flank of the gate of the gate-house for about 80 ft. It is composed of a sort of lofty gallery, or curtain, terminating in a rectangular tower, about 22 ft. square, with buttresses capping the two East or outer angles diagonally. It is of three storeys, and is built across the Eastern ditch, no doubt to contain and protect its sluice communicating with the sea, which originally flowed up to the wall of the tower. There are seen largo arches in the North and East faces, which look as though there had been a passage for boats; but these seem really to have been arches of construction only, intended to throw the weight of the building upon the corners, which probably are more deeply founded than the curtain. In the North face is also a large modern arch, a relict of the canal which was to have been carried beneath the tower. The spur-work and the gate-house were long used as a Bridewell. All still bear marks of that degrading occupation. The whole spur-work is good Perpendicular. Leland calls this the South gate, and the spur-tower the Castellet. Grose gives a view of it about 1770. From the Spur gate the town wall is tolerably perfect as far as the first half-round tower, 60 yards. From hence the wall may be traced 35 yards to a flat buttress, 14 ft. broad and 3 ft. deep, of which there are some remains. Beyond this, at 37 yards, is the site of a rectangular tower, 30 ft. broad and 24 ft. deep. These two are said to be additions of the time of Edward VI. They look much older.
From hence to the North-East angle of the tower the wall has been pulled down, but its line may be traced, partly by occasional foundations, partly by its materials which have been used in the houses built on its site, and partly by the direction of the lane called "Back o' the Walls," which runs along its rear, and by the parallel road which runs along the counterscarp of the ditch, and is called "Canal-walk," from an abortive canal which was carried along the line of the ditch at the commencement of the present century.
The East gate spanned East Street, and was taken down in 1772. Grose gives a drawing of it, and attributes its erection to the year 1339, 13 Ed. III. Between this gate and the North-East angle was one mural half-round tower.
Of Polnymond Tower, which caps the North-East angle, there are considerable remains. It is a three-quarter drum tower, about 28 ft. diameter. From it to the bar, 160 yards, the wall, or part of it, remains, but so clustered with buildings as to be inaccessible to ordinary visitors. Here are remains of two half-round towers and a breach in the wall, called York Gate, probably representing a postern.
The East ditch is marked by a depression, in part due to the canal. The North ditch is completely obliterated and built over, and its breadth is not recorded, and has not been ascertained by prolong. If Hanover Buildings mark its counterscarp, it was 46 yards broad; but if, as is much more probable, its limit is marked by Cold Harbour, it was only 24 yards, which tallies with that along the East front.
The Castle was very probably the oldest, and perhaps the only, præ- Norman fortification connected with the town. It occupied nearly the whole of the North-Western quarter of the walled area, and included also the highest ground. In plan it was a rough semicircle, the chord of 124 yards being the town wall, and the arc measuring about 300 yards. There is, however, also a considerable knoll, on the South-East of the area, of about 45 yards diameter, about half of which lay outside the curved enceinte.
This was the keep. Leland calls it the dungeon (donjon), and the "glory of the castle." "It is," says he, "both large, fair, and very strong, both by works and by the site of it;" and other writers describe it as a lofty mound. As usual, in forming such works, advantage was taken of high ground to make it the base of an artificial mound encircled by a deep and broad ditch. The keep, no doubt a shell of masonry like Arundel, towered above the rest of the works. Of the curved wall of the enceinte a part remains to the North. It was built on piers about 8 ft. square and 9 ft. apart, a round-headed arch with a tendency to a point connecting these. The tops of these arches were about 12 ft. above the base of the piers, and upon them rested a wall, which carried the battlement. The arches were buried in a bank of earth about 15 ft. high. This bank has been removed to allow houses to be built up to the wall, which now, therefore, stands like a Roman aqueduct. The foundation is excellent, so that this plan was adopted solely to save material and to profit by the older bank. The roughness of the masonry shows the height of the bank, above which the remaining wall rises about 4 ft. It is much to be regretted that this curious piece of Norman wall has been so badly treated. About 90 yards of it remain, including eighteen arches. It stops at the Castle Lane, where was the main gate of the Castle, removed at the end of the last century.
The wall, beyond the gate, was continued up the mound to the keep and beyond it, till it reached the Southern gate, whence it was continued till it again struck the town wall. Thus the keep was upon and formed part of the enceinte, as was usual. From the South gate, also removed in the last century, a winding road, commenced from the wall, led down to Simnell-street, a few yards within the postern.
Besides these two gates, the castle had a small water gate in the wall towards the shore, reached probably by a flight of steps or a subterranean passage, as the outlet was so far below the platform of the castle. To the North of this gate is a large subterranean vault, now closed; and, judging from the openings in the wall, there was a corresponding vault to the South. Probably these were connected with the gate.
The whole area of the castle is high, and much of it has been still higher, the mound having been lowered, the ditch partially filled up, and the bank along which the wall was built having been removed.
To judge from the material evidence afforded by an inspection of the works, it would appear that the castle represents the Saxon or Danish earthwork, probably the earliest strong place, and was composed of a truncated mound, its circular ditch, and a bank of earth encircling an area of which the mound or a moiety of it made part.
The Normans, probably in the reign of Henry I., enclosed the castle and town in a rectangular wall, and dug the East and North ditches. Also the castle was enclosed with a wall built in part on arches, and a shell keep placed on the flat summit of the mound. The wall of the castle, and much of the West wall of the town, and the two houses in Blue Anchor-lane, may be attributed to this period.
Then it became necessary to strengthen the town wall, and this was probably done in the reign of King John, who, it appears, remitted to the citizens £200 out of their fee-farm rents for the enclosure of their town and the thickening of the wall, and perhaps the West and Spur gates were begun at that time.
Much must have been done to the fortifications during the reign of Henry III. or Edward I. To this date are probably due the older drum towers and much of the wall connected with them, and the recessing of the Bar-gate and the addition of its flanking towers.
It appears that the town was attacked by pirates and sacked in October, 1338, 12 Edward III., and in consequence it was strengthened in the next year. The South and East gates may have been of this date, and the Spur tower and its gallery, unless this latter be, with the completion of the Bar-gate, the work of Richard II. This king seems to have done much to the castle.
The vault indicated on the plan as on the North side of the water-gate is at present wholly under ground, being built against and within the exterior wall, its floor being about the level of the footing of the wall. The vault measures 55 feet 3 inches North and South, by 19 feet 6 inches East and West, and is about 25 feet high. Sir H. Englefield says it has much the air of a chapel. Others call it a guard-room to the water-gate. A chapel would scarcely have stood North and South, and a guard-room, especially so large a one, however necessary for a main gate, would be quite out of place beside a mere postern. The vault was entered a short time since through a long closed-up opening in the West wall, but the writer has been unable to learn what was then observed.
To the South of the water-gate is, or was, a similar vault, indicated by the openings in the wall, one 3 feet and one 1 foot from the ground, both long since built up. Probably these two were the substructures of two buildings which formed a part of the exterior wall, and were used for stores or cellars.
It is difficult to speak too highly of the largo scale-plan of Southampton executed under Sir H. James, upon which the lines of the old wall, and position of other objects of antiquity, are shown in a manner which leaves nothing to be desired.
Under the aide guidance of Mr. J. H. Parker, C.B., the large party traversed the site of the greater portion of these ancient defences of the town, and various favourable spots were selected en route for dissertations upon the principal points. Arriving at Porter's Lane, near the South gate, Mr. Parker pointed out the remains of the Norman building which went by the name of Canute's Palace. It had been a very fine building, but, with other interesting structures had almost disappeared, owing to the increased prosperity of the town. Proceeding on to the Maison Dieu Hospital, another theme was afforded for some severe comments upon "restorations." This had been known by Mr. Parker as one of the very rare instances of a Norman house of the twelfth century, perfect in all its details, the oldest house in England of its kind, but it was now entirely destroyed. "Why was it not simply repaired?" would be asked. As time did not permit for making the entire circuit of the walls, of which but too small evidences remain at some points, a short road was taken to St. Michael's church. This was a small Norman structure, originally, to which additions had been made at subsequent periods. In it is a remarkable font of the twelfth century, and a brass lectern of the fifteenth century. Here the perambulation was brought to a close for the day; but a small party proceeded to inspect the remains of Roman Clausentum at Bitterne, on the invitation of Mr. Stuart Macnaughten by whom they were most hospitably entertained.
In the evening a soirée was given in the Hartley Institution by the Mayor and Mayoress, This was on a very brilliant scale, and the invitations, which embraced the officers of the American ships then in the Southampton water, and their ladies, were very generously issued, the number of those present being not less than six hundred. Part of the entertainment consisted of a concert in the Hall of the Institution. The museum of the Institute was thrown open to the visitors during the early part of the evening, and the pleasant hospitality of the chief magistrate of Southampton to his guests, and his exertions to entertain them, were without limit. In one of the intervals in the musical performances, the President of the Meeting appeared in front of the orchestra, and in an amusing speech proposed that three cheers be given to the Mayor of Southampton, whose birthday it happened to be. This was of course complied with.
The following is the address of the Corporation of Southampton to the Institute:—
To the President and Members of the Royal Archæological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland.
My Lords and Gentlemen,
We, the Mayor, Aldermen, and burgesses of the town and county of the town of Southampton, in Council assembled, cheerfully welcome your Society upon the occasion of your holding your Annual Meeting in Southampton.
We believe the many and varied historical associations in and in the neighbourhood of Southampton will afford you a pleasing opportunity of obtaining much valuable historical information connected with the early history of this town and county.
We trust your visit to Southampton will be in every respect agreeable to your Society, as it will be to the inhabitants of the town and neighbourhood.
We desire to express our earnest hope that you will have every reason to be gratified with the decision made by your Society in selecting this town for your Annual Meeting.
| (Seal.) | Given under our Common Seal at Southampton, this 1st day of August, 1872.
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Friday, August 2.
At 9 A.M. the general meeting of Members was held in the reading-room of the Hartley Institution, the Rev. J. Fuller Russell in the Chair. Mr. Burtt, Hon. Sec., read the balance-sheet for the year 1871 (see p. 295) and the Annual Report for the past year, as follows:—
Report of the Central Committee of the Royal Archæological Institute for the year 1871-72.
"Your Committee have many gratifying circumstances to refer to in relation to the general affairs of the Institute.
"The great success of the last Annual Meeting of the Institute, the first which has been held by the Society within the limits of the principality of Wales, calls for the first expression of satisfaction on the part of the Committee. On that occasion the numbers attending the meeting were much larger, and the attendance of distinguished persons more considerable than at any previous meeting for many years; the character of the memoirs and discourses submitted to the attention and study of the members was very able and interesting; the reception of the members and visitors by the inhabitants of Cardiff and of the surrounding country was of the most hospitable and cordial character, and the financial result of the Meeting to the pecuniary condition of the Institute was very advantageous. Several very interesting memoirs contributed to that Meeting have appeared in the "Journal" of the Institute, and have done much to sustain the high character of the published proceedings of the Society.
"An experiment, to which, after some hesitation, the Council felt justified in giving their assent—the revival for a particular purpose of one of those Special Exhibitions which were many years ago so successfully inaugurated and carried out by the energy and cordial co-operation of the Members of the Institute, and which contributed so largely to the feeling which has made somewhat similar 'Exhibitions' a prominent feature of modern times—has been lately brought to a satisfactory termination by the publication in the pages of the 'Journal' of a 'Catalogue of a Loan Collection of Books printed before 1600.' The contributions of her Most Gracious Majesty and of many distinguished persons to that Loan Collection, and the publication of the able discourse given by the Principal Librarian and Secretary of the British Museum upon the subject as mainly illustrated by the examples of early and rare typography then brought together, are circumstances of so gratifying a character as seem to call for the special acknowledgment of the Council of the Institute.' And while the character of the literary contributions to the Journal have during the past year been such as fully to sustain its previously high character, the Council desire that the members generally should be acquainted with the fact that the large amount of illustrations that have often accompanied those contributions have been furnished by the liberality and friendly help of the Hon. Mr. Owen Stanley, of Mr. Fortnum, and Mr. Albert Way.
"In connection also with the subject of the advantages and utility of the 'Journal' of the Institute, the Council desire to draw attention to the progress of a scheme for a 'General Index' to the first twenty volumes, which has been most kindly undertaken by the energy and industry of various members. Several of those members have completed their portions of the self-allotted task, and so large has been the number who have promised to subscribe to the special expenses necessarily incidental to such a work, that its satisfactory progress is now ensured, and its completion will not be unnecessarily delayed.
"Co-operation with public bodies of a kindred character has always been one of the leading principles of your Institute, and during the past year several circumstances have occurred showing the propriety of such a course of proceeding and its pleasant and agreeable results. The rescue from utter ruin of the noble Chapter House of Westminster Abbey, which was mainly owing to the action of the Society of Antiquaries and of members of this Institute, was the occasion of a recent and gratifying demonstration within its walls, under the presidency of one of the distinguished Vice-Presidents of the Institute, the Very Rev. the Dean of Westminster. On that occasion one of your Hon. Secretaries had the opportunity afforded him of giving an account of the comparatively unknown muniments of that distinguished foundation, which it is hoped will shortly appear in the pages of the 'Journal' of the Institute.[2]
"The special excursion of members of the Institute and their friends from the metropolis to visit Guildford, only a few weeks since, is another agreeable circumstance, presenting a forecast of others of a similar kind, in which it may be hoped that the noble structures of St. Alban's, Waltham, and other places may be the subjects of similar interesting discourses.
The subject of the prosecution of investigations upon the site of the Temple of Diana at Ephesus was brought before the members of the Institute at the last monthly Meeting held in London; and in obedience to the wishes of that Meeting, the Council of the Institute have forwarded to her Majesty's Government a memorial cordially supporting the prayer of the Society of Antiquaries and of the Dilettanti Society for the contribution of pecuniary aid for the continuation of those investigations at Ephesus, and which is now under the consideration of the Treasury.[3]
"Among the books relating to archæological pursuits which have been published during the past year, appear two works, the most important and suggestive probably that have been placed in the hands of antiquarian students since our researches assumed a precise and scientific character. These are the invaluable manual 'Flint Implements in the Drift,' by Mr. John Evans, F.S.A., and an old member of the Institute, that presents for the first time a complete illustrated classification of the relics of that description in all their remarkable variety; and the attractive dissertation on Megalithic Monuments, by another member of the Institute, Mr. Fergusson, entitled 'Rude Stone Monuments,' in which a new theory has been advanced by that accomplished author, who has sought to establish the date of all the striking monuments hitherto regarded as prehistoric, namely, cromlechs, circles of erect stones, alignments, and many others to which special attention has been in late years addressed, and to ascribe them to Post-Roman times, regarding all these vestiges of mysterious antiquity as having been suggested by Roman influence. Whatever may be our conclusions in regard to the grounds of the author's somewhat startling theories, which have not found acceptance with those archæologists most conversant with such subjects, we cannot fail to recognise and appreciate the admirable illustrations, and the stores of information from all countries, now first brought together for our instruction. If we hesitate to receive Mr. Fergusson's speculations on the mysteries of Stonehenge, of Abury, and Carnac, of Arthur's mighty stone in Gower, and many other vestiges of their class, we cannot fail to admire the novel daring of the author in these days of Prehistoric devotion, and to regret that Giants and Fairies, our respected friends, also the Druids, Celts, and early Britons, must forthwith yield to all-conquering Rome. The 'Rude Stones' of these islands, and also of India, Asia Minor, and Algeria, are henceforth to be viewed as satellites of the Imperial invaders from the Internal City, according to the theory advanced in the work to which we have drawn attention.
"It has been customary in each successive year to recall to the Society, with some suitable tribute of remembrance, the friendly co-operation and encouragement, in the course of our undertaking, that it has been our privilege to receive from those members whose loss we have had to lament during the year that has elapsed since our previous yearly gathering. The period that has passed since the dispersion of the members who shared at Cardiff the cordial welcome of our distinguished friends and fellow labourers in that pleasant field of antiquarian investigation, has been marked by more than ordinary occasions on which the institute has had to deplore the loss of those whose honoured names had for many years been foremost in our lists of the most zealous and valued of supporters. The expression of our grateful appreciation of their hearty sympathy, constantly evinced throughout the course of our exertions, has in several instances been recorded at our Meetings in the metropolis. The lively feeling of regret will not be less truly felt on the present occasion, when, in accordance with annual usage, we are permitted to take some passing retrospect of the progress of archæological affairs in general, with all that may more particularly affect the welfare of our Institute.
"Amongst the honoured friends whose recent loss we have to lament, are:—
The Earl of Dunraven, of whom a special notice has already been given in the pages of the 'Journal.'[4]
The Very Rev. Canon Rock.
Professor Westmacott.
The Count de Salis. (Contributor of a valuable memoir at the London Meeting).
Charles Buxton, Esq., M.P.
Sir Thomas E. Winnington, Bart., a zealous supporter of our Worcester Meeting, and a cordial and able helper on many later occasions.
Charles Faulkner, Esq., F.S.A.
Joseph Somes, Esq., F.R.G.S.
George Hudson, Esq., by whose liberality a very large portion of the heavy expenses of the Annual Meeting at York was contributed.
J. Stewart Forbes, Esq.
A. Bellasis, Esq.
Amongst several local archæologists not members of the Institute, but by whose friendly communications and assistance the Society has frequently benefited, may be mentioned.
Charles Spence, Esq., many years resident in the West of England, from whom in the earlier period of the operations of the Society many interesting facts and observations were received.
Samuel Tymms, Esq., the well-known Suffolk antiquary, a frequent and very obliging correspondent and co-operator at the Bury Meeting.
The Council have now to submit the following list of Members retiring in due course, or whose places are vacant, and their recommendation of names to fill the vacancies:—
|
"To Retire: Six Members of Council. Auditor.
|
To Succeed: Council. Auditor.
|
The Rev. E. L. Barnwell having made some comments on the criticism upon Mr. Fergusson's book, embodied in the Report;[5] its adoption was moved by the Rev. J. Lee Warner, seconded by Mr. Crabbe, and carried unanimously.
The Rev. J. Lee Warner made some remarks upon the satisfactory prospects of the General Index to the Journal, and then the subject of the place for the Annual Meeting in 1873 was brought forward.
Mr. Burtt stated that invitations had been some time since received from Glasgow, Leeds, and Exeter, and a deputation was then in attendance from the latter place, to support the recommendation that the meeting for 1873 should be held in that city. At the suggestion of the Bishop of Winchester (who then occupied the chair). Alderman Gidley, of Exeter, was introduced. He submitted to the meeting a resolution of the Town Council of Exeter, repeating the invitation for the Institute to meet in that city, speaking of its many claims upon the members, and assuring them of a hearty welcome. The Mayor of Exeter had fully intended to have joined in the deputation, but had been prevented by indisposition. After some discussion, the Rev. Canon Meade proposed that Exeter be the place for holding the annual meeting in 1873. This was seconded by Mr. J. H. Parker, C.B., and carried unanimously. Mr. Spiers suggested that the consideration of the claims of Dublin as a place for the meeting of the Institute should not be longer deferred. Mr. Burtt assured the members that Lord Talbot had always been consulted with reference to the place of meeting, and he had not as yet recommended Dublin. A vote of thanks having been passed to the chairman, the meeting was dissolved.
At ten o'clock a meeting of the Historical Section was held in the Hall of the Hartley Institution. The Bishop of Winchester, President of the meeting, occupied the chair. He said that he had great pleasure in introducing the Lord Henry Scott, who would read an Address as President of the Section. He was sorry to say that he should not be able to hear much of the Address, as he had to hold a continuation in a neighbouring town, but he was sure the meeting was in able hands. The Lord Henry Scott, M.P., then delivered an Address "On the History of the South-Western portion of England" (printed at p. 212 of this vol.). Lord Talbot expressed the thanks of the members to Lord Henry Scott, of whose labours he spoke most approvingly. He thought it his duty to support the two chief suggestions made in the essay they had heard—to get a good county history, and to have a good county Archæological Society. The vote of thanks having been passed and acknowledged, the Rev. J. Austen related a tradition as to the origin of the name Hampton. The Rev. F. W. Baker then read a memoir on "The Abbey of Beaulieu."
"The Cistercian Abbey of Beaulieu (Bellus Locus Regis) was founded by King John, A.D. 1204, and the circumstances which led to its foundation are recorded in the Chartulary of the Abbey, still preserved in the British Museum, among the Cottonian MSS., from which we learn 'that the monarch being beyond measure, but most unreasonably, enraged at the Abbots and monks of the Cistercian order, summoned the heads of the Order to a Parliament which he held at Lincoln, and then threatened to have them trodden to death beneath the horses of his attendants. But during the following night the king was visited with a fearful dream, which diverted him from his cruel purpose. It seemed to him that he was led before a certain judge, around whom the Cistercian Abbots were standing in order, and the judge having heard their complaint, ordered the Abbots to inflict a severe scourging upon the royal back. This they did; and when the king awoke the next morning he declared that he still suffered from the effects of the punishment.
"'This dream he related to a certain ecclesiastic of the court, who assured him that the Almighty had been above measure merciful to him, who had thought fit to afford this paternal correction to him,— and advised him immediately to send for the Abbots, to express his sorrow, and to make them restitution. This accordingly he did. He granted them a charter for a new Abbey, and he endowed it with a large tract of land in the New Forest (9000 acres), declaring that he had done so by the Divine suggestion. He also endowed it with the manors of Great and Little Farringdon, in Berkshire, Great and Little Coxwell, and several other lands and possessions. He also directed his treasurer to pay one hundred marks towards the building of the Abbey, and issued an order to all Cistercian houses to contribute their help towards the same object.'
"The church, as appears by the Waverley Annals, was completed in 1227, but the solemn dedication did not take place till 1264, when, on the nativity of St. John Baptist, the whole Abbey and church was consecrated with great pomp, in the presence of King Henry III., his queen (Eleanor of Provence), Edward Prince of Wales, Richard Flantagenet, Earl of Cornwall, King of the Romans, together with many prelates and nobles; the Bishops of Winchester, Worcester, and Lichfield; William Marshall, Earl of Pembroke, Gilbert de Clare, De Vere, Bohun, and Bigod.
"The King, it is said was so gratified with the splendour of the Dedication Feast, that he remitted a considerable fine, which the Abbot had incurred by a trespass in the New Forest.
"No sooner (proceeds the Chronicler) had the solemn dedication been complete than Richard Earl of Cornwall took thirteen monks from the bosom of this church to found a monastery of Hales Owen, near Winchcombe, in Worcestershire.
"This was not the first migration that took place from Beaulieu, for King Henry III. had previously transferred a convent of thirteen monks from thence and established them at Netley Abbey, which he then founded upon the banks of the Southampton Water.
"A third migration again took place from Beaulieu, A.D. 1246, when John de Ponti, prior of Beaulieu, started, with twelve followers, to found the abbey of Newenham, in Devonshire, as recorded in the Waverley Annals: 'Hoc anno fundata fuit Abbatia do Newenham Filia Tertia Belli Loci Regis.'
"The first person of distinction destined to receive interment in the Abbey was Isabella, wife of Richard, King of the Romans. She was daughter of William Marshall, Earl of Pembroke, and the widow of Gilbert de Clare. Hollinshed tells us that Earl Richard greatly 'lamented her loss, and honourably buried his wife at Belland of Beaulieu.' Her heart was sent to Tewksbury, where her brother was Abbot.
"Her grave was recently discovered in front of the high altar at Beaulieu, and the body was wrapped in lead, which, being unrolled, the skeleton, head, and teeth were in a fair state of preservation, but no rings or ornaments were found. A tombstone had some years previously been removed from that spot, and is now preserved in the chancel of the parish church, bearing this inscription:—'Hic jacet Isabella prima uxor . . . .' the remainder of the inscription is wanting.
"There is also in the same chancel a much larger tombstone, with a royal crown, always supposed to have covered the remains of Queen Eleanor, mother of King John, but there is no inscription to indicate that such was the case; and, on the contrary, the annals of the monks of Fontevraud testify that Queen Eleanor took the veil of their order in 1202, and died two years afterwards, and was buried by the side of Hen. II., at Fontevraud, where her tomb, with its enamelled effigy, was to be seen till the French Revolution, and the beautiful statue is still preserved there.
"Several of the Abbots of Beaulieu were men of note in their day, and three of them were promoted to Bishoprics. The second Abbot, Hugh de Beaulieu, was appointed third Bishop of Carlisle. The King sent him, with strong letters of commendation, to the pope, and commanded his treasurer to pay thirty marks for his expenses in attending the Council of Verona. He built the choir of Carlisle cathedral.
"In the reign of Richard II. Tidman de Winchcombe, Abbot of Beaulieu, was private physician to the king, and was promoted to the Bishopric of Llandaff, and afterwards to Worcester.
"In the first year of Hen. VIII., Thomas Skeffington, Abbot of Beaulieu, was raised to the see of Bangor, and was a great bene- factor to the cathedral of Bangor. He finished the Bishop's palace, and built the porch and oratory over, as recorded on an inscription over the great gate-way. He also built the cathedral and the tower as it now stands, on which are inscribed 'Hoc Campanile et Ecclesiam hanc Thomas Skiffington fieri fecit.' At his death his heart was sent to Bangor, and his body was interred at Beaulieu, close to where the gospel was wont to be read.
"(In more recent times Beaulieu has furnished a Bishop to the Colonial Church. The present bishop of Newcastle (Tyrrell) has been incumbent of Beaulieu, and has adopted the Abbey arms—a pastoral staff issuing from a royal crown—as the arms of his Australian see.)
"Many special privileges were granted to Beaulieu by successive popes—the chief ones being that the Abbey precinct was to be entirely free from episcopal control, and to have the right of sanctuary. Hither in the year 1471 came the unfortunate Margaret of Anjou, with some of her staunchest followers. She had sailed from Hartleur, with her son, Prince Edward, and his bride, Anne of Warwick. She landed at Weymouth, and went thence to Cerne, but hearing of the decisive result of the battle of Barnet, she fled for sanctuary to Beaulieu, where she was met by the Countess of Warwick, who had, on her arrival at Portsmouth, heard of the death of her husband at Barnet. There came also the chiefs of the Lancastrian party, and at Beaulieu they held their last Council, a few days only before the battle of Tewksbury. The Queen and her son left Beaulieu with Somerset to join her forces at Gloucester, and thence to Tewksbury, where 'the aspiring blood of Lancaster sunk in the ground.'
"In 1497, Perkin Warbeck, having landed at Whitsand Bay and besieged Exeter, and being defeated at Taunton, sought sanctuary at Beaulieu, where he was kept strict prisoner by Lord Daubeny and an armed force, till, lured out by promises of the King, he was committed to the Tower, and was executed at Tyburn.
"In the year 1539, Thomas Stevens, Abbot, with nineteen monks, surrendered the Abbey possessions into the hands of Henry VIII., he receiving a pension of 66l. 13s. 4d. The deed of surrender, with names attached, and the seal of the Abbey, is still preserved in the Public Record Office.
"In the same year, Henry VIII. granted to Thomas Wriothesley, Esq., afterwards Earl of Southampton, all that manor of Beaulieu, with all its rights and appurtenances, the great close of the Abbey, the tower, the bells, with its three chapelries attached. From him it descended to Henry the 2nd earl of Southampton, and the friend of Shakspeare; thence to the 3rd and 4th earls; the latter leaving only daughters, his property was divided between—
"1. Rachel Lady Russell, who inherited Stratton.
"2. Frances, who married the Earl of Gainsborough, and inherited Tichfield. And
"3. Elizabeth, who married Ralph Lord Montagu, and inherited Beaulieu. He was the builder of Montagu House, now the British Museum, and was afterwards created Duke of Montagu. He was succeeded by his son, John Duke of Montagu, who married the daughter of the great Duke of Marlborough, who, leaving only two daughters, Beaulieu became the joint property of Isabella, whose husband was created Earl Beaulieu, and whose son died in their lifetime, and of Mary, who married George Earl of Cardigan, afterwards created Duke of Montagu. His only daughter marrying Henry, 3rd Duke of Buccleuch, Beaulieu passed into the family of Scott, and is now the property of Lord Henry Scott, M.P. for South Hants.
"Of the remains of the Abbey, the most interesting to the archæologist is the old Gate House, popularly known as the Abbot's Lodging, which was converted many years ago into a modern dwelling-house, and is now being most carefully restored for Lord Henry Scott by A. Blomfield, Esq.
"The Abbey church was entirely destroyed, but its foundations were some years since most carefully excavated, and their position marked, by the direction of the Duke of Buccleuch, to whom, and to his son, Lord Henry Scott, the warmest thanks of all antiquarians are due, for the careful preservation of every relic of interest that has been at any time discovered upon any part of the monastic property.
"The old refectory of the Abbey has been appropriated as the parish church, and contains that well-known unique specimen, in perfect preservation, of the monastic reader's pulpit, approached by a beautiful arcade of arches, constructed in the thickness of the wall.
"About a mile from the precincts is the Abbot's Well, situated in a picturesque nook in the woods that crown the hills, and covered over by a groined chamber, which the Lord of the Manor has lately most tastefully restored to its original proportions. The spring is never-failing and supplies the whole of the village with the purest water.
"At St. Leonards Grange, about three miles distant, are the remains of an ivy-covered barn, the great 'Spicarium' of the Abbey, 226 ft. long, and there are also some exquisite fragments still standing of a Late Decorated chapel, which may possibly be again roofed over and appropriated to the purposes of worship.
"Many of the farms still retain the names given them by the French Cistercians who first reclaimed the lands and established the colony there, such as 'Beufré,' the Cow Farm, and 'Bergerie,' the Sheep Farm. Few spots can be found which so thoroughly exhibit the type of a Cistercian settlement, with its winding river, its numerous fish-ponds, its retired woods, its open heaths, and its sloping vineyards, and which will amply repay the visit of the lover of nature or antiquity."
Lord Henry Scott having expressed his high sense of the value of this communication, and of Mr. Baker's labours in working out the investigations on the site of Beaulieu, a vote of thanks was accorded to Mr. Baker, and the meeting adjourned.
In the afternoon au excursion was made by railway to Romsey and Porchester. Arriving shortly after one o'clock, the numerous party, accompanied by Lord Talbot de Malahide, Lord Henry Scott, M.P., Sir E. Smirke, Mr. T. H. Wyatt, and the principal members of the Institute, were met at the Town Hall by the Right Hon. W. F. and Mrs. Cowper- Temple, the Mayor of Romsey (Mr. George), the Vicar (the Rev. E. L. Berthon), Mr. Wyndham Portal, and other local gentry. Here they were soon joined by the President of the meeting, and the Vicar proceeded to read a memoir "On the Abbey Church of Romsey." Commencing by a reference to the fragmentary character of the records of the noble Abbey, he would only notice them when necessary to elucidate the structural discoveries made within the last few years. By closing the churchyard against burials, explorations had been possible which could not have been attempted earlier, and from these he had arrived at a correct understanding of the surroundings of the church and the changes that had been made. Glancing at the early history of the Nunnery, from its foundation by Edward the Elder, and continuing to the time of the Abbacy of the Princess Mary, the daughter of King Stephen, special attention was directed to the probability of the chief part of the present structure being her work. The architectural details of the church of the twelfth century were then discussed, with the aid of a large coloured sketch, and the subsequent changes made in the structure were passed in review, and an account given of the various discoveries lately made in connection with them, and of the restorations in progress. These were illustrated by many fragments of masonry, and numerous plans, sketches, and drawings. A cordial vote of thanks having been passed at the suggestion of the President of the meeting, the large party then proceeded to the Abbey, where the Vicar pointed out the most important features of the structure, and adverted to those which illustrated the chief points of his lecture.[6] After some very hospitable attentions to many of the visitors by the Mayor of Romsey and the Vicar—time not permitting them to turn to account the Hon. Mr. Cowper-Temple's kind invitation to visit Broadlands—the party proceeded towards Porchester, where they arrived at about five o'clock, during a heavy shower of rain. Proceeding at once to the church within the enceinte, Mr. J. H. Parker, C.B. discoursed upon its more important features, referring specially to the beautiful ornamentation and fine general execution of this twelfth-century church. Passing then to the ruins of the Castle, Mr. G. T. Clark, who had met the party at Porchester, took up the office of cicerone and led the way to the Roman gateway on the strand of the bay, and discussed the importance of a position which was then called "Portus Magnus," and which defended the settlement on the estuary of the Southampton Water. After making a perambulation of the chief portions of the ruins, Mr. Clark pointed out the evidences of the additions made at various times, and concluded by an epitome of the historical associations of the place in connection with the Sovereigns of England.[7] The kind exertions of Mr. Parker and Mr. Clark having been duly acknowledged by their audience, return was made to Southampton. At 9 p.m. a Conversazione was held in the Ordnance Survey Office, by invitation of the Director General, Major-General Sir Henry James, R.E. Here a remarkably varied collection of objects was displayed for the gratification of the visitors, whose numbers were, however, somewhat reduced by the fatigues of the day and the bad weather they had experienced. These objects comprised flint implements found in the immediate neighbourhood, drawing of ancient forts, a model of Stonehenge, plans of Clausentum, of Southampton and its ancient walls, of Netley Abbey, and of Silchester. The greatest interest was, however, shown respecting the models of the Pyramids, about which the director explained his theory of their construction and object; the original photographs of the late surveys made at Jerusalem, exhibited by the electric light, and obligingly explained by the Rev. G. Williams; and by the collection of National MSS. in the charge of Mr. W. Basevi Sanders, Assistant-Keeper of the Public Records, which were at Southampton for the purpose of being photo-zincographed,—together with illustrations of that process.
Saturday, August 3.
This was the day appointed for the excursion to Christchurch and Beaulieu. Leaving Southampton at 9 a.m., Christchurch was reached at 10 o'clock. Here the party was received by the Mayor and some of the Corporation, and having been joined by the Vicar (the Rev. Z. Nash), Mr. Parker conducted them round the exterior and then over the interior of the noble church of the Priory. The visitors being brought together in the choir, a short memoir upon the church by Mr. B. Ferrey, the architect, a native of the place, was read by the Hon. Secretary. This commenced with a short résumé of the history of the monastery, and in speaking of Flambard, the architect of Durham Cathedral, the portions of the church and domestic buildings at Christchurch, attributed to him, were discussed and compared with his works elsewhere. After Flam- bard's time the chief indications of the architectural history of the church were derived from the dedication of altars. The architectural features of the church are of no common order, there being specimens of every style of English art, from the earliest form of Norman down to the decadence of the Perpendicular period, even to the introduction of cinque-cento ornamentation. After referring to some of the more important of these features, the discoveries made within the last few years were adverted to, and the writer concluded with an earnest appeal for the preservation of the fine screen separating the choir from the nave. At the Conclusion of the paper, the Rev. E. Kell, in expressing his thanks to the writer, said there was a tradition that the church was built on the site of a Roman temple, and a leaden cist had been found containing the bones of birds which had been sacrificed. Mr. Parker cordially agreed with Mr. Ferrey that on no account ought the screen to be removed. He then passed in review the principal characteristics of the church, drawing special attention to the reredos of the altar, one of the finest examples in England, and which he hoped would on no account be "restored." Proceeding down the aisles, Mr. Parker paused at several points to draw attention to various parts of the structure, and then passed to the exterior, where he performed a similar office. An adjournment was then made to the ruins of the castle, the Norman house being first visited. Mr. Parker thought this was clearly a Norman building of the time of Henry II., with rich window openings. As to the bridge close by, he thought it was most probably Edwardian. A short walk led to the ruins of the keep of the castle, about which Mr. Parker thought it difficult to form a judgment from such slight remains, but it was apparently a Norman keep, built upon one of those mounds which the Saxons often threw up. The existing remains were most probably of the time of Henry II. These were carefully examined and some discussion here ensued, the local tradition that the castle was a Saxon work being brought forward—an idea which did not meet with general approval. Time had now arrived for refreshment, and at 1 o'clock the train started on the return journey for Beaulieu Road Station, where the Railway Company obligingly allowed the excursionists to disembark and take the carriages which were in attendance. Upon reaching the picturesque village of Beaulieu an accession was made to the numbers by the arrival of the President of the meeting and a considerable party. They were all most courteously received by Lord Henry Scott, the owner of Beaulieu, who first explained the relative positions of the clock-house, the mill, and other out-lying buildings, and then proceeded to discuss the "Palace House," as the ancient gate-house with its modern additions was called. Mr. Parker and the Rev. F. W. Baker added some observations in reference to various details of the structure. The interior of the building was then visited. Lord Henry Scott leading the way, and remarking upon the special points of interest. Passing upstairs into a lofty and noble apartment, the story was told of its development from a low-ceiled chamber of very different appearance. Mr. Parker thought it probable that this was a chapel over the gateway with a room behind it; he was much pleased at the conscientious restoration which had been carried out here. A perambulation was then made of the other Abbey buildings, under the guidance of the Rev. F. W. Baker. When the cloisters were reached, attention was drawn by Mr. Stevens, of Salisbury, to a small collection of pottery and other objects, which were the results of the examination of some barrows in the neighbourhood made in anticipation of the meeting. The refectory, now the parish church, was next visited, and here the well-known and beautiful pulpit, boldly corbelled out and reached by an elegant arcade in the thickness of the wall, attracted universal admiration. Mr. Baker told the story of the condition of the building when he first knew it, and of the subsequent improvements that had been made there. Lord Henry Scott and Mr. Parker also contributed some observations upon the monumental stones and various portions of the structure. The other parts of the site having been examined, the grounds in front of the 'Palace House" were again reached. Here was a large tent amply provided with excellent refreshments to which all were invited, and to which they did full justice. Thanks were given to the noble owner of Beaulieu by the President of the meeting in a pleasant and discursive speech, which was suitably acknowledged by Lord Henry Scott. The carriages being again en route, a delightful drive through the New Forest brought them to Lyndhurst, where the "Queen's House" was visited, and some few relics of forestal customs were shown. Delay having occurred at Beaulieu by a passing shower, it was decided to abandon the projected visit to Rufus' Stone. The drive was continued to Lyndhurst Road Station, where the train was waiting for the return journey to Southampton, which was reached at about 7.30 p.m.
Monday, August 5.
At 10 a.m., the Section of Antiquities met in the Hall of the Hartley Institution. The President, Sir Edward Smirke, read "Observations upon the Records of the Town of Southampton." In the year 1837, the Record Commissioners made extensive inquiries respecting Corporation muniments, and in reply to those inquiries the Corporation of Southampton gave very full information. They instructed a gentleman named Allchin to make a thorough examination of their documents, and he compiled a careful report upon them. But, owing to the changes in the officials, this report had been entirely lost sight of and forgotten, and the meeting of the Institute would be of service to the Town by reviving this account of its muniments, of which he simply proposed to give an abstract. He might also refer to the history compiled by Dr. Speed, who lived about 100 years ago, and who left behind him some excellent MSS. containing a history of the Town which he was sorry had never been published. Sir Edward then glanced at the various classes of documents,—the charters, books of remembrance, books of by-laws, brokers' books, weighing books, accounts of the port, which included Portsmouth, the Isle of Wight, and the whole coast westwards as far as Melcombe or Weymouth, county-court books, books of the Admiralty court, a court in which the Silver Oar, now doing duty as a mace, was then carried before the Mayor as a symbol of Admiralty jurisdiction. Having given many remarks upon the nature of some of these records, Sir Edward commented upon the condition in which he had found the collection, which was far from Satisfactory. He had had every facility possible shown to him in making his examination, but the documents were not kept in a proper place, or in a proper manner. He had met with every courtesy; he had seen everything he wished; but he begged leave to say to the Corporation that they ought to provide a fit place for their records, and to have them arranged so that everything referred to by Mr. Allchin could be found at once. On the proposition of the Rev. J. F. Russell, a vote of thanks was passed to Sir Edward for his able address.
The Rev. J. G. Joyce, B.A.. F.S.A., Rector of Stratfieldsaye, then gave an account of "The Excavations at Silchester." Referring to the previous visit of the Institute to Silchester twenty two years ago, at which time no systematic excavations had been attempted, Mr. Joyce spoke in the first instance of the history, position, and extent of this Roman city. He then described the walls and gates, and dwelt particularly upon the very recent discovery of the great East gate. Passing on to buildings within the town, he continued: "Archæology is deeply indebted to the munificence of the present Duke of Wellington, the owner of the estate, for the very important contributions which Silchester is now yielding to our knowledge of the Roman period in Britain." Excavations upon a systematic plan were commenced in 1864, and had been continued to the present time. "Blocks" of dwelling-houses have been laid open, some of which show plainly additions and improvements made to them at various times, and numerous coins and other objects of interest had been found in the course of the operations. The "Forum" also had been entirely opened out, and appeared to have been on a very important scale. The various arrangements of the structure for the administration of the business of this apparent centre of the Roman power in the Southwest of England were clearly discernible, and presented features of singular interest. The discourse was illustrated by copious and beautifully executed drawings and sketches, as well as by specimens of many of the objects referred to. At its close the President of the meeting proposed a cordial vote of thanks to Mr. Joyce for his memoir, which will appear as a substantive article in a future number of the Journal.
The President of the meeting then delivered an Address, which the untoward circumstances already noticed had prevented being given at the Inaugural Meeting. He said he was sure all present would sympathize with him in the position of having to deliver an Inaugural Address in the middle of a meeting. They all knew what a stale egg was, and he had to produce before them that day an egg which had evidently been sat upon. He hoped they would not set upon him for doing so, for then his only chance would be a long rope, whereas he had only the shortest possible "yarn" then allowed him. It was evident that what he should have to speak about was the general purpose and idea of these gatherings and meetings, and the good that they and he might be able to deduce from that particular one. Many people, when an antiquary was coming to them, expected something amusing and sometimes rather absurd, but there was a far deeper side of archæology upon which he should like them to rest. Perhaps it was stated almost as beautifully as language could do it by the great Lord Bacon in his book Advancement of Learning. He said: "Antiquities are history defaced, or some remnants of history which have casually escaped the shipwreck of time." A beautiful idea in itself, and then he went on to speak of what constituted the true antiquary; and then he set a deep view of the whole of their pursuits before them. Returning to his old idea of the shipwreck of time, he spoke of antiquarians as persons who, "by an exact and scrupulous diligence and observation, out of monuments, names, words, proverbs, traditions, private records and evidences, fragments of stone, and the like, do save and recover something from the wreck and deluge of time." He (the Bishop) did not agree with Bacon that it was history defaced. It was more especially the establishing of the remaining facts out of which history had to be formed because history itself, as they commonly understood it, was far nearer theory about facts than a mere relation of the facts themselves. Such a pursuit as they were engaged in was full of every advantage, especially to a people in a high state of civilisation, and that, he thought, every reasonable man would see in a moment. There could be no future to a people about whom there had been no past; the future developed itself just as it did in life in the world around. The future carried it out of the past. Dead vegetable matter made the humus; into that the roots of the living tree were struck, and because there had been vegetation in the past there was vegetation in the future. And so it was with regard to the higher life of a nation. Unless there was a past to which it could refer, there could not be in it any high sense of its own mission in the world. New peoples were predatory; they came, as the Goths of old, to plunder and overrun countries which had a past and extinguish them, and as they acquired for themselves a past they began to develop a future out of the past, and so that which had led them to love and venerate the past did, in fact, give them the best standing point for helping in the present to make provision for the coming of the future. He did not want to bring the old times back again: in common things such a reintroduction would be grotesque, in deeper matters dangerous; but they would understand the present around them far better if they could trace the present back into the past, see what it arose out of, what it had been the development of, and what it contained to serve for the future before them. There was nothing which so tended to keep the mind of men from rash experiments, from those things which destroyed nations altogether, by the sadden idea crossing the mind that some very great result might be obtained by the entire subversion of everything. There was nothing on the one side that more guarded a people against such a course than by having a veneration for the past, and nothing more truly directed those shapings of the present, which every reasonable man knew he had to give way to, than the being able in the new shaping to have before him the old out of which he was going to shape it, so that his shaping might only carry out more completely the purposes for which that which he was now altering began to exist. They might see all that he had ventured to suggest when they looked round the grand old Cathedral they were to visit that day. With it grew up the life of England, out of the remains which were left at the Saxon invasion, which extinguished the earlier Christianity. Out of the restoration of the Saxon element as it became historic, developing itself through a series of great Priests and Princes, the wonderful building had been erected. The Bishop concluded: "I see the clock is staring me in the face, and I can only ask you to forgive what has been so hastily said, because time, which to the antiquary is so valuable, and the railway train stop for no one.'
A hurried vote of thanks having been passed to his Lordship at the suggestion of the Mayor of Southampton, the meeting was adjourned, and the members present, with many others who had not ventured out in consequence of the bad weather, braved it to visit Winchester and St. Cross. Winchester having been reached shortly after one o'clock, the Hall of the ancient Castle was visited, the Mayor and Town Clerk of Winchester, and several other members of the Corporation being present to receive the Bishop and the members of the Institute. Mr. Wyatt, the architect of the buildings now in process for assize and other county purposes, was expected to be present; but having been called away to London, Mr. Parker said he would say a few words about the place, which was, however, very fully described in the Winchester volume of the Institute some twenty years ago, and therefore the members might be assumed to have some knowledge of it. They would see that its plan was that of a parallelogram. It was built in the first twenty or thirty years of the thirteenth century, in Henry III.'s time, but Edward I. made considerable alterations in it. It was a very fine Hall of that period, corresponding with that at Westminster. These royal halls were used for various public and quasi-public purposes, for banquets and the like, and this no doubt was used then, as now, as a court of justice. Happily the walls constructed in modern days for that purpose, enclosing a bay at each end, were about to be cleared away. Over the East end was the Round Table of King Arthur, well known as one of the curiosities of Winchester. He directed special attention to the mouldings of the arches and the clustered shafts of the pillars, saying that as a whole it was a very fine specimen of an Early English Hall, but so much dis- figured that they could hardy form an idea of what it had been. At both ends there were fine Early English triplet light windows, with detached shafts, and on the West wail traces of the original wall painting, with the remains of lancet windows in the South wall.[8]
Passing to the City Muniment Room over the West gate, the Town Clerk displayed to the visitors such treasures as had not been temporarily removed to the museum at Southampton. The Church and Hospital of St. Cross were the next objects of interest; and here the huge party was received by the Master, and kindly entertained at luncheon in the well-known Hundred Men's Hall. Thanks having been returned by the President of the meeting, progress was made to the church, where Mr. Parker discoursed upon its special features at some length.[9] Discussing the recently-executed decorations of the walls, he remarked that the colours were probably more brilliant than they were originally, and, to his mind, they did not sufficiently bring out the architectural forms. Mr. Parker pointed out that one of the present windows in the North transept was originally a door communicating with the Infirmary, so that the sick might be able to join in the services of the church. Moving on to the College, the party were met by the Rev. Mr. Lee, the Warden, and courteously conducted by him over the chapel, the library, and domestic buildings. The Cathedral was next visited; and here the party received a considerable addition to its numbers. Mr. Parker again obligingly acted as spokesman, and passed in review the general history and the main characteristics of the structure.[10] At the conclusion of the discourse, the fine altar screen was the subject of special remark, and other portions of the structure were also observed upon by the Rev. J. G. Joyce, Sir Stafford Carey, and others. The crypt was next inspected, and on returning to the choir the Rev. W. Collier took the opportunity of referring to the mortuary chests containing the remains of the early kings; and the Rev. J. G. Joyce at some length urged strong objections against the late removal of the tomb of William Rufus. This led to a somewhat animated discussion, in which the President of the meeting, Archdeacon Jacob, the Rev. W. Collier, and Mr. Parker took part. The perambulation of the Cathedral being afterwards completed, the party returned to Southampton. A Conversazione was afterwards held in the Museum, in which Mr. E. T. Stevens, of Salisbury, read some observations upon "Flint Implements."
"Although much has been written about the three Human Culture-Periods—the Stone Period, the Bronze Period, and the Iron Period—yet there still appears to be some misconception on the subject.
"For instance, the Stone Period is regarded by many as a mere measure of time,—as affording us the first glimpses of man's existence,—and as giving us an insight into his first efforts to learn the mechanical arts, to be followed in due and regular succession by the discovery of the use of metals, and the consequent advent of the Bronze and the Iron Periods. It cannot, however, be too often repeated, that the Stone Period, as a whole, does not afford a measure of time. The Stone Period is a thing of the present as well as of the past; it exists to-day in some countries—it is actually being watched as it expires in others—and it existed elsewhere thousands of years since.
"People living in their Stone Period are those, who, being wholly unacquainted with the arts of metallurgy, use, and use exclusively, natural substances,—such as wood, stone, shell, bone, horn, and the teeth and claws of animals, in the manufacture of weapons, and cutting instruments.
"The one great characteristic of the Stone Period is a total ignorance of the arts of metallurgy. Native copper and meteoric iron to men living in their Stone Period are but malleable varieties of stone, capable of being hammered into convenient forms without the labour of grinding.
"Following upon the Stone Period there appears to have been in some countries an actual Copper Period—a period when native copper was melted and cast into tools and implements. Then came the Bronze Period, when the discovery was made that by adding tin to copper a valuable alloy was produced, much harder than copper. Finally, there is the Iron Period, when the art of reducing iron from its ores was discovered, and this metal superseded the use of both stone and bronze in the manufacture of cutting instruments, and for many other purposes.
"Let it not be imagined, however, that the use of stone implements ceased during the Bronze and the Iron Periods; so far from such having been the case, some forms of stone implements, and certain methods of working stone are actually considered to be typical of these more advanced culture-periods.
"As regards the sequence of the Stone, the Bronze, and the Iron Periods, it would seem that the use of this or that substance was discontinued the moment any other substance better adapted for the special work to be done was discovered; thus the Australian discards his knife-blade of quartz, so soon as he finds that a blade of European glass has a keener edge, and this glass blade in its turn is superseded by some stray fragment of iron. On the other hand, the use of stone is still retained, even among ourselves, when that substance is well adapted for the purpose to be accomplished; thus our modern corn-mill does not greatly differ in material or principle from the ancient stone quern.
"Nevertheless, the entire question is by no means so simple as some writers would have us believe that archæologists imagine it to be. I doubt whether anyone but the writer of 'Non-Historic Times' thinks that we 'flatter ourselves with the idea that because we have succeeded in arranging some thousands of bits of stone or bronze in glass cases, that therefore we understand the history and the manners and customs of long vanished races of men.'[11]
"At the very outset of the inquiry we find that there is no absolute uniformity in the sequence, or duration of the Stone, the Bronze, and the Iron Periods. In some regions the Stone Period has lingered on much longer than in others, whilst in certain countries there appears to be no evidence of the existence of a Bronze Period. But, in every country there seems to have been a Stone Period, although it does not follow that the ancestors of the present occupants of the soil were the stone-using people.
"In some instances even, two stone-using races may have succeeded each other, as in New Zealand.[12]
"It must not be supposed that these Periods indicate with precision the state of culture arrived at by any given race or tribe. The degree of civilisation to be attained by a people would depend upon many other circumstances than their acquaintance with, or ignorance of, the use of metals. Foremost among these would be the possession of domesticated animals, the practice of agriculture, and such sub-division of labour as would lead to traffic and commerce. Any attempt, therefore, to form a general scale of civilisation founded upon the Stone, the Bronze, and the Iron Periods can scarcely be satisfactory.
"The system proposed by Mr. Tylor, which connects the Stone Period with savagery, the Bronze with barbarism or low civilisation, and the Iron with that of the middle level of civilisation and onwards, is perhaps the least open to objection. It will be generally conceded that men in their Stone Period live in a state of savagery, but, as Mr. Tylor himself has pointed out, the pre-historic people who lived in their Swiss pfahlbauten, although in their Stone Period, possessed domesticated animals, cultivated cereals, raised flax, and practised the arts of spinning and weaving.
"On the other hand, the iron-using Kaffir and Hottentot are in general culture actually below, instead of above, the standard attained by the bronze-using Mexican and Peruvian.[13]
"Mr. Hodder Westropp has proposed to connect the earlier, or chipped Stone Period (Palæolithic), with the hunting phase; the later, or rubbed Stone Period (Neolithic), with the herdsman phase; and the Bronze Period with the agricultural phase of life.[14]
"That the savage is usually a hunter will be admitted, but that this savage hunter dues not grind the stone implements he uses is contrary to the fact; at all events in modern times. What shall be said of the entire aboriginal race of North America?—they are not herdsmen, they never have been herdsmen, and yet very few classes of stone implements from that country are unrubbed, and, strangely enough, one of these, the so-called flint hoe, is connected with a still higher phase in the proposed scale—the agricultural. Indeed, in America, agriculture was practised by the stone-using races to a considerable extent. Almost all the tribes south of the Gulf of St. Lawrence, and west of the Rocky Mountains, grew maize. The tribes east of the Mississippi, principally towards the north, were all, however, in the hunter state when first encountered by Europeans. At all events, in North America, rubbed stone implements are not characteristic of the herdsman phase, which indeed never existed there at all; and I doubt whether it can be shown that rubbed stone implements were not equally in use in North America by both the hunting and the agricultural tribes. Nor can it be urged, so far as America is concerned, that great skill in the manufacture of stone implements is necessarily indicative of any advance in general culture, for some of the more highly-finished stone arrow-heads are made by very degraded tribes inhabiting the Rocky Mountains.
"I admit that the bronze-using Mexicans were agriculturists, but the proposed system of classification connecting the hunting phase with the use of chipped stone implements, the herdsman phase with the use of rubbed stone implements, and the agricultural phase with the use of bronze is wholly inapplicable to, at least, the entire continent of North America.
"It would be beyond my limits to pursue this branch of the subject further. Sufficient has been said to show that, in dealing with these periods, no general arguments as to culture can be deduced from the remains found in different countries and districts; each series of facts must be separately and cautiously investigated before an opinion can be safely pronounced upon it.
"The stone hatchets and implements in use by modern savages are, for the most part, fashioned by the processes of "flaking," "pecking," and "grinding." In this respect they resemble the more ancient specimens found upon the surface soil, and in the tumuli, of nearly all countries. Such implements are usually made of the toughest varieties of stone to be found in the neighbourhood; and in chalk districts flint was the material chiefly employed. The stone hatchets of modern savages also bear a general resemblance in form to the pre-historic rubbed stone hatchets, and, as I have before said, they are to be classed together as belonging to the Neolithic, or New Stone Period.
"I commenced by saying that the Stone Period as a whole does not afford a measure of time; but what is true of it as a whole is not true of one of its parts, the Palæolithic, or Old Stone Period, which has a distinct bearing upon time relative.
"The implements belonging to this Period are found in undisturbed beds of gravel, or in caves beneath unbroken layers of stalagmite, associated with remains of animals, some of which are extinct, such as the mammoth, whilst others, such as the musk-sheep and the rein-deer, have migrated to distant and, at present, colder regions.
"Stone implements of the Palæolithic Period, so far as we at present know, were made exclusively of one or other of three varieties of stone— flint, chert, or quartzite. There is, I believe, but one solitary exception at present known, a pointed ovoid implement of true Palæolithic type made of felstone. It was found at Gravel Hill, near Brandon, and is in the collection of Mr. John Evans, who has recently figured it in his magnificent work on the 'Ancient Stone Implements of Great Britain.'[15]
"This unique specimen, however, in common with those of flint, chert, or quartzite, is fashioned entirely by flaking or chipping. It would appear that the people of the Palæolithic Period were wholly unacquainted with any other method of fashioning stone. The processes of pecking and grinding seem to have been unknown to them, if we except the instance afforded by a few small boulders (found in certain cave deposits), in which shallow depressions have been made by "pecking."
"Palæolithic implements have been obtained by Mr. Read from four different excavations in the neighbourhood of Southampton, one being at Freemantle, and the three others on Southampton Common; one (the Town Pit) is stated to be more than 100 ft. above the mean sea-level. Other palæolithic implements found in various parts of Hampshire are exhibited in your temporary Museum. Some of these were obtained from the eastern shore of Southampton Water, in the neighbourhood of Hill Head, and some were found on Southsea Common, east of Portsmouth.
"On the other side of Spithead, at the Foreland or more eastern point of the Isle of Wight, a single Palæolithic implement has been found. Several examples have been obtained from the gravels near Bournemouth. It would seem that the Avon and Stour were, in remote times, affluents of a river running from west to east, and a portion of this river, now widened out by the sea, has become the Solent, between the Isle of Wight and the mainland. The course of this ancient river was probably a little to the south and seaward of the present line of coast at Bournemouth; and some of the gravels which formerly lined its valley now cap the cliffs for some distance between Poole Harbour and Hengisbury Head, as well as those farther east.[16]
"Other Hampshire Palæolithic specimens in your temporary Museum were found at Ashford, near Fordingbridge, and at Brockenhurst.
"But to return to the consideration of the antiquity of Palæolithic implements. It is, of course, contended that the antiquity of these implements is at least as great as that of the gravels in which they are found. If this be conceded the matter becomes a mere geological question.
"My observations upon the antiquity of those gravels shall be as brief as possible, and I will confine my remarks to the gravels near Salisbury, as being those with which I am best acquainted.
"The rivers Willy, Avon, and Bourne (low into each other at Salisbury. The two former, the Willy and the Avon, are divided near their point of union by a tongue of land, which, near the village of Bemerton, rises to the height of about 80 ft. above the present river level, and is overspread at this spot by a layer of implement-bearing gravel. A similar bed of gravel occurs at Milford Hill, upon the neck of land which divides the Avon from the Bourne. These gravels consist of stones washed out of the geological deposits which occur UP-stream, the upper greensand and the chalk. Blocks of 'sarsen' and beach pebbles are also present, indicating the former existence of Tertiary beds which rested upon the chalk.
"The flints, which form such a considerable part of these gravels, are sub-angular, that is, they have not been subjected to sufficient rolling- action to reduce them to the condition of beach-pebbles, their general appearance being that of stones to be found in a river bed. Indeed, it appears that these gravels at Fisherton and Milford actually formed the beds of rivers which long since flowed in the same direction as our Avon and Bourne, and that the present valleys have been excavated to the depth of from 70 to 80 ft. by the eroding action of these streams.
"The excavating power of these rivers was doubtless formerly much greater than it is at present, and, in attempting to measure the requisite period which has elapsed for the excavation of these valleys to their present depth, this circumstance must be taken into account. From the character of the fauna, the comparative abundance of the reindeer, the presence of the musk-sheep, etc., we know that the climate of the Quaternary Period was of great severity, and, consequently, that the accumulations of ice and snow upon our Wiltshire downs must have been considerable.
"Probably, towards the spring of each year, torrents, like the Shrewton flood of 1841, resulting from a sudden and rapid thaw, swept down our valleys with almost resistless force. But another cause of floods has to be considered, and this is the formation of ground-ice, which played an important part in the transport of some of the larger blocks of 'sarsen,' and indeed of the gravels themselves. In rapid streams, when the water becomes sufficiently cold to reduce the temperature of the bed of the river to the freezing point, ground-ice is frequently formed. The gravel of the river-bed becomes coated with ice, and this ice, being lighter than water, after acquiring certain dimensions, rises to the surface, carrying with it large stones and the gravel to which it adheres. Ground-ice is a great cause of floods in the upper part of the Rhine and the Danube. These rivers have a rapid current, and do not freeze over their entire breadth, but large blocks of ice float upon the surface. These blocks are hurried along by the stream, impinge upon each other, become heaped together, and ultimately barricade the river. This accumulation of ice-drifts, however, is not itself the immediate cause of floods; these take place when a thaw 'commences in the upper part of the river, above the point where the latter is completely frozen, the masses of ice, drifting with the current and unable to pass, are hurled upon those already soldered together; thus an enormous barrier is formed, which the water, arrested in its course, cannot pass over, and hence overflows to the right and left, breaking the dykes, inundating the plains, and spreading devastation far and near.'[17]
"It is at such times that the ground-ice greatly increases the mischief, for, becoming detached from the bottom and rising towards the surface, it unites itself to the under side of the masses already in place, and renders the barrier more difficult to remove.
"That floods, probably arising from the causes I have mentioned, did sweep down our valleys seems proved by the fact, that particularly in the narrow valleys of the Avon, all the hill-sides against which the stream would have impinged present bold escarpments, whilst the hills at the sides of the valley not exposed to this wearing action have the usual swelling outline so characteristic of a chalk district.
"But we have not only to take into account this far greater mechanical excavating action of the Quaternary rivers. The surface of the chalk beneath the gravel is extremely uneven, and deep 'pot-holes' are of frequent occurrence; some of these extend downward into the very substance of the chalk to the depth of from 20 to 30 ft. This wasting of the chalk is due, not to any mechanical force, but to a powerful chemical eroding action arising from the presence of carbonic acid in the water, and this chemical action was doubtless a very active agent in deepening our valleys. The rain that falls upon our downs by contact with decaying vegetable matter becomes charged with carbonic acid, and, in consequence, acquires the property of acting as a solvent of chalk or any other calcareous rock with which it may come in contact. Nor is the quantity thus removed year after year inconsiderable, for every gallon of spring water, in a chalk district, contains about seventeen grains of carbonate of lime, and by calculation it has been found that in each square mile of such a district upwards of one hundred and forty tons of chalk are thus dissolved, and carried away by our rivers, annually.[18]
"But when due allowance has been made for the great excavating power of the Quaternary rivers, there still remains the fact, that, since the Palæolithic implements found in the valley-gravels were fashioned, a period has elapsed of sufficient duration to deepen our Wiltshire valleys some 70 or 80 ft.
"There are also other indications of the antiquity of the Fisherton beds, and consequently of the flint implements found in them. 'Rivers in a state of flood, or passing even at a moderate speed over soft or incoherent soil, are always turbid, owing to the presence in their waters of earthy matter which they are transporting towards the sea.'[19]
"This solid matter, being only held in suspension by the velocity of the current, sinks to the bottom, and forms shallows or banks, when the waters from any cause become still. Here and there, at the sides of our Wiltshire valleys, are patches of brick-earth which were deposited, in the manner described, by the Quaternary rivers.
"The streams of the Avon and Wiley unite at Fisherton, and the very extensive deposit of brick-earth that occurs there indicates the position of the still water which in the Quaternary period existed behind their actual point of union. This brick-earth attains a maximum thickness of no less than 30 ft. in Harding's and in Baker's pits. And yet this deposit is evidently not the result of cataclysmic action, for delicate and minute shells perfectly uninjured occur throughout the deposit. Moreover there is distinct lamination in the strata, showing that if was a sedimentary deposit from turbid but tranquil water—a fact of much significance in regard to the time occupied in the deposit of the bed.
"Towards the base of this brick-earth, and, consequently, of a considerably more recent date than the implements found in the gravel at the higher level, remains of the cave-lion, cave-hyæna, mammoth, rhinoceros, musk-sheep, and reindeer occur; and in this brick-earth a Palæolithic implement was actually found beneath remains of the mammoth. Any calculation, therefore, us to the probable antiquity of the flint implements found in the gravel must be based upon these considerations. I may add that the conditions at Salisbury do not greatly differ from those observed elsewhere.
"It cannot be attended with much advantage to attempt to measure the period by years which would have been required to deepen our Salisbury valleys some 80 or 90 ft.; and then, further, to calculate how long a time must be still allowed for the quiet deposit of a buttress-like accumulation of brick-earth, 30 ft. in thickness, against the side of one of these eroded valleys. But however remote this period may be, we have in it the measure of the antiquity of the flint implements found in the gravels at Bemerton and Milford Hill. We can, at all events, establish the comparative, if not the positive, antiquity of Palæolithic implements, and this is all that is absolutely needed by the archæologist.
"A passing word on the supposed non-artificial character of Palæolithic implements. It was only when geology demonstrated the immense antiquity of these objects, that the slightest doubt of their human workmanship was manifested. The Palæolithic implements found at Hoxne, in 1797, by Mr. Frere were figured in the 'Archæologia.' and Mr. Frere's account of them was duly published by the Society of Antiquaries without doubt or question. And a similar Palæolithic implement, now in the British Museum, 'found with elephant's tooth opposite to Black Mary's, near Grayes Inn Lane,' London, was preserved, and classed, for more than a century and a half, as a British stone weapon.
"A glance at the rudely-chipped Palæolithic implements in your temporary museum—and they fairly represent their class—will show you how little remains to tell us of the habits and customs of the people who fashioned them.
"There are no arrow-heads, no corn-crushers, no pottery, not a particle of worked bone. To learn something of the habits of the people of the Palæolithic Period we have to explore the caves and rock-shelters which served for their homes, and we must in these break up the solid floor of stalagmite which seals over the remnants of their feasts, and the thousand and one objects which were in daily use by them. There is then no lack of information; we find that these Palæolithic men— these men who lived contemporary with the mammoth, were hunters, taking to their caves the fleshy parts only of the larger animals they had killed in the chase. They do not appear to have made pottery, and as we do not find any implements with which corn is likely to have been ground, they were probably unacquainted with agriculture. They, perhaps, clothed themselves with skins: at all events among the myriads of flint implements found in the caves there are very many precisely like the flint 'scrapers' still in use by the Esquimaux for dressing hides. Then there are delicate bone-needles, each with a neatly drlled eye, leadiug us to suppose that tho skins were not thrown loosely over the person, but were cut into suitable forms, and sewn together.
"It may be objected that it would be extremely difficult to sew leather with a bone needle. But, possibly, the passage of the needle was rendered more easy by subjecting the leather to some previous treatment; and we know that Esquimaux women chew the leather upon which they are about to work in order to prepare it for sewing.
"No implements for spinning—no spindle-whorls—are found in the caves with remains of this early period; but the cave-folk probably used sinew-thread, and spun it by simple hand-twirling on the thigh. The Laps still prepare sinew-thread in this manner, and it is an art practised by the New Zealanders and many other savages.
"Even in this remote period of man's history we do not only learn that he had wants to supply, and that he sought by the exercise of his ingenuity to supply those wants; we find him feebly but distinctly feeling after art—decorating objects with carving, and sculpturing the forms of his fellow-man and the contemporary animals, such as the mammoth and the reindeer, upon pieces of ivory, horn, bone, and stone.
"Several of these sketches and carvings are extremely spirited, and nearly all show, at least, the attempt to copy nature. In order to appreciate the importance of this fact, it is necessary to observe how few modern savages make any attempt to copy natural objects with fidelity. Perhaps the Esquimaux furnish the solitary exception.
"When savages wish to represent any natural object, they usually adopt a purely conventional treatment; and, what is very remarkable, this conventional treatment becomes peculiar to themselves, and is not shared in common with other savage tribes. Having once adopted a conventional form for any particular object, they copy it, and it only, over and over again.
"No one, for instance, can mistake the typical 'man' of the Mar- quesan: you see this hideous caricature of the human countenance in collection after collection, and it is always line for line the same. Speaking generally, modern savages (with the exception of the Esquimaux) caricature, rather than copy, nature. Like an inexperienced artist, the savage seizes upon some prominent characteristic and exaggerates it, instead of preserving the natural proportions and the graceful outlines of the original. I will not go so far as to say that the cave- people, those men who lived contemporary with the mammoth, produced works of high art, but they certainly possessed a skill in drawing far in advance of that attained by most modern savage tribes. As far as we know, this skill in drawing was possessed by but a limited number of the cave-people, and it appears to have perished with them.
"The later stone-using pre-historic races did not inherit it, at least no sculptured representations of animals or natural objects to be referred to this later period have reached our time; and even during the Bronze Period such figures are extremely rare,—Sir John Lubbock says, 'they are so rare, that it is doubtful whether a single well authenticated instance could be produced.'[20]
"This remark, however, cannot be intended to apply to the New World, for the sculptured stone pipes found in the Ohio mounds furnish us with moderately faithful representations of animals—such as the frog, toad, vulture, toucan, beaver, and man; and these belong to the Bronze Period of America.
"Let me not be misunderstood: I have but spoken of the state of art and culture that existed among a very limited number of the people of the Palæolithic Period, and it is highly probable that these cave-dwellers of Durdogne were in their skill in drawing far in advance of their contemporaries in other regions. Nevertheless, at this extremely early period in man's history, it is very interesting to find any evidence of art-tendency—any evidence of the existence of a faculty which so completely distinguished Palæolithic man from the brute. From some un- known cause, after this first glimpse of its existence, this artistic feeling remained latent during the many, many generations of men who lived in what we regard as more advanced culture-stages, the Neolithic and the Bronze Periods.
"I would add that although some of the cave-people were probably contemporary, indeed were perhaps one and the same, with some of the Drift-people, and that both lived in the Palæolithic Period, yet the entire Palæolithic Period must have 'extended over a very considerable space of time, and neither all the cave-deposits nor all the river-Drifts can be regarded as absolutely contemporaneous.'[21]
"There can be little doubt, however, that some of the cave-relics are intermediate in point of time between the earlier river-Drift and the Neolithic Period.
"My remarks upon the Neolithic Period must necessarily be brief. During this later Stone Period the art of working stone other than by flaking was practised; and, consequently, tough varieties of stone (which could not have been fashioned by flaking) came into use. Hatchets were ground at the edge and polished on the surface, and many new forms of weapons and implements invented. No lesson is more completely forced upon us by an examination of the objects of the Stone Period than the absolute power of man to grapple with, and overcome natural difficulties. Man's patient labour, his powers of reasoning, and his inventive faculties, have at all periods led to results which, once achieved, were not lost, but were transmitted to his posterity; and each generation has thus started from a higher and still higher vantage-ground of accumulated knowledge. I allude only to man's knowledge of the mechanical arts, and of those arts which tend to the general ease and comfort of life. His mental and moral condition lie beyond my subject.
"There does not appear to me, however, to be any necessary connection between the merest babyhood in the industrial arts and a low state of mental power or moral culture, although it is highly probable that the prehistoric stone-folk were in general culture much upon a par with the stone-using races of modern times. Pre-historic archæology and history alike tell us of man's progressive advancement in the industrial arts. And this brings me to the question of the classification of stone implements according to their form, and to the inquiry whether all forms and types of these implements are the result of development; whether we can trace the passing of one form into another—whether the Neolithic Period is but a development of the Palæolithic Period. It is remarkable that 'tongue-shaped'[22] Palæolithic implements occur only in the valley-gravels.
"I believe also that implements of this type are found chiefly, if not only, in what are considered to be the older valley-gravels. On the other hand, 'scrapers' closely resembling, if not identical in type with, those of the Neolithic Period occur in profusion in cave-deposits of Palæolithic age, and are met with, although very sparingly, in the valley-gravels. We are, perhaps, scarcely in a position to say that archæologists have 'found no tools or implements of intermediate forms that might indicate a gradual improvement and progress from the rude Palæolithic types to the polished and elegant implements used by Neolithic man,' or that 'the one set of tools is sharply marked off from the other.'[23]
"We are in the habit of pleading the imperfection of the geological record, but had all the stone implements used by man reached our time, we could from them have formed but a most inadequate notion of the various implements and weapons in use by him during the Palæolithic and Neolithic Periods. Take, for example, a trophy of weapons from Australia, and how inconsiderably would they be represented by the rudely-shaped hatchets and the few flakes used for edging the spears. What do they tell us of the boomerangs, the shields, the clubs, the throwing-sticks? Among the most zealous promoters of the 'development-theory' is Colonel Lane Fox, and few men possess anything approaching to his knowledge of the varying forms of implements and weapons in use by modern savages, as well as of those which were in use by pre-historic races of men. If we take a sufficiently representative collection of implements and weapons in use by the aborigines of Australia, we shall find that it is possible to trace back, by imperceptible graduations, the most complex and artificial form of boomerang, club, or shield, to a straight stick.
"This in the individual case is doubtless the result of direct development; and I believe that each tribe, when unmolested, has for the most part worked out for itself its own discoveries and inventions, and that comparatively few have been received by transmission from others. I say 'when unmolested,' because savagery loses confidence in itself in the presence of a higher civilization, and the savage becomes more or less dependent upon the arts of the higher and more favoured race.
"The Rev. R. H. Codrington, of the Melanesian mission, informs me that the art of making sails according to the native method is possessed in a certain island by but a single individual, and will perish with him; whilst, in another island, the method of making fish-hooks of the native pattern is already wholly lost. Mr. Codrington also adds that, so recently as in 1863, shell was the only substance used in the island of Mota for cutting-instruments; but that, in 1869, iron instruments (obtained by barter) had come into such general use there that the native-made shell instruments were only to be obtained with difficulty. We have, therefore, in the case of Mota a distinct retrogression in the industrial arts; the islanders are more helpless, more dependent upon European civilization, now than they were ten years since.
"But to return to the question of development of form, and of general progress in the art of working material during the Stone Period, I have said that Palæolithic implements were fashioned by the proccss of flaking or chipping, and only by those processes, and that during the Neolithic Period other modes of working stone, namely, by pecking and grinding, were discovered and practised. But the process of flaking or chipping was not discontinued during the Neolithic Period; on the contrary, it was still further developed; it was not only effected by the rough-and- ready method of percussion, but it was supplemented and perfected by the discovery of the art of flaking by pressure—an art still practised by the Esquimaux, but apparently unknown to the people of the Palæolithic Period. This art of flaking by pressure was even practised by some bronze-using races, as by the ancient Mexicans; but we have no reason for supposing that they received this art by transmission from the Esquimaux, or vice versâ: it is probable that, in each instance, the process was independently discovered; and that this was so is supported by the fact that the Esquimaux and the Mexican methods of flaking by pressure differ wholly from each other.
"As our collections of stone implements increase, and as our acquaintance with these objects extends, we shall not be struck by their general resemblance in type so much, as by their infinite variety in form. It could scarcely be expected that much difference would exist between the forms of simple wedge-shaped stone hatchets, and yet they differ essentially from each other. Some have an oval section, some are nearly round in section, whilst others have straight sides. Some are long and tapering in form, and others are short and broad. Neither will it be found that this difference in general type is without significance in regard to locality, and therefore probably in regard to the independent discovery and use of the special form. The wedge-shaped stone hatchets exhibited in your temporary museum from two of the Salomon Islands (Florida and San Cristoval) differ as a group in general form from each other; and that no mistake is made in locality would seem to be established from the fact that they were all sent me direct from the islands by Mr. Codrington in 1871. Again, the groups of wedge-shaped stone hatchets exhibited from England, France, Switzerland, Denmark, and the West Indies will be found, as groups, to possess special typical peculiarities. We may reasonably expect that still further light will be thrown upon this branch of my subject. At one time, and that not long since, it was the practice to sneer at ethnographical collections; but now we begin to find that the clubs, the paddles, the shields, from any particular island or country differ considerably, as a group, from those obtained from any other country. There is an individuality about each; each group, both in form and in ornamentation, has been thought out, has been invented separately and distinctly. Indeed, so much is this the case that a skilled ethnographer will tell you that a particular club originally made in the Fiji islands was subsequently ornamented with carving by a New Zealander; or that another club originally made in the New Hebrides is now found to be ornamented with Fiji patterns.[24] The implements and weapons of modern savages are usually peculiar in form and ornamentation to the people by whom they are made and used, and as the few pre-historic stone relics which have survived to our time present similar typical peculiarities, we may conclude, I think, that speaking generally, each race or tribe worked out its own inventions and its own forms of implements, and did not receive them by transmission from any other people.
"Whilst fully admitting that progress is a very prominent feature of pre-historic times, I still think that the progress was for the most part independent and original, and that we might consequently reasonably expect to find breaks in the continuity of development such as now appear to exist between the Palæolithic and the Neolithic Periods. Nevertheless, it is both a cheering belief and a sound scientific opinion that 'the culture-history of mankind is probably not the history of a course of degeneration, or even of equal oscillations to and fro, but of a movement which, in spite of frequent pauses and relapses, has, on the whole, been forward; and there has been from age to age a growth in man's power over Nature, which no degrading influences have been able permanently to check."[25]
A vote of thanks was presented to Mr. Stevens for his able discourse.
Tuesday, August 6.
This was the day for the Silchester and Basingstoke excursion. The ordinary train, leaving Southampton at 8.45 a.m., conveyed a considerable party to Basingstoke, where a special train was in attendance on the Great Western Railway, to convey them to a point of the line nearest to Silchester. This was near a road which crossed the railway by "Jackdaws' Bridge"; and here carriages were to have been in attendance. By some error, however, many of the conveyances did not arrive till a large number of persons had walked a considerable part of the distance, though they were afterwards gladly used, as the weather became broken, and it rained heavily when the party arrived at the East gate of the Roman Calleva. After a short delay on account of the weather, the Rev. J. G. Joyce conducted his followers to the Amphitheatre outside the city, and discussed its special characteristics. Returning to the East gate, the perambulation of the city was made in a direction South-west to the South gate of the city, from which a good general view of the enclosure was obtained. Along the whole distance the walls are more or less perfect. They seem to have been about 16 ft. high, by about 9 ft. thick, set on massive "footings," and formed of courses of large flints, placed in a rough herring-bone fashion, with layers of stone slabs as bonding courses, at intervals of about 2 ft. The flints seem to have been set dry, and the hot mortar of lime, sand, and pounded tile poured in a fluid state among them. In some places the lower portions of the wall have suffered much by spoliation, the upper courses grimly standing out with picturesque effect The whole circuit is rather more than a mile and a half. Returning to the East gate, Mr. Joyce was able to show the sill upon which the massive portal had turned, and which had been discovered by the Ordnance surveyors within the last few mouths. The weather again interfered with the proceedings, and then time had arrived for luncheon. This was provided in a tent, which was well supplied with refreshments, and after due acknowledgments had been voted to his Grace the Duke of Wellington, for his great liberality in continuing the excavations of that interesting spot, and to Mr. Joyce for his courteous and able discourses, home of the more remarkable relics which had been found were submitted to the attention of the visitors. These consisted chiefly of frames and cases, in which coins were displayed, and the famous and unique legionary "Eagle" which had been found in the "Treasury" of the Forum, under a thick layer of wood ashes. Upon this almost sacred object Mr. Joyce expatiated with some pride, picturing its bearer as chosen for his prowess and high character, officiating at the sacrifices before a battle, and perhaps, in the present instance, tearing away the eagle from the staff at the storming of the city of Calleva, and thrusting it among the timbers of the roof of the important municipal building which had been defended to the last. The streets of houses were then visited, and many singular discoveries pointed out. From thence the party were led to the Forum, where the remains are on a grand and noble scale, and where Mr. Joyce concluded his careful and able remarks by some general observations upon this Roman capital of Southern England. The Rev. J. Collingwood Bruce added some remarks, and again expressed his thanks, and those of the visitor generally, to Mr. Joyce for his kind attention to them.
Returning to Basingstoke, the party assembled at the ruins of the "Chapel of the Holy Ghost," which are so conspicuous an object to all travellers on the South Western Railway. Here they were received by the Vicar, the Rev. Dr. Millard, who discoursed upon the establishment of the Brotherhood founded by Lord Sandes, under licence from Henry VIII., and the chapel built by them. There were thought to be evidences of the influence of Italian art in some of the remains of this highly decorated structure—the final ruin of which was completed by the Parliamentary army in the famous siege of Basing House. Dr. Millard's kind offices were again exercised in Basingstoke Church, an interesting building of the "late decorated" period. In it was seen the painted glass which had belonged to Holy Ghost Chapel, and which had been lately found at Mottisfont Abbey. In the Town Hall some excellent refreshments were kindly provided by the Mayor and Corporation, who took the opportunity of displaying some of their muniments for the gratification, of the visitors. Old Basing House was the next object of interest, and here the visitors were met by the Vicar, who conducted them to the best points of view. Old Basing is chiefly known as the site of Basing House, the scene of the gallant defence of the Marquis of Winchester against the forces of the Parliament. The Church also is well known to ecclesiastical antiquaries for its light Perpendicular architecture, its painted glass windows, and for the shields and crests of the ancient family of Paulet, its founders and patrons, and many of whom, including "Polly Peachum," the celebrated Duchess of Bolton, are here buried.
But the most interesting relic of Old Basing is of far earlier date: this was the seat of the great Barons Port of Basing, afterwards represented by the still-flourishing house of St. John, and who, though high among the nobles of the Conqueror, are reputed to have been of Saxon descent, and to have retained the ancient Saxon domain and chief seat of Basing. The earthworks, though mixed up with the garden walls and works of Basing House, are still tolerably perfect, and are exceedingly curious. A circular platform, a little raised above the adjacent ground, and about 72 yards in diameter, is surrounded by a bunk of earth, from 10 to 14 ft. high, and about 15 yards broad at its base. This is in its turn surrounded by a ditch from 20 to 30 ft. deep, but close to the bank only in a part of its circumference, being bowed outwards at two points, so as to include two roughly semicircular platforms. The entrance on the North side is through one of these platforms. It is by a notch cut through the bank. There seems to have been an outer ditch, part of which is occupied by the old Basingstoke canal. Basing House stood on the Eastern platform. The central area seems to have been some kind of garden or "plaisaunce." It was walled round, and much of the wall, of red brick, is seen along the axis of the bank.
There can be little doubt but this very remarkable earthwork was thrown up for the defence of the stronghold of the Ports or their Saxon progenitors before the Norman Conquest.
The return to Southampton was not effected till a late hour.
Wednesday, August 7.
The Section of Antiquities (Sir E. Smirke in the chair) met at 10 A.M., and the Rev. J. P. Bartlett read a memoir on "Romano-British Pottery found in the New Forest," which he illustrated by examples. A meeting of the Historical Section followed, under the presidency of Lord Henry Scott, M.P.; and, in the absence of the writer, a memoir on "The Alien Priories of the Isle of Wight, and their seizure by King Edward the First," by the Rev. E. Venables, Precentor of Lincoln, was read by the Hon. Secretary. [This has been already printed at p. 230.] Mr. B. W. Greenfield then gave a discourse "On Monastic decorated Tiles found in the South of Hampshire," which was illustrated by a large collection of coloured drawings. An encaustic tile found at Beaulieu some years since, bearing the insignia of Richard, King of the Romans, the brother of King Henry III., had been the moving cause of the lecturer taking up the subject. He had found in the pavements of Winchester Cathedral, the Hospital of St. Cross, the churches of Romsey and Christchurch, and the ruins of St. Denys, Beaulieu, and Netley, specimens of precisely the same tiles, made apparently from similar moulds. Going over the whole series of illustrations, Mr. Greenfield discussed at some length their relations to each other, and their heraldic insignia and decorations, concluding by appropriating the first-mentioned tile from Beaulieu to Isabel, wife of Richard, King of the Romans. In the discussion which ensued the Chairman, Mr. Parker, and Mr. Burtt contributed some observations upon the subject. Thanks having been voted to the respective authors, an adjournment was made. At 1 p.m. a special steamer conveyed a party to Cowes, to visit the Isle of Wight. The morning had been so wet and stormy that a telegram from the Mayor of Newport advised the postponement of the excursion; but this was impossible. The number of visitors was consequently much smaller than it would have been had the weather been more propitious. Fortunately the weather cleared up, and a more beautiful afternoon could not have been desired. From Cowes the visitors proceeded by railway to Newport, where carriages were in readiness to convey them to the Museum—a small collection of early remains found in the island, housed in a very simple manner; thence to the Town Hall, where the Corporation muniments and maces were displayed to view, and to the Church, a modern structure containing an Elizabethan monument. Progress being then made to Carisbrooke, the fine church was first visited. This was originally a building of the twelfth century, which has received additions and alterations, and in which are some interesting monuments. Thence the visitors proceeded to the well-known example of the Roman villa in the vicarage grounds, and from thence to the Castle. A careful perambulation was made, and then Mr. Parker, the cicerone of the day, discoursed upon the principal features of the structure. Any existing remains of the castle of William Fitz Osbern, the follower of William the Conqueror, are now so indistinct or overgrown with ivy that Mr. Parker pronounced that nothing earlier than the "Edwardian" period was to be seen. Returning to Newport, a most pleasant surprise awaited the party at the Town Hall, where refreshments were very liberally provided by the Mayor of the town, and greatly enjoyed. A suitable acknowledgment of this cordiality on the part of the Mayor of Newport having been moved by the Rev. F. W. Baker, and heartily responded to, the return journey was made to Southampton. At 9 P.M. a Conversazione took place in the Museum.
Thursday, August 8.
At 10 A.M. a meeting of the Section of Antiquities was held in the Hall of the Hartley Institution, the Lord Henry Scott in the chair, in the absence of Sir E. Smirke. The Rev. J. H. Austen read a memoir "On the vestiges of the early occupation of the South of England." Prefacing his observations with remarks upon the early conditions of the district, the writer discussed at some length the sepulchral remains of the earliest-known character, exhibiting numerous and well-executed drawings in illustration. Many of these showed some remarkable forms of sepulchral deposit. In the course of his observations the difficulties of obtaining water in the early native fortresses were dwelt upon by the author. A discussion ensued, in which Mr. Stevens, of Salisbury, Sir Stafford Carey, and the Rev. E. Kell took part.
The Ven. Archdeacon Wright then read an account of "The Domus Dei at Portsmouth," upon which he was writing a memoir for publication. In remarking upon this communication the Chairman spoke of the energy and skill shown by the writer in his attempts to revive the condition of this relic of a mediæval charitable foundation. Thanks having been passed to the contributors of these memoirs, and acknowledged by them, the Rev. E. Kell brought forward a resolution calling attention to the threatened destruction of the ancient earthwork known as Cæsar's Camp at Wimbledon, and strongly recommending the Council of the Institute to take such steps as might appear necessary for its preservation. This was seconded by Mr. Stevens, of Salisbury, and after being spoken to by the Rev. J. H. Austen and Mr. J. H. Parker, C.B., was put from the chair, and carried unanimously.
At noon the concluding meeting took place in the Hartley Institution, Lord Henry Scott occupying the chair in the absence of the President of the meeting, and the Mayor and Corporation attending in their robes of office. Expressing his feelings of great satisfaction at the general results of the meeting, as to the memoirs that had been read, and the excursions taken, the Chairman called upon Mr. Parker to move the first resolution.
Mr. Parker then proposed that the best thanks of the meeting be given to the Mayor and Corporation of Southampton and the Council of the Hartley Institution for the use of that building for the purposes of the meeting. In doing so he spoke of the excellent accommodation afforded by that building, and of the kind treatment accorded to the Institute. The Rev. J. Fuller Russell having seconded the resolution, it was carried by acclamation.
The Mayor of Southampton, in acknowledging the vote, spoke of the retention of the objects of antiquity still existing in the town, and in reference to the Bargate spoke of the advisability of the roadway being carried on each side of it if the traffic of the town required further facilities in that quarter.
Mr. Batten next moved that the thanks of the meeting be given to the contributors of essays and memoirs. Several excellent contributions of such papers had been made, and some excellent discourses had been furnished by local antiquaries, who were entitled to the best thanks of the Institute. Mr. G. M. Atkinson seconded the proposal, which was carried unanimously.
Mr. Greenfield, in reply, thanked the meeting for their vote on behalf of the writers of essays. As regarded himself, he was glad to have had the task of collecting and recording the examples of inventive genius in past ages. He had never before had such a favourable opportunity of expressing his ideas upon the subject. He thought the visit of the Institute would much tend to promote the love for the preservation of such mementos of the past.
Mr. Burtt proposed, and Mr. Crabbe seconded, a vote of thanks to the contributors to the Museum. This was acknowledged by Mr. E. T. Stevens.
Col. Pinney proposed a vote of thanks to the Mayor of Southampton, the Lord Henry Scott, the Mayors of Newport and Basingstoke, for the kind hospitality afforded by them during the meeting. Mr. Mackie seconded the motion, which, having been carried, was briefly replied to by the Mayor of Southampton.
The Rev. F. W. Baker then proposed thanks to the Local Committee for their help in the preliminary arrangements. They were much indebted to the secretaries of that committee, the Rev. E. Kell, Mr. F. Lankester, and Mr. J. N. Pocock. He hoped those gentlemen would not consider their labours quite at an end, but would endeavour to carry out the suggestion for the formation of a local archæological society. Mr. Burtt seconded the motion, bearing testimony to the valuable help afforded, and especially by Mr. F. Lankester. The Rev. E. Kell acknowledged the compliment. In reference to the suggestion as to a local archæological society he thought the literary and Philosophical Society fully embraced the subject, but the visit of the Institute would do much good in stimulating its study. The Rev. J. P. Bartlett also responded on behalf of the Committee.
Lord Henry Scott said it now rested with him only to bring the meeting to a conclusion. He was sure they had all enjoyed themselves very much. After touching upon some of the events of the week, his Lordship repeated his advocacy of a local archæological society. The Mayor of Southampton proposed a vote of thanks to Lord Henry Scott for his conduct in the chair, which having been seconded by the Rev. E. Kell, and carried unanimously, was briefly replied to by Lord Henry Scott, and the proceedings ended.
The Museum.
This was formed in the two new class-rooms of the Hartley Institution, which were obligingly prepared for the purposes of the meeting. The rooms opened into each other, but they did not afford the space of many of the temporary museums previously formed by the Institute, nor was the collection to be compared in extent with many of previous years. It contained, however, numerous very interesting objects, and local antiquities were well represented. Conspicuous on a long central stand in the first room, was a noble collection of Corporation plate and Insignia of office. Among those may be specified a gold chain and badge, enamelled with the arms of Southampton, and the inscription, "Presented by Bercher Baril, Esq., 1792," on one side, and a figure of Justice standing, with the words "Administer justice in mercy" on the other; a silver Oar, typifying Admiralty jurisdiction, presented by Arthur Atherley, mayor in 1700; three silver-gilt Maces, one being of the year 1662; a silver-gilt tankard of the year 1702; a sword of state and gold collar, belonging to the town of Southampton. The borough of Portsmouth made a brilliant display, sending (among other interesting pieces) two Maces and the Mayor's gold chain; a silver-gilt salt-stand, dated 1525, and inscribed round the edge, "Si Deus nobiscum, Quis contra nos?" others dated 1582 and 1595; three silver goblets, dated 1597; the "Berry" cup and cover, inscribed, "This sweet Berry from Benjamin did fall. Then good Sir Benjamin Berry it call;" the two famous silver-gilt flagons, presented by Louise de Querouaille, Charles the Second's Duchess of Portsmouth in 1683, and inscribed accordingly; other tankards and goblets, a silver dish, spoons, and other articles of luxurious table furniture, many of them bearing the recognised early plate marks. Winchester contributed the well-known "Warden's cup," set round the edge with sapphires and rubies, one large Mace, and three smaller Maces. Yarmouth also sent a silver-gilt Mace.
Turning to the case where the objects of supposed earliest date were displayed, a goodly assortment of flint implements was shown; the Blackmore Museum at Salisbury furnishing some remarkable specimens well worthy to be a text for the able discourse delivered upon the subject by Mr. Stevens, and which has been already given (see p. 393). Mr. Wickham Flower, of Croydon, also sent numerous examples of flints, while specimens of those found in the immediate vicinity were sent by Sir J. C. Jervoise, Bart., Rev. E. Kell, Rev. J. H. Austen, and others.
The Right Hon. W. F. Cowper-Temple, M.P., sent the beautiful gold torques, formed of two fine twisted strands, which had been found upon the Palmerston estate near Romsey. From the Winchester Museum came a great variety of objects,—the standard weights and measures and Warder's horn referred to in the Winchester volume of the Institute (p. xlv.); an Anglo-Saxon fibula, Roman pottery, and other objects; various pieces of armour; several specimens of mediæval pottery; spurs, pilgrims' tokens, wooden records of Pamber Court Leet, &c. The Hartley Institution exhibited four other Winchester measures of bronze. Objects of the Roman period were well illustrated by those contributed by his Grace the Duke of Wellington, through the Rev. J. G. Joyce, as a selection from the great store-house of Silchester;—these were chiefly specimens of iron-work, pottery, and tiles. Mr. Yonge sent three querns found at Otterbourne, fragments of pottery found with one of them, and a piece of timber, supposed to be part of a Danish vessel burnt in the river Hamble, A.D. 886. Sir G. J. Stueley, Burt., contributed a bronze female figure found at Pompeii, a bronze cast of Caius Marius in the seventh year of his consulate, a double headed and bodied bronze figure, also a bronze ring and marble vase. The Mayor of Southampton also sent two fine bronze figures. The Rev. E. Kell sent a Roman tile from Clausentum, a bronze fibula and bracelet from Vindomium, and fragments of Samian ware from Netley; while the Rev. J. H. Austen sent a Roman armlet, a fibula, and other articles of that period. The same gentleman also contributed specimens of Kimmeridge coal money, iron spear-heads and other weapons, some Cingalese writings, and miscellaneous objects. Mr. Cumberbatch sent a bronze palstave and a leaden steelyard weight.
Dr. Millard, the Rector of Basingstoke, contributed a small enamel painting of St. Michael, three Italian bronze plaques, a draught-man in walrus tusk of twelfth century, and a small pectoral cross of gold. The Rev. Greville Chester sent some early Christian vestments found in Lower Egypt (see p. 292). The Rev. E. L. Berthon, vicar of Romsey, brought the scalp of a lady found in a lead coffin under the foundation of a part of Romsey Abbey Church, a cope of the sixteenth century worked by the nuns of Romsey, and a mason's tool used in building the Lady Chapel in 1305. The Rev. A. Wodehouse sent the alabaster figure of St. John found under the flooring of Easton Church, Hants, of which a notice has already appeared in the Journal (see p. 91); and Mr. Jackson sent two sculptures in alabaster, portions of an altar-piece, one representing the Adoration of the Magi, and the other Delilah cutting Samson's hair. Mr. Severn Walker brought a processional cross, a bronze cross fleury, a small crucifix, and a sacring bell with clapper. Mr. Bonham Carter, M.P., exhibited the original matrices of the fine seal of Southwick Priory, one of the most remarkable specimens of sphragistic art.
Of enamels and ivories the display was small. The Rev. J. F. Russell brought a pair of devotional tablets, and a leaf of another tablet, circa 1300; a group in high relief, representing the Blessed Virgin and holy women, fourteenth century; an enamelled plate of the twelfth century, a fine example of champ-levé work. Mr. Nightingale contributed a leaf of a diptych of the fourteenth century, a Lombardic plaque of the twelfth century, a Byzantine plaque of the same period, and two later examples; and Mr. J. G. Nichols an ivory carving of Sir Martin Frobisher by Marchant. Mr. Greenfield sent four carved oak panels, and other carvings were contributed by the Winchester Museum. Two excellent examples of watches of the seventeenth century came from Admiral Love. These were presented by Oliver Cromwell to Ralph Hawtrey, Esq., and his wife, of Eastcott House, Ruislip, in acknowledgment of their reception of his troops while he held a commission at a little inn at Uxbridgo, still called the Treaty House. Other watches were sent by the Rev. J. F. Russell and Sir G. Stueley, Bart. Sir Stafford Carey brought a medallion, in wax, of Pierre Carey, high bailiff of Guernsey, the work of Abraham Symon in 1644. Mr. Nightingale brought a miniature, in enamel, of Thomas Wriothesley, Earl of Southampton, and Mr. Nichols a case of nine miniatures of Oliver Cromwell and eminent persons of his time. A few specimens of arms and armour were sent by Mr. Adye, Mr. Gubbings, the Rev. A. Walters, and Mr. Robins. Mr. Ready's curious collection of miscellaneous objects of metal and enamel occupied a good portion of one of the cases. They have been already described at p. 292. Among the miscellaneous objects should also be noticed gloves of brown Spanish leather, formerly belonging to James I.; a purse worked with beads and sash, said to have belonged to Charles I.; and presentation copies of Dr. Watts's works, with his autograph, exhibited by the Rev. J. F. Russell; and a collection of photographs illustrating archæological researches in Rome, by Mr. J. H. Parker, C. B.
Views of Southampton and the neighbourhood were contributed by Mr. Peirce, the town-clerk, who sent eight old engravings of the gates and portions of the walls; the Rev. E. Kell also sent sixteen views of objects of interest; and the Misses Priaulx a large collection of water-colour drawings of similar objects. These ladies also contributed a small brass coffer, said to have belonged to Cardinal Mazarine. Sir J. C. Jervoise, Bart, sent two plans of ancient earthworks in Hampshire. Mr. Spiers exhibited a large collection of drawings in water-colour, chiefly of Oriental scenes. Pottery from the New Forest, from the neighbourhood of Southampton and elsewhere, were sent by the Rev. J. P. Bartlett (in illustration of his discourse referred to at p. 406), the Winchester Museum, the Hartley Institution, Mr. Yonge, Mr. Ready, and Mr. Robins. Among these were a singular brown earthenware bowl with thirteen handles, several "grey-beard" and other jugs and bowls of peculiar form and style.
Ancient deeds and MSS. made a goodly show. His Grace the Duke of Buccleuch sent the charters of Beaulieu Abbey; the Rev. E. L. Berthon exhibited the Letters Patent of Henry VIII., granting the church of Romsey Abbey to the Corporation of that town; Mr. Greenfield brought three deeds of the time of Edw. I., and one of Edw. VI. Col. Stretton, the Rev. J. F. Russell, and Mr. Severn Walker contributed ecclesiastical and illuminated MSS., while Mr. Adye and Mr. Sturges Bourne contributed some later MSS., among which were Letters Patent of George IV., William IV., and Queen Victoria, appointing Wardens of the New Forest. Mr. Bonham Carter, M.P., exhibited two Caxtons, Mr. Bassett a Bible dated 1673, and Mr. Pamplon a horn book.
The Central Committee desire to acknowledge with thanks the following donations in aid of the expenses of the Southampton Meeting, and of the general purposes of the Institute:—The Right Hon. Russell Gurney, M.P., 5l. 5s. G. Sclater-Booth, Esq., M.P., 5l. 5s. The Mayor of Southampton, 5l. 5s. Rev. J. E. Wigram 5l. 5s. Right Hon. W. Cowper- Temple, M.P., 2l. 2s. C. Barton, Esq., 3l. Steuart Macnaughten, Esq., 2l. 2s. J. Henderson, Esq., (Hon. Treasurer), 2l. 2s. The National Provincial Bank, 5l. C. S. Greaves, Esq., 2l. 2s. Lady Trench, 1l. W. C. Humphreys, Esq., 2l. 2s. Capt. Best, 1l. Sir E. Smirke, 2l. 2s Sir J. C. Jervoise, Bart., 5l. J. H. Forbes, Esq., 2l. 2s. Rev. G. Southouse, 2l. 2s. J. Moseley, Esq., 1l. 1s. R. G. Beamish, Esq., 1l. 1s. Rev. J. M. Lee, 1l. 1s. Rev. Dr. Millard. 1l. 1s. Rev. C. Beckford, 1l. 1s. Dr. Bond, 1l. 1s. Mr. Phippard, 1l. 1s. Rev. J. S. Davis, 1l. 1s. Rev. F. Hopkins, 1l. 10s. Dr. Langstaff, 1l. 1s. Rev. D. Jenkins, 2l. 2s. Dr. Osborne, 1l. 1s. W. Adye. Esq., 1l. 1s. W. Williams. Esq., 2l. 2s. H. Green, Esq., 1l. 1s. Dr. Griffin, 1l. 1s. Rev. H. E. Moberly, 2l. 2s. Rev. J. Bullen, 1l. 1s. C. Harrison, Esq., 1l. 1s.
- ↑ The following account, slightly condensed, is taken from the "Builder" of Dec. 28th, 1872. The Council desire to acknowledge with thanks the kindness of the Editor of that publication in permitting them to use the block of the ground plan illustrating the article mentioned above, entitled "The Ancient Defences of Southampton," by G. T. C.
- ↑ Printed at p. 135 of this volume.
- ↑ In the course of the meeting a letter from the office of H.M. Chancellor of the Exchequer, Whitehall, to the President of the Institute, was read, conveying the gratifying intelligence that H.M. Government hat voted £3000 in aid of the exploration at Ephesus.
- ↑ See p. 78 of the present volume.
- ↑ See Arch. Camb., Fourth Series, vol. iii, p. 167, for a review of Mr. Fergusson's work, "Rude Stone Monuments."
- ↑ See "Romsey Abbey Church, by the Rev. J. L. Petit," in the Winchester volume of the Archaeological Institute, 1845.
- ↑ See memoir by the Rev. C. H. Hartshorne "On the History and Architecture of Porchester Castle" in the Winchester volume of the Institute.
- ↑ See Winchester vol. of the Archæological Institute, 1845, for an article "On the Hall and Round Table at Winchester. By Edward Smirke, Esq."
- ↑ Ibid. "On the Architecture of the Church and Hospital of the Holy Cross. By E. A. Freeman, Esq., B.A."
- ↑ Ibid. "The Architectural History of Winchester Cathedral. By the Rev. R. Willis, M.A., Jackman Professor in the University of Cambridge."
- ↑ Non Historic Times in "Quarterly Review," April, 1870, p. 435.
- ↑ For more ample particulars of these culture periods, see Evans' "Ancient Stone Implements of Great Britain," pp. 1—12
- ↑ E. B. Tylor, "Transactions International Congr. Pre-hist. Archæology," 1868, pp. 13, 14.
- ↑ Hodder M. Westropp, "Pre-Historic Phases." Bell & Daldy, 1872.
- ↑ Fig. 442, p. 510.
- ↑ Evans, "Ancient Stone Implements," p. 556.
- ↑ Engelhardt, "Annales de Chimie et de Physique," 1866. Translated in "Smithsonian Report" for 1866, p 425.
- ↑ Evans, "Ancient Stone Implements," p.429.
- ↑ Ibid., p. 583. If the velocity of a river be 300 yards per hour, it is sufficient to tear up fine clay; if 600 yards, fine sand; if 1,200 yards, fine gravel; and if a little over two miles per hour it is capable of transporting shivery angular stones of the size of an egg.
- ↑ "Pre-historic Times," p. 323.
- ↑ Evans, "Ancient Stone Implements," p. 426.
- ↑ Evans, "Ancient Stone Implements," p. 564.
- ↑ Geikie, "Antiquity of Man." in "Geol. Mag.," April, 1873, p. 176.
- ↑ The specimens to which I refer are to be seen in the Christy collection.
- ↑ Tylor, "Early History of Mankind," p. 190.