practice appears to have been to inter infant remains closely adjacent to the external wall of the dwelling. Thus also Fulgentius remarks,—" Subgrundaria antiqui dicebant sepulcra infantium, qui necdum quadraginta dies implessent; quia nec busta dici poterant, quia ossa, quæ comburentur, non erant; nec tanta cadaveris immanitas, qua locus tumesceret. Unde Rutilius Geminus in Astyanacte ait: Melius subgrundarium misero quæreres, quam sepulcrum." (Facciol. in v.) It is striking to find, after the lapse of so many centuries, the deposit of these fragile remains, so fully in accordance with the tradition of this ancient custom, and corroborative, if indeed such evidence were requisite, of the Roman origin of these buildings.[1]
The following observations on these vestiges of ancient architecture, and peculiarities of their construction, have been most kindly placed at our disposal by Mr. Neville. They comprise the results of a careful examination by Mr. J. C. Buckler, and illustrate, in a very interesting manner, the character of the discoveries which we have endeavoured to describe:—
"As the remains of one of the residences are at a considerable distance from those of the other, it may, perhaps, be useful to precede their description by a few observations upon the general appearance of a tract of ground, which, although now devoted to agricultural purposes, seems to have been once distinguished by habitations of a superior character, the relics of which have appeared wherever the ground has been opened.
This interesting district is situated nearly midway between the public road from Newport to Bourne Bridge, on the south, and the village of Ickleton towards the north; the road to the last place forming the eastern boundary of the field, within which the discovery of foundations was first made. In a direction nearly parallel with the road just named, and not more than from 600 to 700 yards distant from it, is another road leading to Cambridge. In both instances, the remains are on the west side of these public highways; but there is a feature near the latter which merits remark, the Borough Ditch, adjoining the road, or, rather, intercepted by it, and extending westward. It is several hundred yards in length, and, thus far, regular and distinct in its breadth and depth; but tillage has effaced all further traces of its extent in either direction. The railroad passes over the ground midway between the ruins of the two ancient dwellings, the one of smaller dimensions being in a south-easterly direction from the larger mansion, with which another building is in close proximity: but its all these remains will be better understood by a particular reference to their forms and dimensions, and their relative positions, with regard to- ↑ A similar usage, as regards cremation, existed amongst the Greeks. See the account of the mode of burying a Greek child, in Stackelberg, Gräber der Hellenen. The bones were arranged symmetrically, with Greek vases of various sizes.
