Past Newsletters

Newsletter No. 171: May, 1.9.85

PROGRAMME NEWS.

Tues May 14.Annual General Meeting. By tradition the Chair at the AGM is taken by one of our Vice-Presidents. This year it is Ted Sammes turn to officiate. Business meeting at 8.30 (but come for coffee at 8 pm as usual) followed by slides and short talks by Members. If anyone has a few interesting slides, please ring. Dorothy.Newbury.„(203 0950) as more volunteers will be most welcome.

Sat May 18. CANCELLED outing to Cambridge. It is much regretted that our plans for this fell apart when the original compere became ill and it was then discovered that the colleges are closed to the public during May because of examinations.

Fri-Sun June 21-23 Weekend ‘in South Cumbria

Sat July 20. Mill Hill walk

Sat .Aug 17. Porton Down

Sat Sept 21. .Sutton Hoe

Sat Oct .5. Revised date for 1985 Minimart. Please change the provisional date given on your programme card (which was ‘Oct 12 tp be confirmed’) to Oct 5; if possible, do it now, while you think of it.

WEST HEATH DIG

The dig re-opened in-the week-end of April 20-21, and we shall be reporting on it as it progresses

Meantime, you may like to have again the details of days and times: Digging will go on .four days a week (Fri, Sats., Suns, Mons) until, the end of May, from 9 am. In June and July the site will be open six days a week. All diggers – including the inexperienced will be welcome. Please bring your own 3″ or 4″ inch pointing trowel and a kneeler and wear soft-soled shoes.

For further information, .contact either Sheila Woodward.(952 3897) Or Margaret Maher (907 0333)..

From our MEMBERSHIP SECRETARY comes this message…

Many thanks for the good response to subscriptions due in April. I am being kept busy doing lists, paying money into the bank and acknowledging same. Keep up the good work this month. Thank you for the kind wishes many of you have sent.

With grateful thanks for prompt payments,

sincerely,

PHYLLIS FLETCHER

ALL THINGS TUDOR. The Museum of London is going Tudor for the next two months. In May and June Wednesday lectures (1.10 pm in the theatre) will cover such subjects as Stow’s Survey of London, Tudor architecture, the Elizabethan theatre, Tudor maps, Tudor poverty and Tudor shinning. Some Thursday Workshops (in the Education Dept, 1.10 pm) also link, up with the Tudor theme: on May 23, recent Tudor finds in the City; on June 13, Tudor coins.

ZINC MAKING IN ANCIENT INDIA Report on the April lecture

by ALEC GOULDSMITH

It is always a pleasure to welcome back Dr Paul Craddock because he

usually has something original to say.The April lecture proved no exception.

During his previous talk on ‘Early Metallurgy’ he had mentioned the discovery of huge dumps of spent retorts and other refractory materials scattered over a wide area of hillside around the mining area of Zawar in the province of Rajasthan about 300 miles north of Bombay. He had now been back with a team made up jointly from the University of Baroda,’ the British Museum and Hindustan Zinc Limited. This talk covered their findings so far.

He promised not to be too technical and indeed his first slide reassured us. It was a High Street ironmonger’s shop displaying many galvanised %iron products. Zinc, he said, is now a common and relatively cheap metal, but this was not always so. It was only in the 19c that it became so in Europe.

From about 1600 all metallic zinc had been imported through the Dutch and British East India Companies. Historians were never quite sure where the metal came from, but the most likely sources were India and/or China, The Romans, of course, knew brass from about 100 BC; but this alloy of copper and zinc had been made by heating finely divided copper and calamine (zinc oxide) in.a closed crucible with charcoal at around 1000 C, When the zinc dissolved in the copper. Calamine could not be reduced to metallic zinc by the normal smelting methods of those days, because at temperatures over 900°C it volatilised away. It was not until the 13c that the relationship of calamine and zinc was understood. Then an Englishman, William Champion, in Bristol, designed a furnace with an external condenser and produced metallic zinc in Britain. Was this a re-invention, or had the knowledge been brought back from the East? After all, Bristol was the port of entry for the zinc.

At Zawar the zinc/lead ores outcrop along the tops of the hills. Old shafts run down steeply into the hillside to a depth of 22m or so, with galleries running out. Mining was carried out by ‘fire-setting’ .i.e. building fires of wood to neat up the rock and then pouring water over it. This is shown by .the amount of wood-ash still left.. Iron chisels and some rather unusual pestle like hammers were also found. Wooden chutes were still in situ. Samples from these and other wood gave a C14 date of 2000 years BP. Some potsherds in the same area were dated to the 2nd century AD.

The most exciting find however was made in the valley below. Usually in excavations of this kind complete furnaces are never found,* The picture is built up by piecing together the evidence from stratified-fragments within the heaps. On the third day of the excavation, however, one of the Baroda team spotted the corner of a refractory plate sticking out from a heap of debris on the side of a goat path. Excavation round this revealed first the edges of furnace walls and then the tops of retorts still in situ. Eventually seven complete furnaces in a row, each of 36 retorts, were uncovered: This bank of furnaces was dated to the16c. Another larger bank was found later dating to the 18c.

Using analyses of the residues in the retorts, together with evidence from the recipes in medieval Indian books on medicinal chemistry and alchemy, it was now possible to decide how the operation was carried out. Roasted ore together with charcoal, salt and sticky substances such as treacle and gum were rolled into marbles. These were then charged into an open clay retort which was fitted with a funnel-shaped condenser which had a wooden stick passing through the hole to stop the charge falling out when the retort was turned over. The inverted retorts were then placed in the holes of the supporting plates. A fire was built in the top part of the furnace round the retorts, the oxide was reduced and the zinc distilled off into the lower cooler part where it condensed and ran into collecting vessels. The wooden stick burnt away and would have fallen out after the charge had fritted.

Scientific examination of sections of the vitrified retort walls suggest temperatures of 1100 C, which was the temperature recommended the retort process used in Europe during the first half of the 20c. The whole process was estimated to have taken about 9 hours, during which time the temperature would have had to be closely controlled. This procedure was probably the most complex and sophisticated pyrotechnical operation in use before the Industrial Revolution.

Dr Craddock speculated that up to and during the Roman period the mines were probably operated for lead and silver, followed by a period of inactivity. From around 1300 AD zinc became the prime objective using a distillation process which carried on into the late. 18c. Certainly the presence of many elaborate Jaen temples in the neighbourhood suggest a. big population in the 14c-15c. It is perhaps ironic that in the late 20c Hindustan Zinc are installing at Zawar a process and plant developed by RTZ at Avonmouth in Bristol.

It was most lucid talk on a specialised subject, much appreciated by members, as shown by the many and varied questions that arose. Bill Firth proppsed a vote of thanks that was warmly endorsed.

For those interested in pursuing this subject further, a Conference on “2000 Years. of Zinc and Brass” is being organ­ised at the University of Bristol in conjunction with the Historical metallurgy _Society and the British Museum for June, 7-9 1985. Further information from J H Bettey MA PhD, Dent. Extramural Studies, University of Bristol, Wills’ Memorial Building, Queens Rd, Bristol BS8 1HR.

FRAUD AMONG THE FOSSILS? One of the most famous fossils is Archaeopteryx, 160 million years old, considered hitherto as the link between reptiles and birds because of having a reptilian bone structure covered with feathers. Six specimens are known, the two with the most clearly defined feathers being in East Berlin Museum and the Natural History Museum, South Ken. Now five physicists (one of them. Sir Fred Hoyle) have publish­ed a paper in the British Journal of Photography (No 10, March 8 1985) describing a photographic analysis they have made of the two specimens. They strongly, suggest that the feather impressions were added after the fossils had been found in a Bavarian lime quarry. Is Archaeopteryx about to join Piltdown Man?

PREHISTORIC SOCIETY 50TH ANNIVERSARY CONFERENCE: A report by

NORWICH, March 29-31 BRIAN WRIGLEY

There was a respectable representation of HADAS – even if not so large as on other occasions – at the conference; once we had got used to the time-consuming walking (much of it on aerial walkways) necessitated by the somewhat trendy architecture of our campus accommodation in the hospitable University of East Anglia, it was clear that all were enjoying themselves Considerably, solicitously directed from place to place by Aubrey Burl, the Meetings- Secretary, with much visual aid from a black­board map. And what places: On the first evening, from’ Grahame Clark’s opening address by coach to the Lord Mayor’s generous wine reception and by coach hack to a convivial suppers

The Prehistoric World: a Celebration of Diversity was the theme of the Conference. (we were let into the secret: the speakers were chosen firstl, and a theme had to be found afterwards to cover their subjects!) Indeed, the subjects ranged in time from the Mesolithic to the Romans, and in place over Africa,. America, Australia, China, Boreal Eurasia-and Japan. Nevertheless, from such notes as I was able to scribble whilst the lights were on between slides (‘Ex oriente Lux’ I muttered) some sort of common thread does seem to appear: that apparently simple societies may be more complex than we often believe, so that for instance. Hierarchy, settlement and systems of exchange (everyone meticulously avoided calling it ‘trade’) may exist amongst hunter-gatherers and are not (nor even is.pottery) necessarily indicators of agriculture; and there may have been a considerable level of complexity, social stratification and urbanisation in Precolonial Africa.

Not all that was said, clearly, was to the liking of Lewis Binford, who abandoned his prepared paper to regale us with anecdotes of the practices of hunter-gatherers from his own experience,. to make his point that our interpretation of archaeological evidence should be based on as wide a knowledge as possible of human behaviour.

Richard Bradley sought in his break-neck ¾-hour to cover Britain for 4000 years, from the introduction of agriculture to the Romans. In charting progress from funeral to ceremonial monuments to votive deposits to defensive settlements he mentioned periods of expansion and contract­ion and conspicuous consumption – but it did seem to me a charting of the activities more of ‘prehistorians than of prehistoric people. His speaking surprised me by being much more logically structured than his writing, in my experience, and it was A lively performance that kept all awake.

The outstanding feature of the Conference which I think, stand as an important landmark in. archaeology, was Colin Renfrew’s plea to re-introduce the study of linguistics as an aid to understanding the spread and development of ethnic groups; taking as’his important example the Indo-European group of languages, he put forward, to the obvious anguish of many present, the hypothesis that the proto-Indo-European language was spread across Europe from its homeland (‘Urheimat’ he even called it) in Anatolia by the waves of farmers bringing their now Neolithic culture amongst the Heaven-knows-what-speaking Mesolithic hunter-gatherers.

It was good to be there.

STEAM TRAIN LANDMARK. Cricklewood is to lose a landmark, according to the Hendon Times of March 21 last – the Carlton Forge, which has stood on the Edgware Road for a century or more. It was part of the Cricklewood Motive Power Depot of the Midland Railway (later the London, Midland & Scottish) and was maintenance base for many famous main line steam locomotives. British Rail has sold the property to an oil company; a self-service filling station will partly replace the present buildings.

PIPE-LINE ALERT

HADAS owes Tessa Smith a big debt for keeping a sharp eye on the Society’s interests, particularly in the Elstree/Edgware area. Recently she discovered that the Lee Valley Water Company is planning to lay a trunk water main from Arkley, in the Borough of Barnet, to Ivor in Bucks. Part of the proposed line will run under the northwest corner of our Borough. Tessa suggested we contacted the water company – so we did.

Now they have-kindly provided scale drawings of the scheme. The route starts at Rowley Lane, south of Rowley Lodge (TQ 2189 9564) and runs southwest until it cuts below Barnet Road just south of Stirling Corner and north of Hyvor Hall. It Crosses Hyver Hill and then the Barnet Bypass (at app. TQ 2080 9491), It goes under the wooded area on the east of Scratch wood Open Space (under Thistle Wood and skirting south of Boys Hill Wood) and on below the north part of Mill Hill Golf course, going under the railway line just south of Elstree Tunnel (app TQ 1982 9446).

The route then enters and traverses the Bury Farm fields, passing to the south of Bury Farm buildings and north of the interesting area of the Clay Lane dog-leg. It crosses Edgwarebury Lane at app TQ 1908 9409 and moves on across more Bury Farm fields to the Watford Bypass, which it reaches at app. TQ 1804 9367. It then traverses the fields between the Bypass and Brockley Hill, which it approaches at app TQ 1775 9354. It then goes on, in the Borough of Harrow, below the open ground to the west of Brockley Hill, skirting the south side of Pear Wood

The whole route, traversing one of the least built-up areas of the Borough, is of potential archaeological interest – it’s almost like having a large trial trench dug for us through areas known to be of possi­ble medieval and probable Roman interest: quite apart from any unknown quantities -which may turn up from other periods. We know, from our own field walking, that the whole Bury Farm area is important for Roman finds.

To watch the digging of the water pipe trench through the Borough therefore seems to be a top HADAS priority. Maybe it’s just pipe dreaming (if you’ll forgive the pun) to imagine that the water board may just happen to uncover a Roman mosaic …

When we told the Lee Valley Water Company of our interest, they promised to keep us in the picture; at the moment the position is that they will let us know as soon as a pipe-laying programme has been approved.

Meantime John Enderby, in charge of HADAS site-watching, feels we should begin to get geared up so that we can go into action, if necessary, at short notice. He already has a little list of possible pipe-watchers whom he proposes to contact; but if any member would like to take part ­either because he/she lives near the areas concerned or is mobile and would be able to travel and watch at short notice – please contact John on 203 2630 and add your name to his list. A group of 7 or 8 watchers will be our aim.

ANOTHER MARY ROSE? The waters of Poole Harbour, Dorset, hide the remains of an early 16c Spanish trader of the type in which Columbus sailed to America in 1492.. Amateur divers working under a surveyor from the National Maritime Museum have found enough polychrome pottery of Iberian Isabela’ type to date the vessel to between 1475-1550. The wreck was found when a fisherman asked members of the local sub-aqua club to free his nets, which had caught on something on the seabed. Investigation of the wreck by the club, under professional direction, continues, and the prognosis is that this will prove to be an important underwater project.

COMMITTEE CORNER

The final meeting of the present Committee, prior to the AGM, took place on April 19; the following were among matters discussed:

A contribution of £25 will be made by the Society to Christian Aid, in memory of Vice President and founder member Eric Wookey. Er Wookey’s daughter has suggested that we ask for this to be earmarked for-Ethiopian famine relief, as this was a charity dear to her father’s heart.

College Farm. We were sorry to learn that our suggestion of organisations ‘adopting’ College Farm animals by paying their weekly food bills had been turned down although. we appreciated Chris Ower’s reasons. Such a project would have been difficult to operate, Mr Ower felt, on a working farm where animals may come and go. The Commitee decided to investigate other possible ways of helping.

Blue Plaques of Barnet. After the Hon. Treasurer had reported hold­ing a large stock of the second edition of this HADAS pamphlet, for which sales are now slow it was agreed to offer the booklets at a much reduced price of 25p. This is a real snip, and any HADAS member who would like to take some (how about using them as small presents – much cheaper than todays birthday. cards?) should get in touch with our publications manager, Joyce Slatter, 5 Sentinel House, Sentinel Square, NW4 2E1.

Scientific Dating Awards. We reported last month (under the News­letter item An Award for HADAS’) the suggestion that we might apply for one of the new Scientific Dating Awards under the Lloyds Bank Fund for Independent Archaeologists. The Committee decided that, as soon as certain preliminary work had been done, we should apply for an award to meet the cost of dating the ditch-fill at the Hadley earthwork.

HADAS on TV? The question mark is because, as this is written, we are not sure when – or indeed if – the Society will be on the telly; It was reported to the Committee that Thames TV had asked HADAS to put, in a TV news programme, the archaeological side of the case against the use of metal detectors on Elstree Open Space. An application to-use-a detector there had been made to Barnet Council some weeks ago by the Herts. & District Metal Detection Society. Barnet had turned the applica­tion down, partly on HADAS’s advice. Thames TV decided that the pros and cons of the decision would be of interest as a local news story. As members will know, Roman Watling Street skirts the whole western border of Elstree Open Space: which means that every part of it is within walking distance of one of Britain’s great Roman highways – and the Romans were determined ribbon-developers. For this alone – and there were other reasons – the Society would have advised against the use of metal detectors in such a sensitive area.

Our Hon. Secretary, Brian Wrigley, accompanied a Thames TV team to Edgware, starting at Brockley Hill, just south of Elstree, to explain this objection. He pointed out, on the ground, the wealth of Roman find spots thereabouts. Thames said they hoped to use the interview soon: perhaps, by the time you read this, they will have done so.

INVITATION TO HADAS MEMBERS

Our colleagues in Camden history Society have sent us their programme for the rest of this year, with an invitation to attend their meetings. Your members will always be welcome,’ their Hon. Secretary, Jane Ramsay, writes, and no charge is made.” We see that their August lecture will feature HADAS – it’s on West Heath, by Margaret Maher. .Here are the details of the list:

May 22 7 Pm. Huguenots in London by Rosemary Weinstein (Holborn Lbry, Theobalds Rd). This will no doubt link with the Museum of London’s Huguenot exhibition, ‘The Quiet Conquest,’ which opens on May 15.

June 12, 6.30 pm. Annual Meeting and talk on Waterhouse, the architect, by Robert Thorne of the GLC Historic Blgs Div (Prudential Assurance Blg, Holborn)

Aug. 22, 7.30 West Heath dig, by Margaret Maher (Swiss Cottage Lbry)

Brian Wrigley reviews

BRONZE AGE METALWORK IN SOUTHERN BRITAIN

by Susan M Pearce. Shire Archaeology (£1.95

Having spent some time recently reading about bronze weapons, I was much interested to see this new (1984) publication. Appropriately enough for this series, Dr Pearce says she has tried not to linger on contro­versies in a book intended to introduce and encourage. Having no inhib­itions myself about being controversial, however, I will say that I found it disappointing that so much received wisdom’ is presented so un­critically. As she says in her introduction, typology remains fundamental in spite of its severe problems’ (I think she must, after reading some of the works that I have in the last two years, have wished she could use a much stronger phrase!); some explanation of what these problems are would have been welcome.

One problem which I have certainly found is that of terminology. Whilst it is, in a way, refreshing to come across a book on this subject which does not complain about the terms traditionally used, it seems a little hard on the beginner to use those terms without explanation – for instance, that ‘halberd’ doesn’t’ really mean a halberd which would

be recognised as who we know, actually used an-implement which they called by that name; or that dirk’ doesn’t mean a dirk, that would be recognised as such by someone who wears one as ‘part of his national costume. And I have to wonder what a ‘leaf-bladed rapier.(p38) would look like (it is not ilIustrated).; but then I wonder about ‘leaf-shaped’ anyway what leaf? It certainly doesn’t seem to be the same leaf for leaf-shaped swords, leaf-shaped spears and leaf-shaped arrow heads!

It is a shame that it is really, I suppose, impossible to write a generally accepted summary of this period that is not either liberally spattered with ‘perhaps’ ‘and may be’ .and ‘some think’ (which would make it unreadable); or alternatively, contains a series of firm state­ments, any of which are disputable, on the evidence, and many of which appear to say things we could not possibly know from the evidence. The author goes mostly for the latter alternative, with the result that in a good few places the dreaded circularity of reasoning and: intellectual arrogance, (of her sources, not of herself, I’m sure) show through. Arrogance? Well – neither type proved to be very popular throughout southern Britain’ (.p12); doesn’t that really mean that archaeologists haven’t (yet?) found many there? Particularly is this true in the Middle Bronze Age, which virtually exists only as a group of bronze artefacts, mostly found without dating context, which typology has decided should be called Middle Bronze Age. One must surely be cautious about any sub-division into further ‘phases,’ still based entirely on typology; to go on and say that a certain type ‘continued to be made in Phase X’ is really saying no more than that ‘we have decided that that type should be included in the group which we have called Phase X.’ This, surely, is circular?,

Granted, that in a book meant to summarise current thinking, one has to take that thinking warts and ail; but a passing reference here and there to the wartiness might be a considerable help to the beginner.

Some of the drawings appear to be a little wobbly, and comparison of some other drawings of the same objects suggest that it is the draughtsman’s shake rather than any irregularity in the original object:

An interesting suggestion is that some of the multiple finds which have been put under the all-embracing term ‘hoard’ are more likely to be debris from the settlements which are otherwise scarce. This links interestingly with the recent article in Current Archaeology No 94, where Robert Gourlay and John Barrett suggest that the Dail no Caraidh ‘hoard’ was a result of multiple deposits and call for a rethinking of what many so-called ‘hoards’ represented.

We apologise for two errors which crept into the April Newsletter.

The first was in Ted Sammes’ remarks about the finding of Lindow Man and the report on him in the current issue of Antiquity. Ted said that Antiquity can be read at LBB Central Library in the Burroughs.’ The Borough Reference Librarian, David Bicknell, rang to say that alas, that is no longer so.

The Library used to take Antiquity, a quarterly, for 40 years; but in 1931 they gave it up. No doubt this was in one of the economy drives which have been hitting almost all aspects of our library service in the last few years.

The second error concerned College Farm. We had reported, after seeing an item headed ‘College Farm Sells its Highland Cattle,’ in-the Hendon Times of March 21 that the Farm’s Highland cattle had gone. ‘

HADAS member Mrs P S Karet, who lives in Fitzalan Road near the Farm, rang up to say that the cattle – four of them – are still in residence. They are a great pleasure to her and to all who live nearby – specially the cow which produced a most delightful calf a week or two ago.

BUILDINGS IN LBB. News of two well-known buildings in the Borough this month. Good news about the Phoenix Cinema in East Finchley – said to be the oldest in London and perhaps in Britain. It received a last-minute life-saver of £100,000 from the GLC, without which it would have faced demolition in favour of an office block. Bad news, however, about the Borough’s only Grade I Listed building, Edwin Lutyens’ Hampstead Garden Suburb Institute, which started building in 1909 and was completed in 1930. It is suffering from structural deterioration, will cost £2,500,000 to restore. A public appeal for half a million has been launched. ‘If successful, the Dept of Environment will find the other two million.

NEWSLETTER NO. 169 March 1985.

PROGRAMME NOTES.

Tuesday, March 5th. Annual Constantinedes Memorial Lecture –

by Daphne Lorimer on the WEST HEATH EXCAVATION

Daphne will start her lecture with a resume of this Mesolithic site and its surroundings, telling how a HADAS Member, Alec Jeakins, first suspected its presence while walking on Hampstead Heath and how the excavation (Phase 1) developed in the next six years from 1976-1981. This is the nearest Mesolithic site to London which has so far been found and in 1977 HADAS entered it in the BBC Chronicle Contest reaching the final six. Daphne, who was site Supervisor during these six years will be showing slides, a display of photographs and a selection of the finds.

Her talk will be of great interest to all those who took part in the dig but also to those who have since joined the Society and to our many Members who do not participate in our dirt Archaeology activities.

The lecture is a tribute to our founder, the late Themistocles Constantinedes. His daughter, Miss Vivienne Constantinedes hopes to be present.

Tuesday April 2nd. England’s Heritage: An Aerial View. Christopher Stanley.

Tuesday May 14th. Annual General Meeting.

All the above at Central Library, The Burroughs, Hendon, N.W.4, Coffee 8.p.m. Lecture 3:30.p.m.

Saturday May 18th. Outing to Cambridge. Andrew Powell.

Friday June 21st/23rd. Weekend in South Cumbria. Isobel McPherson.

This is a beautiful area, seldom visited and rich in Archaeological interest. We hope to visit several prehistoric costal sites, a late Neolithic (megalithic) circle, a Bronze Age circle and three hill-sites of Pre-Roman occupation,, as well as the ruins of Furness Abbey and the extensive site at Heathwaite, which seems to have been settled first in Neolithic times, though most of the visible remains are now thought to be Early Mediaeval.

WRITING IN ROMAN BRITAIN – VINDOLANDA AND BATH …

Report on a lecture by Mark Hassell on 5th February.

The particular interest of the Vindolanda and Bath writings lies in the information they contain of ordinary people’s lives, the ordinary soldiers of the early second century in Vindolanda, and civilians of the fourth century in Bath. Roman Britain apparently lacked native authors and most Roman monumental inscriptions contain only formal information such as an individual’s status, age or career; but here in Vindolanda a soldier had written thanking for a parcel he had been sent, containing socks, two pairs of slippers and two pairs of underpants.

At least two earlier forts underlie the vici alongside the major Vindolanda fort, visible to-day near Hadrian’s Wall; the later occupation has happily sealed off these earlier forts, leaving their organic remains, in an exceptionally good state of preservation. Small pieces of wood thus preserved and excavated during the last fifteen years, have been found under close examination to be covered in fine ink writing in the old Roman cursive script. Some are letters such as the thank you for the socks and pants, or one about the 50 oysters sent to a convalescent by a friend. Others are lists of provisions, such as barley, wine, beer, fish sauce, etc; the words “per privatum” often appear on these lists, probably meaning “on private account” – are we reading here the Roman equivalent of NAAFI accounts?

Sentences such as “I write to you from winter quarters in Vindolanda” and mentions of names of people or places and dates help fill in information about this first hundred years of Roman occupation which is still a dark period in our knowledge. For example one letter referred to a visit by Marcellus a Govenor whose decorations for military valour in Britain are known from inscription elsewhere; Vindolanda must have seen heavy fighting at that time.

The richness of the Bath writings lies ‘in the details of the curses recently excavated from the hot spring. Curses were written on thin sheets of pewter, tin or lead, which were rolled up end cast into the sacred waters for the attention of the goddess Minerva. These curses also reflect the pattern of human life. For example the curse of the man who had lost his towel, and named a string of possible thieves ­perhaps they had been bathing with him when it was stolen; and a man who had lost his cloak cursed the thief up and down “whether he was a man or a woman, a slave or a free man”, the curse running on to wish various evils on him -.death, and no sleep and no children etc. until the cloak should be returned.

Other examples of informative writing included a scrap of a soldier’s diploma from which the whole document has been reconstructed by Dr. Roxan,(well-known to many HADAS Members) whom Mark Hassall named as the world authority on military diplomas.

The many such informative items detailed in the lecture help to put flesh on the skeleton of roman Britain, outlined by Archaeology, and Mark Hasall’s lively presentation gave us a vivid new picture of life at that time as seen through the eyes of the writers.

FOOTNOTE.

Members who never enjoyed one, or both, of Mark Hassall’s lectures may be interested in a short course at Oxford on The Roman Inscriptions of Britain, including lectures on the evidence from inscriptions for military organisation, for civil and civic life, religious belief and practice and one on the ‘curse tablets.’ Tutors: Dr. Graham. Webster and Dr. Roger Tomlin. This course runs from April 13th – 14th. Full residential fee £24.00. Details from The Archaeology/Local History Course Secretary, Oxford University, Department of External studies, Rewley House, 3-7,Wellington Square, Dxford. GXI 2JA.

Correspondence re “Pop Arch”

This is a happy ending.Last month we told the unfinished story – from a reader’s eye view – of the problems which were bedevilling the journal ‘Popular Archaeology.’ It hadn’t appeared since last August. we were keeping our fingers crossed that it would manage to publish its January issue, and it just made it – by a whisker. The Newsletter copy arrived from the Newsagent on January 31st.

Now we’ve had a letter from ‘Pop Arch’, which says:

“The February copy is now available, and I have Great pleasure in enclosing it. I must say how much I appreciated the comments (in your February Newsletter) regarding our magazine, and can only apologize for the omission of copies since September 1984… It is not just distribution problems which we had to contend with, but also printing and general production.I would appreciate it if you could make some mention in your next Newsletter to the effect that Popular Archaeology is alive and kicking.'”

That we’re delighted to do.

COMICS

Do you remember April Fool’s Day last year when we unveiled the plaque on Finchley Memorial Hospital to the memory of Grimaldi the clown? The vicar of the Clowns’ Church, Father Michael Shrewsbury, who was present at the unveiling writes:-

“The Sunday was drab and grey but wonderfully enlivened by the motley as once again the Clowns came to Church. On the 3rd of February some forty Clowns paid their annual visit to the Clowns’ Church, Holy Trinity, Dalston in Hackney, the headquarters of Clowns’ International and the St. Francis gallery of Clown pictures. Strictly, there were only one or two Clowns and the remainder Augustes.

The day began with the annual meeting of Clowns’ International followed by the scrimmage for corners in hall and gallery to don the motley; the greeting of old friends and the meeting of new. At 4.00pm began the great procession into Church – clouds of sweet incense, Cross, Candles, Preacher (Canon Sebastian Charles of Westminster Abbey) Clowns’ Chaplain and – of course the Clowns, one complete with huge snake!

During the Service tribute was paid to the great Grimaldi. The President of Clowns International, Ron Moody, laid a Chaplet in the Grimaldi corner while the Chaplain prayed, “God our Father, we remember before you the life of your servant known as Grimaldi the Clown, his artistry, skill and invention. Surely he helped You to touch the hearts of Your children and for this we give you thanks.” This is a Collect the Chaplain composed some years ago.

With trumpets and organ, Clowns, Clergy end congregation sang ‘Onward Christian Soldiers’ at the end of the Service while processing into the hall, for a ceremonial cutting of the Clown cake end a rousing show.”

The Vicar asked if any HADAS Members would like to go to the service and kindly said he would keep a couple of seats. We gave Sheila Milligan a ring as we thought Spike (who unveiled the plaque) might like to go. He would have done, but alas, had a TV appointment at precisely that time.

A GOOD DINNER

NELL PENNY takes another dip into parish records.

Gazing into my crystal ball can I see HADAS in 1999 celebrating the bicentennial of a Hendon Vestry dinner on April 24th 1799 at The Greyhound Inn? This re-creation will not be an elaborate exotic feast such as we have had recently, but a hearty, homely English dinner. The menu will he copied from the bill presented by Mr. Rayham, The publican to whom the parish had let the Inn; to the “Gentleman and Overseers.” These are the items:-

£. S. D.

Beef 19. 10

Pudens (in 1798 they had been Plumb Puddens.) 12. 0

Greans, Potaters and Melted Buter 3. 6

Horse Radish and Salt 3. 6

Bread and butter 3. 0

Ale 7. 3

Tob.(acco?) 8

Dressing (is this the cooking and serving charge?) 10. 0

Tea for 13 10. 0

Wine (about 10 bottles I think.) 15. 0

The business of “making a poor rate” was spread over a whole day with intervals for dinner and tea. On April 24th the vestry decided on a rate of 6d. in the pound. The money raised did not last the year; in November 1799 the leading parishioners had to declare another 6d rate. But this time they only allowed themselves tea at 10d a head, as they did every month when they met to pass the accounts of the overseers of the poor.

PROCESSING ROMAN BONES WITH IRE GREATER LONDON ARCHAEOLOGICAL UNIT by Helen Gordon.

Bones from 112 Roman skeletons ere in need of washing. Excavated last year in West Tenter Street, E.1 (Goodman Fields), they had lain in a cemetery to the east of the city wall since they had been buried there between the middle of the 2nd and the end of the 4th century AD. The graves were aligned – either parallel or at right angles – to the Roman road between Aidgote and Limehouse, leading towards the Shadwell Roman military tower.

In addition to these inhumations, the excavation revealed 13 in situ cremations (dated between. early 2nd and early 3rd century), some depositions, and the skeleton of a horse. The graves were not richly furnished (16 ceramic pots, 6 pairs of hobnailed shoes; 6 graves contained jewellery) and there were 6 “plaster” burials, the bodies being covered with calcium carbonate, possibly quicklime. A deep pit containing plaster, found nearby, was probably a “ritual pit” possibly associated with the plaster burial rites. Gravestones were conspicuous for their absence – probably re-used for building material; but two tombs were found, stone structures above ground level.

The condition of the skeletons varies enormously, some being represented by a few bone fragments only, while some are well preserved, with intact skulls and near- complete trunk and limbs. The bones are still in the cemetery earth, as excavated; they must be washed and packaged for expert examination for evidence (among other things) of disease or injury – we haven’t spotted any, though it is easy to see tooth wear or decay.

Four HADAS Members end one other are now taking part in this work on Monday day­times, in the GLAD premises at 42, Theobalds Road, near Gray’s Inn, under the kindly eye of Stephen Pierpoint and Bob Whythead; the latter will be reporting on the excavation at the Annual Conference of London Archaeologists nt the Museum of London on March 23rd

Though we are halfway through the skeletons, there is still need for more workers, regular or occasional – ring Jean Snelling, 346-3553. There is also an evening group (non-HADAS) working on Tuesdays.

COMMITTEE CORNER.

First Committee Meeting of 1985 was held on January 25th. Among matters discussed were the following:-

Our membership Secretary, Phyllis Fletcher, reported that Membership is holding up well this year. Tally to date for 1984-5 is 382 Members.

Each year the Society makes a donation to a worthy Archaeological cause. This year we decided to send £20 to the Hod Hill appeal, recently launched by the National Trust. Many Members will know this important Dorset Iron Age hillfort, later occupied by a Roman military garrison. In addition to being a scheduled ancient monument, Hod Hill has environmental claims. It is a Site of Special, Scientific Interest in on Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and includes a nature reserve. The Notional Trust has taught 67 acres of it; 50% of the cost has been met by grants, but the Trust is now appealing for the other half.

In November we reported that the Committee was discussing ways of celebrating our Silver Jubilee which falls in 1986. No detailed decisions have yet been taken, so we can’t at this stage tell you dates, places, etc: but you may like to know that discussion is centering on two possible functions. One, under some such title as ‘One Man’s Archaeology,’ is likely to be a public exhibition the other a buffet Christmas do at which the history of HADAS will play a prominent part.

A brief notice of the 1984 West Heath dig has been sent to the London Archaeologist for their annual Excavation Round-up.

HADAS will, as usual, mount a display and organise a bookstall at the Conference of London Archaeologists at the Museum of London on March 23rd.

The Committee passed a warm vote of thanks to Edgar Lewy who so willingly and at great expenditure of his own time duplicated the November, December and January issues of the Newsletter. Much thanks too to Christopher Newbury, without whose help the February issue and the up-to–date Members list would not have seen the light of day.

The Committee decided to write to the four MP’s whose constituencies cover our Borough – Sidney Chapman (Barnet), John Gorst (Hendon North), Margaret Thatcher (Finchley) and Peter Thomas (Hendon South) – drawing their attention again to the fact fact that the Bill for the abolition of the GLC makes no reference to the future of the Greater London Record Office and the associated History Library. This is a matter of the greatest concern to all those who have any interest at all in the history of the London area.

MORE ABOUT GLC ABOLITION.

As a footnote to the final item in Committee Corner, the current issue of the LAMAS Newsletter (issue 53, January, 1985) analyses the abolition Bill.

Under it the Government will take over GLC funding and management of the Museum of London. English heritage (the Historic Buildings and Monuments Commission for England) will have responsibility for certain great houses – Kenwood, Marble Hill House and Rangers House and for most of the powers of the GLC historic Buildings Division. As regards Archaeology, LAMAS has this to say:

“Although no reference is made in the Bill to Archaeology, it is

understood from letters from ministers and from written answers to questions in the House that these responsibilities will include the funding of the existing London Archaeological Service; there is as yet no indication how, or from what source, this funding is to be provided.”

The LAMAS Newsletter makes another point which is of particular interest to HADAS:

provision (in the Bills) is made for any of the other GLC functions in areas of our Society’s interests, the hundreds of other historic buildings and sites it maintains, its grants to local museums and to the London Museum Service – except that they will devolve to the London Boroughs.. If this happens Local Societies, such as those affiliated to LAMAS, will have an even greater responsibility to campaign for the maintenance and protection of Historic Buildings and Museum collections in

their own Boroughs”

Obviously, there may be changes as the Bill goes through its stages in Parliament; and clearly the debates on the Bill are going to be of considerable interest to anyone connected with history and archaeology in London.

SITE-WATCHING.

Applications for planning permission have been made recently for the following sites, which might have some archaeological interest:

land at rear of No,6 Brockley Hill. Edgeware detached house

any trenches in this area would be worth watching, if planning permission is granted, for possible Roman evidence.

Queenswell School site surplus land adjoining blocks of sheltered

Lawrence Campe almshouses, Friern Barnet Lane flats, access road

parking.

Its proximity to the Friern Barnet Lane Almshouses, (some of the oldest buildings in the Borough, built c 1612) makes this a site of possible interest

Land at rear of ‘Moorings,’ fronting onto bungalow, access

Galley Lane, Arkley.

Some 300 yds from this site, which is almost on the northern boundary of LEB, medieval pottery has been found in some quantity

51. High Street. Chipping Barnet. rear extension &

storage building

This site has figured before on our “interesting sites” list: now there is an amended development plan. Any site in Barnet High Street is of interest for possible medieval evidence.

Two outline applications for additions to Edgware General Hospital are of interest: trenches dug so near to the line of Watling Street are always worth watching. The proposed buildings are:

a day surgery

a laboratory building with ancillary facilities, near the present North London blood Transfusion Centre.

Members noticing activity on any of the above sites arc asked to inform either John Enderby (203 2630) or Christine Arnott (455 2751.)

OF PEOPLE. VARIOUS.

SHEILA WOODWARD and TESSA SMITH spent a Sunday afternoon recently at Hill House, the large, basically 18c mansion in Elstree High Street which is now owned by a charitable trust. Stephen Castle of the British Museum had kindly put HADAS in touch with the Warden, who had reported finding pottery and building material in the garden which he thought might be Roman.

Sheila and Tessa walked the kitchen garden between the vegetables but could not find anything earlier than a possible fragment of 18c pottery. however, meeting the Warden provided a useful contact for the future.

TED SAMMES has sent us news recently received from one of our founder members, IDA WORBY, who served on the HADAS Committee from its earliest days. She is now living in Bedfordshire – where .she celebrated her 88th birthday last November ­with her nephew Kenny Hunter and his wife who, she says look after me well.’ Mrs. Worby keeps in touch with HADAS activities via the Newsletter and occasional chats with another Member of long standing. TRUDIE PULER, for years her neighbour in Sheaveshill Avenue.

And from Canterbury came a letter from LOUISE DE LAULAY, a HADAS Member (and benefactor) since 1973, when she and her husband lived in Edgware. “It was while I was living at Edgware,” she wrote,”that I became acquainted with Mill Hill and Hendon. I have some 35mm transparencies which I should sort out and offer to the HAAS records – showing many changes in the use of land, buildings town down, new building. I wonder if freight still arrives at Edgware British Rail Station? And the

aerodrome at Hendon,— once during World War II I flew from Hendon to Scotland for a USA flight via the Azores. Much of Burnt Oak still held aviation history, in both plant and street names. And the Theatre at Golders Green; Pavlova’s home, which I am told at last is used as a school of ballet…”

Of people. various

Mrs. de Launay accompanied her letter with some abstracts of wills from Cranbrook, Kent, on which she hags been working. Here is just to give you an idea of the comparative value of money and goods four or so centuries .ago. It is from the Will of Henry ‘aching, proved on June 27th,1596:

To my two sisters named Damaris Paching and Joy Paching my

house and situated in Milkhouse Street in Cranbrook
parish, when my sisters are

To Damaris Paching, my standing bedstead and all things

thereto and 2 pairs of sheets.

To Joy Paching, a pewter platter, .a dish, a saucer, a salt.

To the sons of my uncle. Thos llis, .namely Daniel Ellis & Henry Ellis, £6.6.8d each, to be levied on the house & land. in Milkhouse Street.

To Robt Hasond 5a.

To John Hermden, .5s.

To Rich. Akers, 5s.

To John Ridings my cloak and a pair of- sheets.

To the poor of Milkhouse, 5s.

My Exec. shall bestow the sum of £1 at my burial.

Exec: Morgan Boreman. Nicholas Hughes.& Wm. Potter.
AND OF FACES. ROMAN.

It was a real pleasure to open the 1984 voIume of Britannia (one. of the two journals published by the Society for the Promotion of Roman Studies) and to find in it n paper by ex—HADAS Member, Gill. Braithwaite, who joined the Society. in 197’ and resigned in 1982 when her husband was posted to the British Embassy in Washington. She dug enthusiastically at West Heath for three seasons, and also studied at the Institute of Archaeology, obtaining a 1st class degree in 1982 before departing for the States.

Her Britannia paper (vol XV 1984, 99-131) is on Romano—British Face Pots and Head Pots, and was originally part of her BA dissertation. The distribution map which accompanies it shows that the finds of face pots closest to our area occur (Verulamium) and Enfield. They belong to a group which Mrs. Braithwaite describes as being in the ‘pinkish—buff sandy ware of the region (that is, the w that is so familiar at Brockley Hill, though we know. of no face pots from there). She dates the earliest pots in this group to AD 120–160: and says:

“The earliest examples … have eyebrows. merging into a plain rim, with a stabbed beard and two pierced spouts,.but the. commonest, and seemingly

later type, c. AD 150-220, no eyebrows, beards or spouts, but three
handles equi—spaced round a frilled or rouletted rim..::,It seems possible that these handles, attached to the rim, which are so. characteristic of British second-century face pots, may have evolved from ,earlier spouts. Sherds- of around 20.to 30 vessels, as :well as one complete face pot, have been found at Verulamium, inccluding seven or eight from a recently excavated bath—house. Other examples have been found at Enfield, Bancroft Villa, Welwyn Baldock, and an unprovenanced pot is in the Ashmolean.”

AND OF FACES, ROMAN

Face pots are decorated with the masklike features of a face (brows, nose, eyes, ears, mouth, sometimes beard) applied to the wall of the pot, usually occupying the top half between maximum girth and rim. Faces are found mainly on jars of cooking-pot type, which can be with or without handles, with plain or frilled rims, or with or without rouletting, cordoning or grooving. Head pots, on the other hand, are moulded more or loss in the shape of a head with naturalistically portrayed features.’ Gill Braithwaite suggests that the two forms derive from different traditions– the face pots from the masks of Celtic and Germanic art, the head pots from the classical world.. There are no known examples of head pots from our area, the nearest found being from Colchester.The paper does not cover face-neck flagons, which are of later date. An example of. a face-neck flagon was found by HADAS at Church Terrace, Hendon, in 1974 and was published by Ted Sammes in Trans. LAMAS Vol 28,1977,272-3. Mrs Braithwaite suggests that face-neck flagons would be ‘well worth a separate study of their own. We congratulate Gill warmly on a most interesting paper, which received a well-deserved CBA publication grant. We have been able to give you only a taste of it here – should you have the chance you will find it well worth reading in full.

THE COPTHALL PROPOSALS.

Among HADAS’s valued corporate Members is the Kill Hill Historical Society. John Collier, MHHS Hon. Secretary, has sent us a copy of a letter which he is currently circulating for the Longfield Area Residents Association, as he thinks HADAS Members, particularly in the Mill Hill and Hendon districts will be interested. He writes:

“When we lasts raised the matter of the proposed Copthall Sports Stadium most people whom we contacted were against .it.

The Barnet Council’s Planning Committee has now approved the proposition in spite of opposition both inside and outside the Council. After its recommendations have been passed to the full Council … the matter will then be .considered by the GLC.

· The next step would be a Ministerial Public Enquiry.

It is at this present stage that we think decisive action should be taken by those against the scheme.. If you agree

(a) that it is wanton intrusion on the Green Belt,

(b) it will degrade the area for miles around and

(c) it will create tremendous and dangerous traffic problems

· on our already overloaded roads, then we urge you to write immediately to:‑

Mr. George Nicholson

Chairman, Planning Committee Members Lobby,

Greater London Council, The County Hall,

London S.W.1 7PB.

expressing your opposition, giving your reasons for doing so and asking him to reject the scheme.”-

Further information, if required, can be obtained from Mr. Collier at ­47, Longfield Avenue, N.W.7. 2EH (203-2611).

Newsletter No 168: February 1985

WHAT’S ON IN HADAS

Tues Feb 5 ‘(not Feb 9, as misprinted in the January Newsletter) Writing in Roman Britain: Evidence from Vindolanda and Bath By Mark Hassall MA FSA

Mark Hassall is a lecturer at the Institute of Archaeology and is known:to many of our members. We particularly remember his entertaining and informative lecture in February, 1980, on the ::o an ‘Codex Spirensia’ – in other words, Roman red tape, a commodity which was as.evident then as it is now. This year he will talk to us about further evidence of Roman writing which has come to light at Vindolanda and Bath.

Tues March 5 Our annual Constantinides lecture, this time on the West Heath excavations of 1976-81

By Daphne Lorimer

Tues Apr 2 Aerial Photography Christopher Stanley

Tues May 14 Annual General Meeting

All the above will take place at Central Library, The Burroughs, Hendon NW 4. Coffee 8 pm, lecture 8.30.

Sat May 18 Outing to Cambridge led by Andrew Powell

Fri/Sun June 21/23 Weekend in south Cumbria ” “- Isobel McPherson

AND WHAT’S ON ELSEWHERE

Tues Feb 8-24. Last year oral historians had a festival of their own which was so successful that it is to be repeated this year for a full fortnight. Organised by the Exploring Living Memory Group at the Royal Festival Hall, it will include workshops, exhibits, stalls, discussions, films and videos. Groups from all over London who are interested in taping oral history and reminiscences are in­vited to attend. Contact Mona, Rodney or Gemma at 42 Queen Square, WC1 for further details – phone 831 8871.

Thur Feb 14 at 8 pm, Burgh House, New End Square, NW3.

The monthly lecture of the Hampstead Scientific Society will be on ‘New Developments in Radiocarbon Dating’ by Dr Robert Hedges of Oxford University. Visitors welcome, admission

Sat Feb 16. The next CBA Group conference will be on ‘The Impact of Metal: Gold, Bronze, Iron, with special reference to Southern Britain,’ at St John’s College, Cambridge. Speakers will include Professor Colin Renfrew, Professor John Coles and. Dr John Alexander. Tickets (£3 including coffee) from Mrs J Pullinger, 31 Rustat Road, Cambridge CB1 3QR, by Feb 9 (include a sae)

WHAT’S HAPPENED TO “ POPULAR ARCAHAEOLOGY”

“Popular archaeology” is/was (and it’s a measure of the of the problem we’re discussing that we don’t know which tense to use.) a lively monthly magazine which many HADAS members must know. It began publication in July 1979, under the prestigious editorship of Magnus Magnusson with Professor Barri Jones of Manchester University as associate editor.

From the outset it seemed to find a niche which no one else had quite filled. It was to the world of archaeological journals what Shire books are to book publishing using material simply and clearly written and brightly presented with many pictures, so that the uninitiated could understand and enjoy it; yet with enough hard fact, and the ability to find the unexpected story, so that even the insiders had to watch it in case some nugget of information slipped by. A good example of the kind of article no one would want to miss (be he never so academic) was Professor Martin Biddle’s exposition, in the July 1984 issue, of the positioning of the settlement of Anglo-Saxon London along the Strand in the 7th-9th centuries AD.

The magazine was obtainable either through local newsagents (that was how the Newsletter’s copy came) or on subscription. When the magazine stopped coming, we complained. The newsagent went into action, at first without result. Finally he came up with the fact that no issues had been published after August 1984.

The August issue had been perfectly normal, with all the usual features, including and expanding “Spoilheap” news paragraphs, letters, boor reviews and many longer articles on such subjects as Peruvian archaeology (its international flavor was one of the magazine’s attractions) on the use of statistics in archaeology and on the history of boats. Not a word, syllable or suggestion in that issue that the magazine was about to sink without trace like a Marie Celeste of the journalistic world.

We couldn’t believe it, so we rang the “Pop. Arch” office in Bath. What’s going on? we asked. There was a heavy pause. “Well,” said a slightly hesitant voice, There’s been a hiatus….” (that’s a familiar factor in the newspaper world).

“ Do you mean you haven’t completely stopped publication?” we asked. “Oh no,” the voice became more confident. “We haven’t published since August, it’s true, but we’re sure going to get the January issue out.”

Well, as this is written, it’s the third week in January and we haven’t seen any sign of “Pop Arch” yet. We’re keeping our fingers crossed – because without it that niche is going to look very empty.

THE HEROES OF REGENTS PARK. The HADAS January lecture is reported by JOHN CREIGHTON.

Despite snow and ice which hindered many-members from attending, ‘a small, cold, but cheery band turned up to listen to Dr Anne Satnders ­third talk on the history and development of the parish of Tyburn, which by the end of the lecture had emerged as the Regents Park we know today,for Dr Saunders the story had three heroes: John Fordyce, the Prince Regent and of course John Nash.

In 1760 on the accession of George III all the crown ‘estates, which included the parish of Tyburn,. were transferred from the King’s direct control to that of a government commission on woods, forests and land revenues; It was in 1788 that John Fordyce, a civil servant from Aberdeen, found himself on this board and realised what a potentially valuable site they had on their hands. London was expanding and only the fact that this land was crown property had prevented its development so far.

A competition was announced to design plans for it and for the creation of a road to link the site with Westminster; the prize being £1000. Unfortunately there were only three entries, all by the same man, John White, surveyor to the Duke of Portland who owned the estate directly to the south. His plans basically proposed a mere extension of the existing pattern of streets around it. Fordyce was unimpressed and categorically refused any development on the site, waiting for what he thought to be the right time and the right plan.

Next Dr Saunders turned to the Prince Regent who, with his tremendous creative flare, she thought he might well have become a film set designer had he been alive today.’ He watched Napoleon recreating and moulding Paris, and saw the development of Mary-le-bone Park as his opportunity to do the same for London. Through landscape gardener Humphrey Repton he found the man for the job – John Nash.

Nash’s early career had not been a great success: becoming bankrupt in London he went to Wales on all kinds of jobs from design­ing gaols to working on country houses. After, meeting the Prince and building Brighton Pavilion his standing rose and he was appointed as an architect on the woods, forests and land revenues commission.

Fordyce had died in 1809, but it was apparent that Nash, with his patron behind him, was the man for the job. An ‘in house’ competition was organised between the commission’s surveyors, Leverton and Chawner, and the architects Nash and Morgan. Nash’s scheme appeared: both the more pleasing and the most Profitable. He envisaged a combination of the crescents of Bath, the terraces of Edinburgh and the town houses of London, all surrounding a landscaped park scattered with over fifty villas.

His financial calculations showed that the laying out of the park would cost £12000 with the annual income from the leases to build the terraces and villas being £54000. The Treasury gave their assent, although stipulating a reduced number of 26 villas. In 1811 the first trees were planted. However there was trouble ahead: it was war time and with the possibility of Napoleon invading no one in their right mind wanted to invest in land. None of the leases would sell, the only exception being the land on which the Queen’s Head and Artichoke stood, which the tenant publican purchased. Another problem emerged about the projected canal whose water source promptly ran out.

In 1815 Waterloo brought the war to an end; but things did not look up until in 1818 another Scotsman, James Burton, took an interest, believing that there would soon be a property boom. He was right; by 1825 all the leases had been sold and were being developed and the park took off.

Nash’s plans were not fully realised as not all the prospective villas were built; that is probably just as well, for the Park would have been much more cluttered than it is. Terraces were never built to the north, instead it was decided to hand over a plot either to a zoological garden or to London University. Apparently general feeling was that lions were preferable to students any day, so the Zoological Society found its home.

Dr Saunders, finished the evening with some slides showing scenes from a particularly outlandish villa called St Dunstans, built for the Marquess of Hertford by James Burton’s son Decius. The building, alas, is no longer with us, however paintings show the garden to have been scattered with Roman antiquities and one of the interiors to have been modelled on an Arabian tent.

Alto ether a most enjoyable evening.

OBITUARY

All who were in at the start of the West Heath dig in 1976 will remember one of our most enthusiastic diggers of those days – ‘Pip’ Sanders – and will be sad to hear of her death.

Pip joined the Society in 1973, already an experienced amateur archaeologist who had worked for some years with the Southwark society. She took part in the Church Terrace dig and then West Heath, but a major operation in summer 1977 prevented further active work.

Although she remained a member, we heard little from her of recent years, and know that her health was declining. Last month Pip’s sister, Mrs Helen Church, wrote:

“My sister died in early December after a long illness and much suffering. The last eighteen months was spent in the Marie Curie Nursing Home in Hampstead where she was wonderfully looked after, with great care and love, by the entire staff.

She had been almost completely immobile for the last 13 months, with only the use of her right hand. Her brain was still alert though, and she still took a great interest in all her old hobbies. We used to read as much as possible of the Newsletter to her.

Would you pass the news to anyone who you think would be interested? Pip was cremated at Golders Green, and we had her ashes buried at the old parish church of St John in Hampstead. She had worked for the Medical Research Council at Hampstead and Mill Hill for forty years.”

All Pip’s friends will, we know, want to join in sending our sympathy to Mrs Church.

HOW RIPPLES FROM WEST HEATH SPREAD

The effects of West Heath Phase I continue to widen out like ripples on a pond. In November Nature published a report on the joint meeting in Oxford last autumn of the Botanical Society of the British Isles and the Association for Environmental Archaeology (Nature vol. 312, 8 Nov 1984, p103). The headline on the report was ‘Hampstead Heath clue to historical decline of elms’ and one of the high spots of the meeting was clearly Maureen Girling’s announcement of the discovery of wing cases from an interesting beetle in sediments just 10 cm below the elm decline at a site on Hampstead Heath, London. The beetle she identifies as Soolytus scolytus, the carrier of the fungus, Ceratocystis ulmi, that is the cause of Dutch elm disease.”

The report continues: “The proposal that the decline of elm 5000 years ago was the product of a disease is not in itself new … It has became increasingly attractive, even compulsive, as we have observed the recent effects of Dutch elm disease on elm populations. But healthy speculation foods tenon circumstantial evidence and here, at last, we seem to have it. If the beetle vector was here 5000 years ago, perhaps the disease was too. Was the sudden onset of the disease the result of early forestry? And how do we explain the concurrent decline in some other trees, such as lime? The answers are still not clear, and can never be entirely testable, but the new evidence will provide the necessary momentum for renewed vigour in an old debate. A few days later Radio 4’s Science Now programme also got into the act, no doubt picking up its information from Nature. It spread the news of Scolytus scolytus’s activities on Hampstead Heath further afield.

MORE ABOUT MICROFICHE

We have had some reaction from members who have views on the increasing use of microfiche – a subject which was aired in the last Newsletter. One phone call was terse and to the point. ‘If More microfiche means less of the monumental turgidity that now bogs down:
archaeological reports,’ it said, ‘for pete’s sake let’s have a lot more microfiche.’

PADDY MUSGROVE put it more elegantly. “Readers of the January Newsletter are asked ‘What do you think of microfiche?'” he wrote. “The printed text must obviously be sufficiently detailed to enable the reader to evaluate the evidence on which the excavator’s conclusions are based, but most readers would probably be content to learn, for example that a certain hoard contained 237 coins dated between this and that. The numismatist, of course, may wish to consult the Microfiche, but how often will this need occur? When it does, the academic will almost certainly have a microfiche reader readily avail­able. Others might well try having a word with a friendly local librarian.

The advantages of cutting down on long lists of similar artifacts and the like which -‘let’s be honest– not one reader in a hundred will ever study in detail, are clear. Savings in shelf-space, paper, energy and hard cash should lead to funds being available for more and improved reports on other sites.”

Paddy also suggested that we ask the Borough Librarian whether, in moments of crisis (which are likely to be pretty rare) HADAS members might take a fiche into their local library and ask to use the reading machine there. This seemed an excellent idea, so we had a word with Mr Ruddom.

He told us that all branch libraries in the Borough (there are some 21 or 22, we believe) have fiche-reading facilities, because the Libary catalogue itself is on fiche. Some of the smaller branches, however, have only one machine, on the main desk, for readers who want to consult the catalogue, so there might be problems in taking in fiche material that you wanted to pore over for some time. Larger libraries have several machines – Hendon has 7 in different parts of the library, Church End Finchley has 4 or 5.

In Mr. Ruddom’s opinion the libraries would want to help with this problem. He suggested the best procedure would be for a would-be fiche user to give the nearest largish library a ring, explain the difficulty and ask if there was any time when it would be convenient for the librarian to make a machine available. Every effort, he thought, would be made to provide the required reading facility.

NEWS FROM MEMBERS

Early in January GEORGE INGRAM’s granddaughter rang up to say that George had had a further eye operation in Edgware General Hospital. He had come through it well but would not know how successful the surgery had been until the eye recovered sufficiently for a new pair of spectacles to be fitted. A few days later George himself rang to say he was out of hospital and hoped fairly soon to go for a couple of weeks convalescence. “My bad eye has become, for the moment, my good eye,” he said, “but I’m not blind I can see enough to dial your
number, and I can read the HADAS members list if I hold it at the right angle and about four inches away …” HADAS sends George its very best wishes – and its hope that-when the new glasses come, the reading problems will move away.

Our Treasurer, VICTOR JONES, is becoming ‘peripatetic -‘the eternal traveller. He’s gone off again to southern India, this time accompanied by his daughter, for a trip lasting some 31/2 weeks. They plan to visit Delhi on the way back.

HOMO ERECTUS – NEW AND FULLER EVIDENCE FROM CHINA

AUBREY HODES, who has sent us several interesting despatches from his outpost in China, accompanied his last letter with some cuttings from the English language China Daily, describing the discovery of new evidence for Homo erectus.. There has been some reference to this most important find – which provides much fresh material about the evolution of man – in the British press, but we have not seen anything as full as the China Daily report, which is by Professor Lu Zun’er, the Director of the excavating team. We therefore make no apology for quoting liberally from it, and we thank the China Daily for its full and excellent coverage and Aubrey for his kindness in sending the cuttings.
Here are the details:

The unprecedented discovery of almost all the vital bones of Homo erectus, believed to give scientists important clues in their research on the species of man dating from 200,000 to one million years ago, was made in late September and early October at Jinniu Shan (gold Ox Hill) in Yinkou County, Liaoning Province.,

The Solitary hill, nearly 70 metres above sea level, is made of limestone, marble and other rock. In a 1974 survey of ancient relics scattered throughout the province fossils were found on six spots on the hill.

Archaeologists from the provincial relics bureau discovered a great number of fossils of mammals, a few stone tools, burned animal bones and carbon remains. The eight-member team (from the Archaeology Dept of Beijing University, under Lu Zun’er, vice-dean of the University Archaeology Dept) first focused their work on the cave on the southern slope. A kneecap was found on Sept 27. Soon the team discovered the bones of the heel, toes, a metatarsal (instep) bone, carpal (wrist) bones, metacarpals and phalanges (fingers and toes) in the cave.

The well-preserved fossilised head was found on October 2 stuck among breccia (stones cemented together). The head bones were picked out after three days. Meanwhile, parts of the spine, ribs, ulna (an arm bone) and hip were also uncovered.

Also unearthed were fossils of the thick-jawed deer, wild boar, brown bear, hyena, tiger, wolf, rhinoceros, macaque and rodents.

Evidence of the use of fire, such as burned clay, carbon and burned animal bones have led us to believe that the cave was the “ape-man’s” home.

Judging by the fossils of the thick-jawed deer and sabre-toothed tiger, which are more than 200,000 years old, the geological age of the site is the mid-Pleistocene epoch and the fossils of Homo erectus found there are as old as those of Peking Man, dating from 200,000- 600,000 years ago. However, the exact aged, is still to be decided through a Series of tests.

Fossils of Homo erectus have been found at more than eight places in China but they are mostly bones of the skull, lower jaw, a few teeth and other fragments.:

The discovery in Yinkou is a breakthrough because, except for the lower jaw, all the head bones were found and bones of the spine, ulna, ribs, hands and feet wore all found for the first time anywhere.

The fossils have aroused great attention among top Chinese archaeologists and anthropologists. They provide ‘rich and all-round material’ for research on Human evolution, and have been hailed as one of the most important archaeological finds in China in the last 50 years.

Because of the shortage of first-hand data, previous speculation about the upright posture and walking gait of Homo erectus was based on studies of fossils of apes, living apes and modern man.

The discovery of bones of the spine, ribs, hip, kneecap feet in Yinkou thus become the direct and most reliable material in this field of research. Bones of the hands and ulna, spine and hip are indispensable for research on early man’s ability to move the upper body and, to use his hands in working, especially in making tools.

The completeness of the head bones (including the whole skull, cheek bones and teeth) will provide more reliable data for reconstruct­ing the facial features of Homo erectus, for studying brain capacity and for looking into the relationship between tooth wear and age.

Professor Lu is of the opinion that more bones of Homo erectus may await discovery at Gold Ox Hill, in a cave near the foot of the slope.

*Note: the remains of Peking, Man were found some 57 years ago,

also in a cave-site, at Zhoukoudian, near Beijing, about 400 kilometres southwest of the Yinkou find site.

SITE-WATCHING

The following sites – which might be of some archaeological interest – have appeared on recent planning application lists:

Land at rear Brockley Hill,

No 3 Pipers Green Lane detached house

(any trenches cut in this area are worth watching

for possible Roman interest)

Hoppings timber yard, High Road, N20 warehouse, offices,

parking (outline)

(a site on an old road and near a road junction)

54 Ashley Lane, Hendon NW4 6 houses, access road, extension

of metalling of Ashley Lane

(Ashley Lane is another old road. George Cavendish, in his Life of Wolsey – pub. 1557 – describes the Cardinal staying overnight at Hendon Place with the Abbot of Westminster and then setting off for York with his train of servants, going along Ashley Lane, along the Ridgeway and up Highwood Hill.

Other cause for interest in the area is that the Roman road of which HADAS found part on its way across Copthall Fields might, had its suggested line been extended, have reached Ashley Lane near the place of this development).

St Mary’s Croft Fortune Lane, Elstree erection of conservatory

(trenches in the Elstree area are always worth looking at because of Roman connections)

Hadley Memorial Hall Hadley Highstone, demolition of non-listed

Barnet building & erection of new ‘hall

(another archaeologically sensitive area of the Borough because of its connections with the Battle of Barnet)

Any member who, when passing one of the above sites, notices signs of demolition or building work, is asked to let either John Enderby (203 2630) or Christine Arnott (455 2751) know.

Development has been approved by the Borough on two sites in which the Society is interested:

Old Fold Golf Club: car parking for 42 vehicles approved, following landscaping. This work will be close to one of the two medieval moats in our Borough and there is also the site of a possible Medieval fish-pond.

16 Grass Park, Finchley: an extension approved. This area is near the site of the medieval Grotes Farm (see Newsletter 163, p 5).

THE GOLDEN AGE OF ANGLO–SAXON ART by TED SAMMES

This exhibition opened at the British Museum on Nov 9 and will run until March 10 next. It covers the century between 966-1066 AD ‑ the last century of Anglo-Saxon England. The display is in the new wing, gallery entrance is £2; or senior citizens and some others £1.

In 966 King Edgar refounded the New Minster at Winchester and this forms the starting point for the exhibition.

Prominent amongst the exhibits is the gold and enamelled Alfred’s Jewel.’ This, like many other items, has a small cubical case to itself, and can be examined from all sides.

I think I was most impressed by the number and quality of the manuscripts. Despite their age, the colours are still clear. It is difficult to give examples, but the page from the Copenhagen Gospels and a map of the world, part of a collection of mathematical and astronomical texts, shows the level of non-liturgical learning at that period. Of interest too is an illustrated herbal made up of material of the llth-13th centuries. There are also part of a bell foundry mould and a comprehensive collection of coins.The book which accompanies the exhibition is a textbook in itself, profusely illustrated and costing £7.50

And if you are hooked on Anglo-Saxon Art, you may like to know that this will be the subject of one of the Madingley Hall residential study weekends recently announced by the Cambridge Extramural Board. It will be held from Sept 20-22, with Dr Isabel Henderson as lecturer, at fee of £45. -Further details from Madingley Hall, Madingley, Cambridge.

SUMMER STUDY TOURS

Incidentally, the Cambridge Board of Extra-Mural Studies has a very varied programme. Most of its one-day and residential courses are based at 16th c Madingley Hall, 4 miles outside Cambridge; but it also runs non-Madingley courses and this year has added some interesting Foreign Study Tours to its list:

The Archaeology of Brittany and Poitou – MAY 2 weeks

Roman Provence, early September, one week

The Greek Cities of Asia Minor September 2 weeks

Ancient China August 11 – Sept 1st

Brochures with further details obtainable from the Warden at Madingley.

NEW MEMBERSHIP LIST

Enclosed with this Newsletter you will find a new membership list, giving details of everyone who is a member at January 1, 1985. The list is circulated to all members every two years; in the intervening year, although a new membership list is prepared, it is sent only to those who specifically ask for it, and to new members.

It would be kind if you would check your own entry. Should there be any mistake please give Phyllis Fletcher, our Membership Secretary a ring and let her know. You’ve no idea how difficult it is to type absolutely correctly a list of several hundred names, addresses and phone numbers!

SOCIETY FOR LANDSCAPE STUDIES

This Society was formed in 1979 to bring together all who are interested in the evolution of the landscape, and to encourage a wider enthusiasm for landscape studies in general. It deals with all periods from the Geological to the present, but pays special attention to features produced or modified by man.

Membership costs £9 per annum (students under 25 and 0AP’s £5.50). For this you get the society’s journal, Landscape History and a Newsletter. The programme includes an Annual Lecture and a residential weekend conference.

‘Further details obtainable from the society’s secretary, A J R Wood, Sites & Monuments Record, County Architect’s Dept, County Hall, Beverley, Humberside, HU17 9BA.

NEWSLETTER No. 167 JANUARY 1985

Anno novo faustum felix tibi sit

HADAS DIARY

Tuesday 8th January 1985 John Nash, the Hero of Regents Park by Dr .Ann Saunders

We all recall the two memorable lectures by Dr. Saunders which have traced the history of Marylebone from 1530 ­when Oxford Street was the road to Oxford – to the Dissolution when Henry VIII took 550 acres north of the village of Marylebone for hunting (the area now called Regents Park). Later, when royal money ran out, trees were felled and the land let as small-holdings until the inception of Nash’s plan for a residential estate and public park.

Tuesday 9 February 1985 Writing in Roman Britain- Evidence from Vindolanda and Bath by Mark Hassall

Tuesday 5 March 1985 West Heath Excavation: Daphne Lorimer

Tuesday 2 April 1985 Aerial Photography Christopher Stanley

AN INVITATION, has come from our colleagues in the North-west London branch of the Historical Association. Their February lecture may, they feel, be of particular interest to HADAS members. On Thursday, 21 February Gareth Davies, Director of the Verulamium Museum, will be speaking to them about Roman St.Albans. The NW London branch meets at Westfield College, Kidderpore Avenue, NW3 at 8pm, and HADAS members are cordially invited to attend this meeting as guests.

ABSENT FRIENDS

One of the most pleasant things at this time of year is that we often have news of HADAS members who live further afield. One of our Vice-Presidents, DAISY HILL, who was secretary of the Society in the late 1960s, sent us a Christmas card from Derbyshire. She moved to Chesterfield some years ago and now reports that she has settled very happily there. “I do so enjoy reading the ‘Arc’ Newsletter”, she writes, “so I really feel I should send something for the postage.” She enclosed a donation of £5, which is most welcome both to the Editor and to the Hon. Treasurer:

Nice to have a card, too, and good wishes to the Society, from another member of long standing. RONALD BEVAN, who joined us in 1975, retired to Canterbury some little time ago and has kept up his subscription because he too enjoys the Newsletter.

AUBREY HODES, now a teacher at Hua Qiao University in China, must be our farthest-flung member. We had a card from him too, in an exotic envelope with 8 pictorial stamps showing everything from the Great Wall to a bunch of chrysanthemums, a lake village to a modern looking train on a viaduct, Aubrey sends best wishes to all the friends he has made in HADAS since he joined in 1979. You will remember that we had some news of him via JUNE PORGES in the November Newsletter, Now he adds some more – including what he had just eaten for an ordinary Chinese lunch: ” a whole crab each, then a stew of goat, noodles and cabbage, followed by satsumas. I’m enjoying the food:” He enclosed some interesting cuttings from the China Daily, an English language Chinese newspaper and we hope to have space to quote from them in a later Newsletter.

PROCESSING HELPERS WANTED

The October Newsletter published an SOS from the Greater London Archaeological unit asking for volunteers to help with their backlog of processing work – particularly finds from the excavation of a Roman cemetery at Tenter Street and from the Clerkenwell nunnery. Two experienced HADAS members Hwlen Gordon,and Jean Snelling, have offered to lend a hand, and they start work on the first Monday in January. They propose to spend from 10.15 – 4pm each Monday thereafter at 42 Theobalds Road, WC1, where the GLA unit is based. Their work will be mainly cleaning and marking bones from the Roman cemetery.

Offers of help from other HADAS members either occasionally or as regular Monday assignment – would be most welcome. If you would like to offer, please give Jean Snelling a ring on 346 3553.

FANS

HADAS member Myrtle Levy sends news of a course in an unexpected subject which she feels may be of interest to members. It consists of. 10 lectures by Anthony Sackville on Antique. European Fan, which will take-place on Wednesdays, starting on January 16, at 6.30 – 8.30pm, at the City University, Northampton Square, EC1.

Fans may sound a far cry from dirt archaeology, but Mrs Levy puts a powerful case, for their: value as documentary evidence.. “These folding paintings carried by aristocratic ladies are a perfect marriage of history and art!’ she says. “It’s staggering how much information you can glean from the detailed study of a fan.” The cult of the fan in ‘Europe (and this course confines itself to European fans) reached its peak in France.

‘

Lectures will be illustrated with slides which, says Mrs. Levy, “are really exquisite”

. .

Further details can be obtained from Barbara Zanditon, 253 4393 (ext. 3252), who will

also provide information about a similar daytime course on the subject at the Barbican

SITE-WATCHING

Proposed extensions to two buildings in historic areas of the Borough were included in recent planning application lists. They were ,

51 High Street, Chipping Barnet a 2-story rear extension & single story storage

building

Five Bells Public House. 165 East side and rear extensions, partly for new

End Road, East Finchley restaurant

If members happen to be passing these sites and see any building preparations, please

let either Christie Arnott (455,2751) or John Enderby (203 2630) know ‘as we might like to take sites

Committee Corner

The Committee met at the end of November. The following ‘matters, among many were discussed:

The membership Secretary reported that the number of members at the end Novemeber1, 1984 almost exactly equalled the figure at the same time last year: In fact we were one up in1984 with.367 instead of 366 members. This is interesting becausee both counts were taken after the names of all those who had not paid their ‘Annual sub. then 7 months overdue had been deleted.

It was noted that in the the last 18 months or so we had lost – for various reasons the majority of the excellent team of photographers who had once been available to photograph digs, buildings and events for the Society. The Committee resolved to try to rebuild its photographic team and any member interested in helping in this work is asked to let the Hon. Secretary (959 5982) know.

The Committee heard with regret that the Department of the Environment has refused to list various historic timber buildings of Grahame White’s original Hendon Aerodrome.

A report from the Excavation Working Party tabled at the meeting mentioned the Society’s interest in and preliminary investigation of a possible excavation site in Chipping Barnet.

It was agreed that HADAS should ask the Borough to oppose a request from a Hert­fordshire metal detecting society to operate on the archaeologically sensitive Elstree Open Space.

GOING TO SCHOOL IN EAST BARNET

The Barnet & District Local History Society has just produced No. 23 in its series of occasional bulletins on special subjects. This time it is five pages devoted to Education In East Barnet in the 19th century, by Gillian Gear – who with Diana Goodwin, published a pamphlet on the general history of East Barnet village some years’ ago. The leaflet summarises a longer study by the author, the material for which is available to researchers at Barnet Museum.

Extensive use is made of the 1851/61/71 Censuses. Among the events which followed the 1871 Education Act was the building of a new school in 1871-2. It’s interesting that the school was promptly inspected by that most famous of HMIs, Matthew Arnold, who reported in July 1872 “This district (he included New Barnet) contains 2400 inhabitants of whom 3/11ths are of the class whose children may be expected to attend elementary school. School accommodation ought to be provided for 417 children”.

The Bulletin is illustrated with a centre spread of three photographs, but alas these have reproduced poorly

CHRISTMAS PARTY 1984 Report by Queen Nefertari, wife of Ramasses II

‘An Arabian Night’ maybe – definitely ‘A Night to Remember’. Yes, HADAS has done it again.

Christmas started a little earlier this year for some 70 members who enjoy a good feast and dressing up to embellish the Eastern setting. Our thanks to Dorothy Newbury, her choice of venue, The Meritage Club next to St: Mary’s Church, Hendon proved ideal.

Admirably disguised with Ali Baba posters painted by Mary Spiegelhalter, who now resides in Devon – she and her husband were special guests. Other artistic adornments to add Eastern atmosphere were created by Brian and Rosemary Wibberley – a mass of red candles glowed romantically, and although we didn’t tarry till Midnight’s hour, no ghosts appeared from the hallowed ground beneath (hallowed, of course, because dug by HADAS).

A well equiped spacious kitchen for our team of tireless cooks, with a long-open hatch for another, team of equally tireless, slaves to sprint back and forth from, enticing us with such. Eastern Delights as Sanbusak, Dolmades., Moussaka, Munkaczina and Cacik to name but a few of the 16 or so exotic dishes to tax out taste-buds to the full. The quality was such that I’m sure Egon Ronay would gladly have pinned a few more stars on the walls. So our thanks too to the absent cooks who slaved over their stoves at home on our behalf.

John Enderby masquerading as a rather shady Arab played a dual role of Master of Ceremonies and Bacchus. One aided impeccable programme timing, the other guaranteed no one a desert thirst, after some .7 or 8 delicacies our gastronomical capacities were given a welcome respite whilst being delightfully entertained by two Belly Dancers – recording to John “Hot in from Riyadh” (which is Arabic for Stoke Newington). Perhaps I shouldn’t disillusion our men-folk, but the two blonde bomb-shells, Sheri and Chantal, are a mother and daughter act (don’t ask me which is which). Hardly surprising, they had three other engagements that night: Need I say more ?

A few dishes later we had more entertainment announced by Christine Arnott – a young man full of self aplomb, one James Haythorn (pronounced Haw) a pupil of St. Paul’s

School, who has quite obviously, a guaranteed future in the ‘World of Magic’. As our Chairman Brian Jarman commented in his ‘wind-up’ speech, certain TV celebrities (mentioning no names of course – well, not a lot) had better watch out. Appropriately, our esteemed treasurer Vic Jones, dressed as Lawrence of Arabia (or was it a Carmelite Friar?) was the selected victim who had a £1 note deviously burned. Vic was astute enough to sign away HADAS funds rather than his own. Fortunately, by some stroke of magic the HADAS £1 turned up unharmed in a sealed container untouched by magic hands, so happily We remain solvent.

An Eastern-dress parade rounded off a highly enjoyable evening. Much imagination and artistic ingenuity had produced a fascinating diversity of costumes, making a ‘winner’ difficult to choose. Helena Nash how ever won the day with a brilliant Egyptian cobra head -dress and gilded collar. The mens’ prize went to another of our special guests, also, would you believe it, specially up from Devon – our celebrated ‘previous’ West Heath Dig Director, Desmond Collins resplendent in embroidered attire plus fez.

Lastly, and very far from least, all our thanks go to the MASTERMIND who dreamed up and worked out the whole proceedings – who else but Brigid Grafton Green. Obviously brigid, THIS IS YOUR LIFE.

ALL ABOUT ROMAN POTTERY KILNS

An important publication for Roman kiln-studies is The Pottery Kilns of Roman Britain by Vivien G. Swan – No.5 in the Supplementary Series of the Royal Commission on Historical Monuments. It is finely produced and well-illustrated. It begins with a short history of Romano British kiln studies and goes on to the siting and distribution of kilns. Illustrations at this point include two multi-coloured maps of solid and drift geology; black and white maps showing kiln distribution (a) by century from 1st – 4th centuries; (b) by kiln type, according to the kind of floors (bar or solid), the shape and number of flues (single or double) and large-scale black and white maps of specific regions. (The East Midlands map includes Verulamium, Brockley Hill, Highgate Wood and London).

Then comes a chapter on techniques of kiln building and operation; another on the features associated with kiln-sites (pits for levigating clay, platforms for mixing it, workshops, kick-wheels, pivot stones for wheels, etc.) There is a particularly interesting chapter on the transition of kiln structures and techniques from the late Iron Age to the later 1st Century AD, followed by excellent isometric drawings, starting with Belgic kilns from the Nene valley and the Upchurch marshes and going through to 4c. Oxfordshire kilns.

There are chapters on pottery manufacture in the Conquest period: on the major regional industries; on non-speciallist regional kiln-types and where kiln studies should go in the future. Appendix A provides an 18-page list of kiln sites, county by county and a back-pocket in the volume carries 6 sheets of microfiche gazetteer giving further details of each site.

Appendix B gives recommendations for preservation of kiln sites. Many HADAS members, particularly those in the Roman Group, will be interested in some quotes from it, for instance: “Very few kiln sites remain unploughed. Even fewer have extant earthworks, such as waster heaps, and many factories must have been cleared up and levelled immediately after they ceased operation. Most uneroded or undisturbed kiln sites survive in old woodland or marginal scrub land. It is therefore particularly desirable that those remaining should be protected from damage such as afforestation, ploughing or non-archaeological digging. Areas ‘designated for conservation, moreover, should comprise not merely the actual kilns but also their immediate surroundings, where auxiliary features may occur. There is indeed a need to locate precisely some of the kiln structures listed, and to define the exact limits of many of the factories by geophysical methods,”

Vivien Swan provides a short list of kiln sites which are ‘apparently unploughed

and substantially undisturbed’ . None of those sites are in Middlesex. Then she lists sites which are under cultivation or otherwise damaged but which ‘are worthy of protection from further erosion’. There are two entries for Middlesex in that list and they are:

HENDON (1) Hilltop Cafe, Brockley Hill (earliest known site in major special‑

ist industry).

(2) Brockley Hill, Field 410, S of pond (one of few undeveloped sites in major kiln complex.)

A glossary, bibliography and index complete the volume which costs £12.50 – not high at today’s prices for so comprehensive a production, Obtainable from HMSO, 49 High Holborn, WC1V 6HB.

LATEST FROM LAMAS

The second joint publication of the two London county societies – the London and Middlesex A.S. and the Surrey A.S. – has just appeared. It is distributed to LAMAS members (and there are many in HADAS) as part of their subscription and of course there is a copy in the HADAS library. It is Excavations in Staines 1975-767 the Friends’ Burial Ground Site by K R., Crouch and S. A. Shanks.

This 135-page report takes the site at the Quaker Burial Ground in Staines through its history from the Mesolithic to the 19 century. When the Council bought the site, no longer in use by the Society of Friends, in 1960, the burials (78 graves dated between 1849-1944) were removed to a communal grave at Jordans, the Quaker centre in Bucks.

Near the start of the report is a summary of the phases excavated on the site. Phase I is prehistoric, and runs from Mesolithic to Late Bronze Age. Iron Age evidence is missing, owing to a rise in the water table and flooding during that period. The Meso­lithic presence is slight and consists of flints. In fact prehistoric features are rare. There is one ‘possible’ Neolithic storage pit and three ‘presumed’ Bronze Age postholes. The finds are what gives substance to possible prehistoric occupation: 188 worked flints of which 115 show retouch and a further 16 show signs of use.

“The Mesolithic forms” says the report “probably include three small blade cores and 4 or 5 microliths.” The Neolithic is represented by a leaf arrowhead, scrapers and awls and is followed by some EBA types e.g. polished-edged knives and two barbed and tanged arrowheads. A near-complete skeleton of an adult Bronze Age cow was found.

The site really comes into its own with the Roman levels, starting with a pre­Flavian ditch and bank. The first building is in the Flavian-Hadrianic phase, timber-framed with beam-slot foundations, and demolished c.AD130. That is followed by a larger timber building with painted walls. There is evidence of some kind of continual use of the site – even if only for rubbish pits – throughout Roman times up to the 5th century, except for one 50-year hiatus in the mid-3rd century, when layers of flood debris and silt seal the earlier levels.

Later phases include. a Saxon gully system, an early Medieval stone building, 12th -14th century pit groups and after a gap of nearly three centuries, 19th century rubbish pits and the foundations of the first Meeting House, built in 1843 and demolished in 1930s.

WHAT DO YOU THINK OF MICROFICHE?

The two books reviewed above both have microfiche insertions, containing detailed (and no doubt very interesting) material, such as a gazetteer of kiln sites, a catalogue of flints and a. catalogue of pottery fabrics and vessels,.

Even among archaeological academics, to whom such facilities may by easily available, opinions are sharply divided on the subject and tempers run high when it is discussed. You either like or hate microfiche.

If the fiche material is truly additional to what would have appeared anyway – that is, if there has been no adulteration of what would have been the normal printed text ­then it seems reasonable enough to add the bonus of Microfiche for those able to use it.

The moment it begins to replace what would previously been in ordinary print however, it creates an unfair world in which the general reader becomes a second class citizen.

Do HADAS members have views on this controversial subject? It seems likely to crop up more rather than less, as publishing costs rise. If you have any comments the Newsletter would be interested to hear from you.

ADDITIONS TO THE LIBRARY

More books have been kindly donated to the Society by Mrs.Starr and others. If you would like to visit the library at Avenue House please telephone JUNE PORGES 346 5078 (evenings).

EMERY, W. B. Archaic Egypt 1361

CAMP, L. S. & CAMP, C. C. de Life & Death of a Pharaoh: Tutankamen 1970

WHITE, J.E.M. Ancient Egypt: its Culture & History 1970

GARDINER,A. Egypt of the Pharaohs 1966

EDWARDS, I. E.S. The Pyramids of Egypt 1961

MORTET, P. Eternal Egypt 1964

DONADONI, S. Egyptian Museum, Cairo 1370

NYLANDER, C. The Deep WelL archaeology & the Life of the Past 1969

BASS, G. F. Archaeology under Water 1966

WOOLLEY, C. L. The Sumerians 1965

RIDLEY, M. Treasures of China 1973

HALLO, W. W. & SIMPSON, W. K. The Ancient near East: a History 1971

LUCE, J. V. The End of Atlantis: New Light on an Old Legend 1970

HERM, G. The Phoenicians: the Purple Empire of the Ancient World 1975

WUNDERLICH, H.G. The Secret of Crete 1976

COTTRELL, L. The Bull of Minos 1955

MICHEL, J. The View over Atlantis 1969

WELLARD, J. The Search for the Etruscans 1973

BRITISH MUSEUM A General Introductory Guide to the Egyptian Collections

in the British Museum 1964

CHURCH FARM HOUSE MUSEUM, Greyhound Hill, Hendon, NW4 4JR

“Towards Tomorrow”- Children and Young People in and out of School” An exhibition of photographs by Henry Grant

15th December 1984 – 10th February 1985 (Closed 24th, 25th, 26th, 27th 31st Dec.

and 1st January)

NEW SETS OF POSTCARDS AVAILABLE FROM BARNET LIBRARIES

SET 19: Dollis Brook _5:views 1904-1912

SET 20- Railway Stations 5 views – Edgware Station, c.1900: New Barnet Station c.1900: East Finchley Station c.1925: Finchley Station c.1906 (2 cards)

Sets available from all libraries in the Borough, price 40p per set. (Single copies from Church Farm House Museum),

COURSES AT OXFORD

18th – 20th January 1985 Dissolution & Resurrection: the re-use of Monastic Buildings Full Residential: £38 Non Residential with meals: £25.50 Non Residential/No meals: £14

16th – 17th February 1985 Artist & Patron in Roman Britain Full Residential with meals £23 Non Residential £17 Non Residential/No meals £9.50 Details ete. from Archaeology/Local History Course Secretary, Oxford University Dept. for External Studies, 3-7 Wellington Square, Oxford, OX1 2JA as soon as possible.

NEWSLETTER 166 December 1984

HADAS DIARY

SATUTDAY December 1 Christmas Party – An Arabian Night

At the Meritage Club, Hendon. There are

Still places available if anyone would like to join us. Don’t worry about costume if you haven’t time. Do come – if you have lost your application form, ring Dorothy Newbury on 203 0950

SATURDAY December 8 9.30am – 12.30 pm. End of sale at Hillary Press, 75 Church Road, Hendon NW4 (rear of Hendon Times newspaper office.) There are still quite a few books and other odds and ends left from the minimart – everything at cut price.

1985

Tuesday January 8 The hero of Regent’s Park, John Nash by Dr. Ann Saunders.

Tuesday February 9 Writing in Roman Britain, evidence from Vindolanda and Bath by Mark Hassall

Tuesday March 5 West Heath Excavation by Daphne Lorimer

Tuesday April 2 Aerial Photography by Christopher Stanley

THE DISAPPEARING DOCKLANDS

BILL FIRTH reports on the November lecture

The lecture was given by Dr R J M Carr, Docklands History Survey officer of the Docklands History Group. His subject – the industrial archaeology of London Docklands – is topical following the closure of the docks and their redevelopment, since a great deal of the physical remains of the Port of London is rapidly disappearing. This explains Bob Carr’s appointment – it is heartening to know that there is such an awareness of the need to record as much as possible before it disappears. As a specialist and an enthusiast, Dr Carr did not disappoint us.

Essentially he took us on a slide tour of docklands as they are today showing us the points of interest. Ironically, when the docks were operating security demanded that they were surrounded by high walls and there was little to see from the land side. Now they are closed, the walls have come down but unfortunately other features have gone too in this demolition,

There is, however, still much to see, it is a pity that the docklands cover some 20 square miles and are therefore not partic­ularly suitable for exploration on foot, so it is difficult to follow in Dr Carr’s trail. He said that he does occasionally organise cycle tours.

The docks, were originally built to relieve congestion on the river where all ships were anchored and the goods trans-shipped to lighters for landing at the customs quays. Some authorities have also suggested that pilfering was rife, but it is now thought that this is a doubtful premise. There is little evidence that the merchants concerned complained of pilfering and even when the docks were built there was a great deal of goods out of the docks by water with considerable possibilities for the illegal acquisition of goods, There is no evidence of much loss then.

Dr Carr reminded us that because of the proximity of Lloyds underwriters, London was also a major shipbuilding centre up to the 1860s when the railways made access to other centres easier,

At that date shipbuilding but not ship repairing – in London declined quite rapidly.

Dr Carr gave us good time for questions and the lively discussion which followed his talk showed the interest which he had generated.

APOLOGETIC POSTSCRIPT: The November Newsletter forgot to say who was the author of the lively report of our first lecture of the 1984-85 season. -It was LILLY LEWY. We thank her very much and apologise for omitting her by-line – she deserved much credit for her excellent reporting job.

MESOLITHIC STATISTICS

MARGARET MAHER provides a round-up of the 1984 digging season at West Heath.

It seems a good time now that digging is finished for 1984 and the site backfilled to produce a few statistics for the mathematically inclined.

Seventy-four people have been involved with the site this season, nearly one half being new members, including two Institute of Archaeology and five extra mural students. Three non-members came along to discover what archeology was about.

Twenty-one square metres were excavated- and although final figures are not yet available flint artefacts and burnt stone should each reach totals of c.6,000. Possible stake holes sectioned late in the season have yet to be evaluated. Anyone interested in finds processing or chart drawing whose names I do not already have could give me a ring (907 0333) as a session/s will be arranged for late January onward.

The high spot of the year was of course the thermoluminescence date of 9625 +/- 900 years BP received from Mrs Joan Huxtable of the Research Laboratory for Art and Archaeology, Oxford. Respectability at last:The date, calculated by counting the alpha particles which have accumulated since flint artefacts were burnt, suggests that the site belongs in the early or earlier Mesolithic periods somewhere between 6,600 and 8,600 BC, HADAS was most fortunate that Mrs Huxtable agreed to accept samples for dating, and we are grateful to her for her work on behalf of the site.

I’d like to thank also the many people who assisted in various ways. Mr Craig, area manager for the GLC Department for Recreation and Arts, kindly gave permission to excavate, and Mr. Challen, his deputy Mr. Taylor and the staff of the parks department, Golders Hill Park, have shown continuing interest and offered unfailing help and co-operation throughout the year.

Barry Martin laid out the trench grid before digging commenced and Dan Lampert undertook a partial survey of the bank and initiated the extra mural students into the mysteries of surveying.

Joan Wrigley organised the most important task of all – the teas – very efficiently. It has been said many times this summer: “The archaeology’s OK – but the catering’s SUPERB!” Her able deputy in this department, Irene Owen, also stepped in to take over the finds recording full time when a bad back forced Laurie Gevell to give up early in the season. Thanks to Laurie’s organ­isation and the spacious working conditions of Dave King’s Mark II processing hut but there were no problems in the change-over.

Mr Bowman and Howard Boudler gave their time and metal detectors so that we could recover a lost TL monitor, which wasn’t really lost at all!

Then there are all the diggers – without whom there could have been no excavation. Ages ranged from 14 (I know) to 75 (I think)’ and the youngest, Emma Green, made a very promising start on this, her first, excavation. It is impossible to name everyone individ­ually, but many thanks to all the regulars especially those who

dug late in the season when the weather was a little less idyllic.

We now have permission to continue excavation in 1985 and dates will be announced in the Newsletter in the spring.

Now that the area beside the Leg of Mutton Pond has been cleared of undergrowth, more members of the public visit the site than ever before. Perhaps it is a natural progression – first the
goats and deer, then the bird enclosure, then the archaeologists. Whatever the reason we’ve met come very interesting people and made some friends among the regulars – including a couple of police horses.

Some people ask extremely pertinent questions, some entertain us, others leave us speechless! One lady informed her companion that it was all a hoax – that she had seen us burying bones every evening so that we could dig them up each day! Another (who proved to be an even greater attraction than we were for nearly 10 minutes) loudly issued dire warnings about crossing ley lines and prophesied wrath and doom from the Druids if they found out what we were doing. One lady cut us all down to size as, after a brief look over the fence, she remarked dismissively to her husband: “Oh, those silly people are back – they never find any­thing; you know. THEY’VE BEEN HERE FOR YEARS AND THEY’RE STILL LOOKING

More seriously – talking to the public is a pleasure and the interest displayed by people is gratifying. But more volunteers are needed to help with the explanations – perhaps members who

could offer one morning or afternoon per week during the season.Sheila Woodward will be happy to update anyone who feels he or she could help in this way – contact her on 952 _3897.

DIG IN COPTHALL FIELDS

PADDY MUSGROVE comments on a Greater London Archaeological

Service project,

Having learned at the November HADAS meeting that the GLAS was that week excavating at Copthall Fields, Rosalind Batchelor and I went there on Friday November 9. We first visited the area close to the eastern boundary where in the 1960s HADAS uncovered sections of a Roman Road, as we understood that this was the features that interested the excavators.

There was no sign of any activity there, but eventually we located a site many hundreds of yards to the west of the line of the Roman road where a large area of grass close to the stadium had been churned into a sea of mud by heavy equipment of some sort. A borough employee working nearby remarked that the diggers “had found nothing except that the ground was too wet” and so they had gone away.

I write for the benefit of any other HADAS members who have been

unsuccessfully searching Copthall Fields for signs archaeological

In the light of Paddy’s report, BRIGID GRAFTON GREEN adds:

The GLAS is the professional body-(described by Ted Sammes in the June 1983 HADAS Newsletter) set up by the GLC to do rescue arch­aeology in the outer London boroughs. It came into being on April 1 1983, since when it has been keeping an eye on some sites in our borough. This is, we believe, the first dig that the GLAS hsmounted Barnet: it is certainly the first of which the unit has informed us,

It told us, on October. 31 that it would be digging on Copthall Fields from November 5 to 9 and HADAS members would be welcome to go along. If any members accepted that invitation and we passed it on to as many people possible in the few days’ notice available – it sounds, from Paddy’s description, as if it must have been something of a disappointment.

We shudder slightly at Paddy’s graphic phrase describing the aftermath of the dig it’s a churned-up “sea of mud”, and we hope that the authorities of the London Borough of Barnet appreciated beforehand what was coming to them. Having ourselves spent many years building a friendly and helpful relationship with those same authorities we have a niggling doubt at the back of our minds about whether leaving a “sea of mud” behind is the best way to win friends and influence people.

Later the GLAS confirmed what Paddy had been told their workers had given up the dig because they realised it was hopeless.

THE FOURPENNY PESTS

NELL PENNY’S researches into Poor Law records – on which she is preparing a booklet for Barnet. Libraries service ­have brought to light some verminous facts.

At one time or another English farmers have waged war against beasts and birds which they have seen, or thought they have seen, destroying their crops and attacking their stock. In 1566 an Act of Parliament authorised church wardens of parishes to pay for the slaughter of foxes, polecats, weasels, stoats, otters, hedgehogs, rats, mice, moles; hawks, buzzards, ospreys, jays, ravens and even kingfishers.

Hendon church wardens paid for corpses from 1712 to 1833, save for a handful of years. They began with paying 2s6d for the deaths of “eight hedghoggs” and ended with £ 7s 4d paid for the corpses of 57 hedgehogs and nine polecats, and these two animals were almost the only vermin offered to the church wardens.

Hedgehogs were worth 4d each and so were polecats for most of the time. At the end of the period polecats were valued at 9d each. Hedgehogs were supposed to milk cows in the fields during summer nights, but it is difficult to see what other damage they were thought to do. Nevertheless over two thousand perished for the sake of the fourpences. Polecats, less numerous than hedge­hogs, are carnivores they could have been accused of eating eggs and killing chickens and rabbits.

In 1754 154 hedgehogs and 125 polecats were slaughtered and paid for. It is not possible to be sure who collected the money, -In 1728 A stonecutter employed on parish church repairs got 6s8d for hedgehogs and polecats; but the majority of the hunters must have been day labourers looking for beer money or something extra for their families.

Many labourers would have liked to kill a fox – the 2s6d paid for this animal was a great deal of money in 1732. There were only three such payments made and none after 1750. Perhaps the hunting gentry discouraged the unsportsmanlike shooting of foxes. 1758 saw the most pathetic record – 9d paid for four dozen sparrows.

SUTTON HOC 1984

ANN TREWICK had the chance to dig at Sutton Hoo for several weekends during the early part of this year and for three weeks during her summer holiday. Here, she describes the dig and its aims,

Although I had seen the treasures from the ship burial at the British Museum, I had no idea of the extent of the grave-group. There were originally at least 16 barrows, of which nine may be intact, and moreover there is the possibility of more boat burials, although probably none with the degree of wealth found in mound 1.

However, apart from the grave group, there is also evidence for possible occupation of the site and surrounding area from Neolithic times onwards.

The initial year’s excavations have aimed at mapping the extent of human disturbance in and around the grave-group site.

With this end in view a number of trenches were opened in the fields on the periphery of the site. Mound 2 was also opened, to explore the extent of the excavation carried out by Basil Brown in 1938.

In the field excavations pottery has been found, dating probably from Neolithic to iron Age, Also three skeletons were uncovered, two of which have been removed for dating. It is hoped they may be Saxon. Evidenoe for ditches and palisades has also been found,

Plentiful amounts of burnt flint/stone occurred in several trenches and there was also some evidence for hearths. Some beautiful arrowheads have turned up as well as worked flint and flint flakes. Much work still remains to be done on the finds and on dating, before a picture of the Sequence of events can be built up.

I spent a lot of my time in an anti-glider ditch, excavated right across the site during the last war (how COULD they do it). It was a trench 100m in length – on a misty day I could hardly see the other end. Quite a contrast to the one-metre-square trenches of West Heath this year.

A lot of time has been spent trying to sort out changes of colour in the extremely sandy soil and to interpret these. Most of the changes in the anti-glider ditch seemed to me to be due to rabbit action and bracken root disturbances. The bracken has caused quite severe problems of soil disturbance with its probing roots and is giving much cause for concern on a site that is supposed to be protected. Within days of being mown down the young shoots were raising their heads again,

Another very interesting sight was ploughmarks nearly half a metre below modern ground surface in one trench. They were so clear they could be excavated like a series of very shallow parallel ditches.

Various “bodies” are sponsoring the dig, including the BM, the National Maritime Museum, the Society of Antiquaries, Suffolk County Council, the BBC and the University of Birmingham, whose field archaeological unit is responsible for the excavation, under Martin Carver, the director. I’m most grateful to him for letting me have the chance to dig on such a fascinating site.

The excavation is being regularly reported in the Bulletin of the Sutton Hoc, Society and it is possible to go on to its mailing list (write to the society at Sutton Hoo, Woodbridge, Suffolk),

I really enjoyed working at Sutton Hoo – sometimes in the hot sun in the anti-glider ditch and sometimes among buzzing mosquitoes in a ditch among the pine trees. I hope to do some field walking there during the winter and to take part in the excavations again next year.

n

CLAUDE GRAHAME-WHITE AT HENDON

In July members of HADAS, the Croydon Airport society the Greater London Industrial Archaeology Society took part in a combined visit to Hendon Aerodrome. Two American enthusiasts also joined the group and so did DAVID GEORGE of the Manchester Region Industrial Archaeology Society. Mr George has kindly sent this report of the visit.

Much of the aerodrome and factory, founded by aviation pioneer Claude Grahame-White and taken over by the Air Ministry in 1925, is now occupied by the Grahame Park Estate and the RAF Museum.

But the roundabout near the main RAF gate marks the site .of Louis Paulhan’s shed, used by him for the first London to Manchester air race in 1910.

The first building visited was the hotel built in 1917 for VIPs in black and white half-timbered style. This is a three-storey building and now serves as the officers’ mess. Inside is much light oak wood panelling and in the ladies’ lounge are timber posts, beams and a stone fireplace. The entrance hall exhibits a number of Grahame-White plaques and illustrations of the Fairey Hendon night bomber, etc.

Also surviving are the gates, gatekeeper’s house and 1915 company office with portico and roundels plus G,W. insignia. Of the factory – perhaps one of the earliest purpose-built aeroplane. works extant – about eight single-storey workshops remain. They have slate and glass roofs, partly fabric covered, and were the woodwork, dope and fabric shops.

In front of the works blocks overlooking what remains of the aerodrome and hangars is the original control tower and flight office. These are faced in pebble dash but not as yet listed buildings. Below the tower there is an upper balcony or roof grandstand. —Inside is Grahame-White’s observation lounge with the monogram C.G.W. in iron letters above the fireplace. French windows open out to a covered balcony with balustrade used by distinguished visitors at the air pageants.

Another important survival though somewhat derelict, is the tall four-bay corrugated iron assembly hangar with admin. offices at the end opposite the doors and an internal balcony giving access to further rooms/offices, on which is painted THE GRAHAME-WHITE COMPANY LIMITED in large white letters. At the opposite end is an extension supported by a four-section Belfast roof truss part resting on and part bracketed to the side walls. Of the former flying school sheds or their later replacements on the same line as the hangar six bays split in two halves, painted green, exist.

From 1930, the RAF added new stores, a barrack block, etc, in Georgian brink style. Grahame-White’s buildings were used as part of an operational air base up to the 1950s, but it is believed they are all now to be surrendered and would become available as possible extensions to the RAF Museum

POSTSCRIPT: HADAS member PAUL WERNICK, who took part in the visit, has kindly donated an excellent set of slides of the old and not­ so-old buildings to the society. Bill Firth hopes to have a chance to show them to members – possibly after an AGM. Thank you very much, Mr Wernick.

London Centre of Communication

LAMAS held its 19th local History Conference at the Museum of London on November 17.The theme was the history of transport and communications in the capital, and it was taken up by the speakers and in the displays put on, by many local societies.

Michael Robbins set the scene with a comprehensive survey of sources for the study of every aspect of transport history. After lunch specialist lectures covered civil aviation (by Douglas

Clue of the Croydon Airport Society) transport in medieval
London (John Clarke, one of the Museum of London’s leading medievalists) and the 18th-19th century port of London (Chris Ellmers also from the museum).

Many thanks to VICTOR JONES and BILL FIRTH who manned the HADAS stand and were respectively responsible for book sales and for mounting a display about Hendon Aerodrome, One forthcoming event publicised at that conference vies a Historical Association forum on the subject of Archive Services in Danger, to be held on Saturday December 8 at the Historical Association headquarters, 59a Kennington Park Road, SEll.

“The proposed abolition of the GLC and the metropolitan county councils threatens the archive services of these authorities,” says the association. “The Greater London Record Office over the years has developed a comprehensive service for London as a whole. Since 1974 the metropolitan county archive services have been involved in the rescue and conservation of records of historical significances. Some of these services too are developing work with schools and local history societies and pioneering exciting computer projects relating to records management and the improvement of information services for users.” All this is now at risk.

The forum (a £4 ticket, obtainable from the HA, includes the cost of lunch and tea) begins at ll.l5am and ends about 4pm. Speakers will outline the present work of the threatened archive services and will answer questions, then representatives of the archive users will have their say, and a general discussion will follow. It should be a lively occasion.

SITES TO WATCH

Planning application lists for the last five weeks don’t contain details of any new sites which look as if they might be of any archaeological interest although one or two sites that have already been mentioned in past Newsletters crop up again with amended or more detailed information.

However, planning approval has been given recently for development on several sites which we had noted at the application stage. This means work may start fairly soon, so if you notice signs of activity please let either John Enderby (203 2630) or Christine Arnott (455 2751) know. The approved sites are:

Elizabeth Allen School site, Wood Street, Barnet: 20 two-person almshouses

Land adjoining 4 Parsons Crescent, Edgware: detached house

4 Farrington Cottages, Moon Lane, Barnet: semi-detached house

Land at Glengall Road, opposite Cramer Road, Edgware: primary school

Old Fold Manor, Old Fold Lane, Hadley: clubhouse, landscaping, etc.

LAST OF THE LINE…

BILL FIRTH provides some industrial archaeology news flashes.

An item in a recent planning application list is: Cricklewood Station – erection of a new ticket office to replace existing.” Replacement is presumably a planner’s euphemism for demolition. It means that a rather charming little building – and the last significant Midland Railway building in the borough will be disappearing. At least HADAS has a good photographic record of this site.

Another planning application mentions the-redevelopment of Carlton Forge on the Edgware Road. This is all that remains of the locomotive depot serving Brent Yard, where the engines from the coal trains dealt with in the yard were maintained. At present, “redevelopment” suggests that this building will remain’. .again, HADAS has a good photographic record.

As many members in the south west of the borough will know, there was a seriousfire on the Cricklewood Trading Estate at the end of August. One of the early Handley-Page factories was destroyed. Fire is an ever-present hazard to our monuments (not only industrial ones, of course). One of the famous aviation hangars at Croydon was lost by fire earlier this year.

NEIGHBOURLY NEWS

Now on show at Burgh House, New End Square, Hampstead, is a collection of the latest items to be donated to the Hampstead Museum, run by Christopher and Diana Wade. The exhibits include a map of Hampstead a century ago, showing the improvements planned to link Fitzjohn’s Avenue to the High Street, and another dating from the 1930s drawn on his return home by an Australian visitor. There are also lots of photographs, paintings and other memorabilia. The exhibition continues until December 21 and Burgh. House is open from noon to 5pm, Wednesday to Sunday.

BY NO MEANS INACTIVE

TED SAMMES, from distant Maidenhead, reports on his current activities.

People often ask me what else I am doing nowadays in addition to being chairman of the Maidenhead & District Archaeological & Historical Society (which I find to be an active, almost full-time job).

In recent months I have been working with the Boxmoor (Herts) Residents Association. The group was celebrating its 21st anniversary this year and among the many items in a display at St John’s Hall, Boxmoor, were copies of about 60 photographs of people and places in the area taken by my late father during the years 1900-1915.

I was amazed at the interest expressed by people-attending the exhibition, held on Saturday October 20. Jeremy Clynes drove me down to the place where I lived until my parents moved back to Hendon in December 1931. I suspect that as a result of this interest a lot more will evolve, probably in the shape of a joint publication.

And, on another subject, Ted continues: When, earlier this year, Philip Venning became the secretary of the Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings I was in the throes of preparing a talk on wind and watermills. On talking to him it seemed wise to join that section of the society which specialised in such things.

To date I can say that I have found it very useful and when on November 17 I attended a day meeting on watermills at Holborn Library I was very pleased with the range of subjects.. They ranged from a talk on the Norfolk Windmills Trust, which also looks after watermills in that area, to the Chilworth Gunpowder Mills – This latter subject is very topical because of the work being undertaken by Phil Philo, of Gunnersbury Museum, on the Hounslow area mills. Some members also gave short talks, the day ending with a talk on the restoration of Crowdy Mill; Devon, by Martin Watts,

HOW ABOUT A BOOK FOR CHRISTMAS?

Autumn is a peak publishing time so that bookshops can catch the Christmas trade. Here are details of just two recent publications which might help with Christmas present problems;

Post-medieval Pottery 1650-1800 The latest in the Shire Archaeology-series, by Jo Draper. The book covers a wide field: there are chapters on local and fine earthenwares, on slipware, Delft and stoneware and on cream ware and porcelain, as well as a further-reading list and a note on museums which have good collections. It is plentifully illustrated with photographs and costs £1.95 – and don’t forget you can buy this and other Shire publications through HADAS: send your order to Joyce Slatter, 5 Sentinel House, Sentinel Square, NW4 2EN, with an extra 25p for postage.

The Royal Palaces of Enfield By Ian K. Jones and Ivy W. Drayton,

this is Research Report No 4 of the Enfield Archaeological Society and costs £3.50, plus 50p postage and packing, from Geoffrey Gillam, 23 Merton Road, Enfield.

Enfield rejoiced in two royal palaces, Elsyng Palace (demolished in the 17th century), which stood near Forty Hall, and Enfield Palace, opposite Enfield town market place and demolished in 1937-38.

Elsyng was largely rebuilt in brick in the 15th century on the site of an earlier timber-framed building. It was here that Lambert Simnel – one of several unsuccessful pretenders to Henry VII’s throne- ended his days as a servant – He had once been “crowned” in Dublin as Edward VI. Here, too, the real Edward VI heard the news of his accession to his father’s,throne, and his sister Elizabeth lived for a while as a girl.

The site was excavated in the 1960s by the Enfield Archaeological Society and much documentary work has been done by the Edmonton Hundred Historical Society. The results of both pieces of research are included.

Queen Elizabeth I lived at Enfield Palace also for a while before her succession – it was for her that the already ancient manor house was substantially rebuilt.

This booklet of 62 A4-size pages is beautifully produced by Alan Sutton Publishing and is illustrated with maps, line reproductions and photographs.

NEWSLETTER 165: November. 1984. Programme News.

Tuesday November 6th, Industrial Archaeology of London Docklands. Dr.R J.M.Carr.

The Port of London has always been of great importance in the history of Great Britain and the Empire. To-day many Docks are closed and the future of others is uncertain. Large areas are under development and in the last few years much evidence of the Port’s history and Archaeology has disappeared or remains at risk. In the early 80’s a Docklands History Group was formed and Dr. Carr was appointed Dockland History Survey Officer. The Survey is supported by various groups including the National Maritime Museum and the Museum of London.

Dr. Carr is a very active Member of the Greater London Industrial Archaeological Society – in fact a lady Member of that Society has ‘phoned from Acton to say she has heard about our November lecture, and having heard it before, was so enthralled she wants to know where it is to be held so she can come and hear it again.

Saturday December lst. Christmas Party. “An Arabian Night” at The Meritage Club, Hendon. N.W.4.

See separate insert for particulars and send in your application for tickets as soon as possible.

Tuesday January 8th. The Building of Regents Park – (3rd in the series) Dr.Ann Saunders.

MINIMART. – We’ve done it again – takings have reached the staggering figure of £825 and are still creeping up. Really sincere thanks must go to our many various generous Members who bake cakes and send in such good saleable items for us to sell, and for giving their whole-hearted support on the day, both by manning the stalls and coming to buy. Tessa Smith would specially like to thank the cooks who so kindly provided quiches for the Ploughmans’ Lunches.

The quality of our goods is coming over to the public and of the 200 odd who attended the event, a very large proportion were non-Members, and this is one of our aims – to raise money from outside the Society, as well as enjoy it as a social gathering ourselves.

THE UNIVERSITY OF OXFORD short courses

The University of Oxford External Studies Department are offering two very interesting short courses, one on Medieval Moated Sites (14th – 16th December) and the other on the re-use or monastic buildings after the Dissolution. This is from 18th – 20th of January. Each offers a range of lectures, drawing on evidence from other regions (one on Lincoln’s use of monastic buildings by David Stocker) and at least one field visit.

Details from: The Archaeology/Local History Course Secretary, Oxford University Department for External Studies, 3-7, Wellington Square, Oxford. OX1 2JA.

FIRST AUTUMN LECTURE. OCTOBER. 1st. 1984.

No one who was privileged to take part in the epic HADAS trip to the Orkneys in 1978 will ever forget the visit to the cliff-top grave site at Isbister; leaving the coach some distance away, we pilgrims plodded along farm tracks of ever – decreasing quality until finally, having trekked over smooth untouched turf, we came to the very edge of the sea.

There the waves glittered under the sun, while the colour of the water deepened from turquoise to a dark steely blue; a few seals sunned themselves on the narrow rocky shore, and – directly beneath our feet, it seemed – the sea-gulls swooped and screeched. “We’re facing the Westward Ocean, where lie the Isles of the Blest, and the sunset where the spirits of the dead deport” breathed one poetically-minded Member, as

we gazed out over the Infinite………………………. On Tuesday night we learned that the cliff in
fact faces South, towards the mainland of Scotland. But let it pass….

This was but one detail in the fascinating and complex account given authoritatively by our Lecturer, John Hedges, who has studied and evaluated the site in great detail (and moreover was our very helpful guide when we visited it), having been entrusted with this task by the owner of the site, a local farmer who had himself done much of the digging.

In its final stages some 4,400 years ago a ‘horned’ tomb with wide stone-built arms embracing a large open area (for ceremonies?), the site had started ca.3,200 B.C., as one small cell, later extended into an elongated ‘stall’ tomb (so called because of the huge stone slabs partitioning it rather like cow-stalls in a dairy); other small cell-like additions had been made branching off this central passage; and then, after an active life of some eight hundred years, the whole complex had been deliberately and carefully filled-in, presumably closed down and abandoned. No one will ever know why; nor will we ever know whether a small cist, inserted hundreds of years later and containing a mere three or four burials, was built here by mere coincidence.

Than principal deposits yielded some 13,000 human bones, most of them skulls and large bones which an expert in Sheffield was able to allocate to 342 distict individuals. As Mr. Hedges stressed repeatedly, these were people, whose remains allowed us to speculate about their life-style, health and religious beliefs.

Isbister people had to struggle for their living: in fact many leg-bones showed changes which could be due to the over-development of specialised muscles such as had to be used in cliff-climbing (in search of ‘sea-birds’ eggs and young to eat); many of the women’s skulls were flattened and rounded as though deformed by the pressure of carrying many heavy loads.

Minor but interesting variations in bone structures, e.g., big toes, cervical vertebrae and sacral bones promised material for the study of genetic variations in localised populations.

Both men and woman had bad teeth, grossly worn down by the sand and grit left in their food, or introduced while grinding grain; but caries, which plagues us so much to-day, was not present. On the other hand, there was much evidence of impacted wisdom teeth and long-standing dental abscesses which must have caused life-long pain.

No injuries due to violence were found in any of the bones; but where bones had broken in accidents and subsequently healed, osteo-arthritis, which plagued these people anyway, had struck with particular fierceness.

Because so few of the smaller bones were found in the tomb, Mr. Hedges argued very cogently that dead persons were first “excarnated” (cleaned of flesh by exposure to the elements and wild animals) and then at some appointed season brought into the tomb together with sacrifices (good joints of prime meat, whole small fish, charred grain and deliberately broken pots had all been found); and finally, perhaps when the identity of the dead had been completely forgotten with the passage of time, the ancestral remains were moved away from the centre and laid on the shelves of the ossuary-type cells branching off the ends of the complex.

One very interesting point was that large numbers of bones and claws of White-tailed Sea Eagles had been found with other deposits, even “foundation sacrifice” under the large slab floor of the very first to be built. From this discovery Mr Hedges deduced that these eagles (for long extinct on Orkney, but now staging a tentative come-back) may have been the tribal symbol of the people who built this tomb complex and lived in the surrounding area. Similar concentrations elsewhere, but of different animals (in one case, no less than two dozen sets of Red Deer antlers) might indicate different totems for different tribal groups.

Further calculations, of the man-hours thought to be needed to construct tombs for any given size or complexity, and their distribution over the area of the Orkneys, had led Mr. Hedges to speculate about the relationship of small tribal groups with neighbouring, possibly larger and more powerful units; a theory finding some support in the fact that the largest and most complex tombs on Orkney are each at the centre of an area dotted with smaller sites.

Touching briefly on the problem of population control (via abortion and infanticide) Mr. Hedges indicated that though the life of Orkney Man was nasty, brutish and short by modern-day standards (hardly any males surviving to age 45), that of Orkney Woman was considerably shorter and probably infinitely more disagreeable.

The demographic conclusions reached (via some fearsome-looking graphs) were challenged, at Question Time, by Mr. Andrew Selkirk, to whose pointed remarks Mr Hedges replied with grace and humour.

A book on the site (“Tomb of the Eagles” by John W. Hedges) has been published and is available at just under £13. Everyone – whether present at this most enjoyable talk or not – will undoubtedly find it of considerable interest. Our Librarian, June Porges, joined the queue to buy a copy for the HADAS Library and was delighted to find it inscribed :For the HADAS Library, in remembrance of splendid field trip of 1978.

COMMITTEE. CORNER.

The Committee met in mid-October after a longer interval than usual, due to holidays. Among the items discussed were:

Life Membership. The August Newsletter mentioned that, at a Member’s suggestion, our Hon. Treasurer was looking into this possibility. After full discussion of pros and cons the Committee decided life-Membership was not a feasible operation.

Subscription Renewals, The Membership Secretary reported that 63 Members have not yet renewed nor have they informed her of resignation; no further Newsletters will therefore be sent to them. Nine new Members have joined in the last. month.

The Society will celebrate its Silver Jubilee in 1986 end suggestions for commemorating this event are under consideration.

HADAS has been invited to comment on the latest Borough Topic Study – on Transportation.

Newsletter arrangements. We have now said farewell – with great regret and much gratitude for her past work – to Irene Frauchiger as Production manager of the newsletter. The October issue was her final fling. The new production arrangements (which will bring you this November issue) were summarised for the Committee: Dorothy Newbury has found a home for the duplicator at the Hillary Press. Christopher Newbury kindly organised the transport of the machine and paper stocks from Edgware to Hendon. Edgar Lewy nobly offered to Roll-off each month; Eileen Howarth and Nell Penny between them will collate pages, stuff envelopes and stamp and post them. Enid Hill who has for many months organized envelope-addressing and keeping the mailing list up-dated will continue with that excellent work. You will realize from all this that- as usually happens in a HADAS crisis – we have had excellent and immediate response from Members prepared to help and we thank all of them most warmly, as we are sure you will also wish to do: it is due to them – and also Isabel McPherson and Joan Wrigley, who are respectively editing and typing this issue – that you have a November newsletter to read.

Steps are being taken to make sure that HADAS poster are still on display in such places as the public libraries of the Borough. Suggestions for busy indoor sites where a poster could be permanently displayed will be welcomed: if one please tell one of the Society’s Officers.

The LAMAS Local History Conference will take place at the Museum of London on Saturday November 17th (11a.m. – 5:30p.m.). The theme as we mentioned in the last Newsletter, will be transport. The Committee discussed HADAS’s arrangements to organise a display and bookstall.

ADDITIONS TO THE LIBRARY.

It is many months since we had a list of additions to the Library list, but I hope it may become a regular feature of the Newsletter again. The books listed here have been generously contributed by many Members including Mrs. I. Worby, Miss V Sheldon, Eric Wookey, Philip Venning and Sheila Woodward, and some purchased by the

Society. If any Member would like to borrow a book please ring me on 346-5078
(evenings) or come to Avenue House on Wednesday 31st October between 8 and 9 p.m.

JUNE .PORGES.

Whiting J E Golders Hill, Hampstead. 1909.

Ancient Monuments Board for England. Committee for Rescue Archaeology. Principles of publication in rescue archaeology. 1975,

Farquhar. J.V.C. The Saxon Cathedral and Priory Church of St. Andrew, Hexham. 1935.

Goddard. L. Coalhole rubbings: the story of an artifact of our streets. 1979.

Clough. T.H. Mc. and Cummins, W. A. Eds. :Stone axe studies; Archaeological,

Petrological, experimental and ethnographic (CBA research report No.30.) 1979.

Lyne, M.A.B. and Jeffries, R.S. The Alice Holt/Farnham Roman pottery industry (CBA research report No.30.) 1979.

Wymer, J. The Palaeolithic age 1982.

Fairservis. W.A. The script of the Indus Valley civilization. (Scientific American)

Barnett. J. Prehistoric Cornwall; a field guide to and analysis of Cornish stone circles, chambered tombs, barrows, standing stones and other ancient monuments 1982.

Romer. J. Romer’s Egypt; a new light on the civilization of ancient Egypt. 1982.

Milne. G. and C. Medieval waterfront development at Trig Lane London: an account of the excavations at Trig Lane 1974-6 and related research (LAMAS special paper No.5.)

Gordon. C.H. Forgotten scripts: their ongoing discovery and decipherment 1982.

Savory. H.N. Spain and Portugal: the prehistory of the Iberian Peninsula 1968.

St. Clair. W. Lord Elgin and the marbles 1983.
Fowler. P.J. The farming of Prehistoric Britain 1983.

Wardman. A. Religion and Statecraft among the Romans. 1982.

Lloyd. S. Foundations in the dust: the story of Mesopotamian exploration 1980 (revised edition.)

Snowden. F.M. Before color prejudice 1983.

MacGregor. P. Odiham Castle 1200 – 1500: castle end community 1983.

,Nriagu. J.O. Lead and lead poisoning in antiquity. 1983.

Grayson. D.K. The establishment of human antiquity 1983.

Speth. J.D. Bison kills and bone counts; decision making by ancient hunters 1983.

Brennan. M. The stars and the stones. ancient art and astronomy in Ireland. 1983,

Gregory. K.J. Ed. Background to palaeohydrology: a prespective 1983.

Carter. H.. An introduction to urban historical geography. 1983.

SITES FOR WATCHING.

Here is this month’s list of sites which might be of some Archaeological interest if the applications for their quite extensive development are approved:

Land rear of 23/25 Hankins Land NW7. Land bounded by Stafford Rd/Stapylton/ Carnarvon Rd. Chipping Barnet plans for 4 detached houses, road, etc. library carpark and access.

67 Hadley Highstone Barnet plans for a detached house garage, access

If: any Member notices building activity on these sites, please notify either Christine Arnott (455-2751) or John .Enderby (203-2630.)

LISTED BUILDINGS.

The Borough Planning Officer has recently sent us a monitoring report on how events in the last three years have affected the Council’s Environment Topic Study.

Topic Studies (they cover a number of subjects such as Housing, Transport, etc.) provide guidelines for the Council in its conduct of the Borough’s affairs until such time as an overall Borough Development Plan covering every aspect is produced. The first Environment Topic Study came out (after consultation with many interested bodies, including HADAS) in July 1981, and this monitoring report says, in effect, how the original guidelines are working.

The paragraph on Listed buildings is of interest

Listed. Buildings

“The revised Statutory List of Buildings of Special Architectural or Historic interest was confirmed by the Secretary of state for the Environment in April 1983 and this produced a major increase in the number of Listed buildings in the Borough, Ten buildings were ‘spot-listed’ during the monitoring period by the Department of the Environment and several additional buildings accepted for inclusion in the revised list. No Listed buildings were demolished between July 1981 and July 1983. Grants were made for the restoration of Lawrence Campe Almshouses, by the Heritage of London Trust to which the Council is affiliated, and for repairs to St. John the Baptist Church, Chipping Barnet. Further consideration is being given to the desirability of setting up a Building Preservation Trust to promote the repair and restoration of Listed buildings in the Borough.”

Two other items from the monitoring report are worth recording. First a pamphlet “dealing with the general heritage of the Borough and outlining the history and pattern of its development” is, being prepared. Secondly, in association with local societies the Council is in the course of producing a leaflet on ecology. These are two publications which will be worth looking out for.

PEOPLE IN THE NEWS

HELEN GORDON and her husband, long-time Members of HADAS (Helen first joined in

1971, and is one of our now many Diploma. holders) have recently moved from their Hendon

house. Their new address is 1, North End Road, NW3 – right on the Hampstead/Hendon border. Helen is leader of the Society’s Roman Group, and Members may like to have her new telephone Number: 458-5316.

We would also like to seize this chance of thanking Helen publicly for so kindly allowing HADAS to store equipment for many years in her garage at Hendon. She bore most patiently with a horrible assortment of unshapely and unlovely objects – such as our wheelbarrows.

COLIN EVANS is another long-time Member – he and his late wife, Ann, who died tragically young in 1980, first joined in 1972. The Society has not seen much of Colin lately, as he has been living in France, but he has kept in touch by letter. He married again last January, a French girl: and now reports, with great joy, the birth of his daughter Vanessa Caroline Ann. Congratulations to Colin and Josyan and best wishes to young Miss Evans.

News comes (via JUNE end HANS FORGES ) of AUDREY HODES, now established as a teacher of English at Hua Qiao University, Quanzhou, Fujian, in the People’s Republic of China. He writes to June and Hans:

“I feel very happy and acclimatised out here. The people couldn’t be kinder or more helpful. My 80 students (3 classes) couldn’t be more delightful – so keen! Have a modern room in the foreign teachers’ guest-house: bed, fridge, bookcase, the all-important tea-cupboard, large balcony with magnificent view of mountains, bathroom and toilet en suite. Food here is totally Chinese – suits me! Only concessions to Western. tastes are warm milk and coffee for breakfast – as you know, Chinese dislike dairy products. Breakfast is at 6:30, lunch 11:30, dinner 5:30.

Lessons are from 7:30 to 11:30, then siesta till 2:30 – total shut-down, nothing moves outside. .Noel Coward got it exactly right in Mad Dogs and Englishmen! More lessons from 2:30 to 4:30. In the evening a popular pastime is ‘let’s visit our English teacher.’ I had 10 students here last night, impromptu. I played them Mozart and Schubert – first time they had really heard Western music. 10.p.m.:campus asleep.

Here are a few historical items I hope you will like. I am looking forward to a stimulating year in China, now that settling in is over and lessons in full swing….”

A ubrey’s thistorical items’ were as interesting as his letter: postcards of a 14c Buddhist temple and a 13c Chinese ship in the Museum of Foreign Trade where, he says regretfully ‘language is a.barrier no Museum staff speak any English. He included a printed leaflet (in English) on the history of Quan Zhou, which

explained the importance of trade:

“This. historic city of renown was built in the early 8th Century … foreign merchants -swarmed here for business and missionaries and travellers shuttled in and out. Their entrances, exits and appearances. in the streets were infestation of the prosperity of the city which had thus become the departure port of the Old Silk road as well as one of the largest seaports of the world in the medieval age,”

The city was renowned also for the temple of Kai Yuan, with its twin pagodas. Of it Aubrey says ‘we watched people worshipping and lighting candles – not only old people, young ones too, hoping for happy marriage blessed by Buddha. Religious freedom guaranteed under new constitution. In courtyard two trees (banyans) said to be 1,000 years old. Huge stone tortoises and lions, wooden dragons on building …. crowds here all day long.’

Bridges, too, are among the sights of Quanzhou – the city is on the estuary of the Jin river. One bridge, the Anping, is said to be so long that it was called ‘There is no bride under the sky that is as long this one.’ Nearby are ancient kilns ‘for burning export porcelain’ and a recently excavated shipwreck. ‘All these’ says the leaflet ‘are seemingly splendid pearls inlaid on the ancient city. Making it all the more attractive… tourists, domestic and foreign, are streaming endlesslyinto this city of envy.’

Before he went out to China Aubrey Hodes promised to send us back some articles for the Newsletter. We hope ho will remember…and that this, therefore is just a fore taste with more to follow.

HADAS POST-BOX.

Newsletter correspondence recently has been pretty varied. Here’s a selection:

From the Curator, Church Farm House Museum,

It was good to see the Philip Temple article on Hendon Churchyard reprinted in the Newsletter.

Is it worth mentioning in the next Newsletter that there was some correspondence arising from Temple’s piece printed soon after? A lengthy would-be refutation of the article was followed up by a pretty convincing – and quite amusing re-statement of the case by Temple himself. The relevant details are Times Literary Supplement December 2nd, 1983. p.1347 and TLS Dec 9th 1983 p. 1216. The TLS for 1983 is available on microfilm at the Central Library at Hendon.

Best wishes,

GERRARD ROOTS.

From HADAS Member Eugene Loeb.

One wouldn’t think to look for Archaeology in a Supermarket, but…..

In Tesco’s window in Ballard’s Lane is a photo of Broadway, Church End, N.3 at the turn of the Century or thereabouts. Between the 3rd and 4th windows (first floor) of the building just South of what is now the Abbey National Building Society, the

photo shows a sign, LADIES’ HAIRCUTTING AND ….painted on the wall.Prompted by curiosity, I visited the site (5 minutes walk to the South of Tesco’ on the opposite side of the road); and indeed there are faint traces of the painted sign still to be seen there!

With best wishes,

EUGENE LEEB.

From the Bishop of Edmonton

Over the years I have been receiving and reading with pleasure the Newsletter of HADAS. I have much appreciated this and the honour of being Vice-President of your Society. I write now to ask if you will very kindly accept my resignation from this Office as at the end of the year I leave London to become Bishop of Peterborough. It is, as.you know, a City and area rich in History but I must say that I shall miss reading about the findings and research carried out by your Members and I will admit, as I leave, that frequently quotations from your Newsletter find their way both into the files of Parishes and into the occasional sermon of the Bishop!

Thank you for letting me have this so regularly and the honour of your Vice-Presidency.

With all good wishes to the Society in the years ahead.

Yours sincerely,

BILL EMONTON.

As a tailpiece to our paragraphs last month about Ralph Gill, 17c Keeper of the Lions at the Tower, who lived at the Clockhouse, East Barnet, Gillian Gear writes:

At Barnet Museum we hold of a copy of a letter addressed to the Earl of Salisbury (courtesy of the Archivist at Hatfield house) which mentions Mr. Gill in respect of the birth of two lion cubs at the Tower, dated 29th July, 1605. It includes the following:-

‘Mr. Gyll hath hertherto Feede them with rackes off motton and Heenes, and hath procured water in a Cesturne set in the spacious place for them to drincke at, which they contynually use to that purpose, wherein as he hath used his best indevours to preserve them, so will hee omitte noe occasion that maye servo for their good.’

Some of our letters have come from very far afield. One, from the Library of the Church of Latter-day Saints in Salt Lake City Utah wanted HADAS’s publications. Another, from a young Finnish Archaeological student, asked about coming to England next summer to join a dig. He wrote in the hope that HADAS might be able to offer the opportunity he seeks.

The postmark on the envelope looks like Tunku (or perhaps Turku)

The address was incredibly simple:

Hendon and District Arc Society,

Hon Secretary,

England.

It reached us within a week, going first to N.W.4, and then to the N.W.11 address of our former Secretary. That’s either fame or uncommonly neat footwork by the Post Office or perhaps a bit of both:

Newsletter 164: October 1984

SALUTE TO SUMMER PAST

That was a summer that was: a long, warm, pleasant season and one into which, HADAS managed to cram quite a lot.

First, of course, we dug again at West Heath, all day every day for the six weeks of June and July; and then, in slightly less concentrated vein, four days a week for part of August and September.

The season kicked off, back on April 1, with the memorable unveiling of the Grimaldi plaque on Finchley Memorial Hospital by Spike Milligan and sundry other clowns: a zany and never-to-be-forgotten occasion.

In May came a highly enjoyable walk round Hampstead with Christopher Wade, followed later in the summer by three outstanding outings – and this year they were all real vintage stuff – to York (where we got in right at the start of the Jorvik exhibition), to West Stowe and to Repton, finishing off with a smashing weekend in Lincoln (see elsewhere in this Newsletter for a report on that). Sandwiched among those was a local trip of considerable interest – to see the historic installations and layout of Hendon airfield, one of the cradles of flying.

We put up exhibitions at Hampstead Garden Suburb Institute and at Church Farm House Museum (the latter still on view, don’t forget); and lent material for a display at Burgh House, Hampstead; and the Roman Group organised a pottery weekend at the Teahouse.

Meanwhile, in the background, research of various kinds continued; most noteworthy, of course, the final frenetic stages in getting the West Heath (Phase I) report ready and deposited with its sponsoring publisher. Finally (we wouldn’t dare say this ourselves, but as someone else said it for us we pass it on): the Newsletter has continued to appear each month and has kept up to standard. It still brings forth accolades of appreci­ation, recently from as far afield as Australia!

Not a bad HADAS summer, on the whole.

WHAT’S ON IN HADAS

Lectures

Tues Oct 2 Orkney: Isbister ‘The Tomb of the Eagles’ by John Hedges

(for further details, see the September Newsletter)

Tues Nov 6 Industrial Archaeology of London’s Dockland by Robert Carr

Lectures are at Hendon Library, The Burroughs, NW4. Coffee 8 pm, lecture 8.30 pm.

Minimart

Sat Oct 6 at St Mary’s Church House, top of Greyhound Hill, NW4, opposite Church Farm House Museum. 11.30 am-3 pm. Will all members please publicise our only fund-raising event of the year as much as possible and come along themselves, to meet friends old and new, and to buy, eat and chat. There will be books, bric-a-brac, gifts, clothing and home-made food, coffee and an excellent ploughman’s lunch.

Help is needed from strong-arm car owners for transporting goods from Church Road to the hall (only about 100 yards). Ring Dorothy Newbury if you can do a couple of runs between 9-11.30 am. We are a bit short on selling staff too, so anyone who can give a hand please phone Dorothy or Christine Arnott (455 2751). The crucial time is the first hour, from 11.30 to lunchtime.

Last minute contributions of goods can be brought to the lecture on October 2 and poster slips for display on cars or in local shops will also be available then. Contributions of fresh food, savoury or sweet, will be warmly welcomed at the food stall on the day.

WEST HEATH

As the Newsletter goes to press this year’s West Heath dig is drawing to its close. Even if it is not completely finished by September 30 it will not continue for more than a few days into October. ‑

We hope to publish a summary of what has happened this season in a forthcoming Newsletters

NEWS ABOUT PEOPLE

Birthday Greetings this month to our President, Professor W F Grimes who celebrates 79 years on the last day of October. We would all like to wish him very happy, and especially those who enjoyed our 1983 long weekend in Wales, to which he contributed so unforgettably.

A member who journeys far afield at the moment is our ex-Treasurer, JEREMY CLYNES, now off in Zambia on a trip that is part business, part pleasure.

This seems a good place to record the Society’s thanks to ERIC WARD ­one of our top photographers – who went along to the Grimaldi plaque cele­bration last April (despite being hampered by leg trouble) and recorded it splendidly. He has now presented the Society with a set of slides and some Colour enlargements for exhibitions; all prepared at his own expense both will be invaluable, and we are most grateful. We were sorry to learn, when he rang to tell us about this generous gift, that his legs are no better and that he is greatly hindered in movement: a wretched problem for someone who has always been as active as he has.

The Council for British Archaeology is currently compiling a Handbook of Historic Farm Buildings – barns, granaries, cattle houses, stables and dovecotes – built before 1900, plus any related machinery or equipment. We were interested to learn that the compiler is a HADAS member – NIGEL HARVEY, who joined us back in the 1960s and has helped with various Society projects. Farming is, of course, his thing: until he retired a few years ago he was a bulwark of the Ministry of Agriculture; and he published “A History of Farm buildings, of which there is a copy (kindly presented by Mr Harvey) in the HADAS Library.

CONSERVATION NEWS

The Archaeology Section of the UK Institute for Conservation has, over the past 18 months, published three leaflets the start of a series called Conservation Guidelines. Others, we are told, are in the pipeline.

No 1 (four fine-printed octavo pages) deals with the general principles of conserving excavated artefacts, summarising what should be done before, during and after excavation.

No 2 is concerned with the packaging and storage of freshly-excavated artefacts. There are 4 pages covering general principles, documentation and how to deal with individual materials. Various metals are to be kept dry; other artefacts – including glass, low-fired or flaky-glazed ceramic, bone, ivory, amber, jet, shale and painted plaster – should be packed damp. This is because, for instance, mud on glass or silt on painted plaster becomes almost unmovable when dry, and both remain malleable in damp packing. This leaflet also contains a separate graphic chart for the finds hut wall, showing how – and how not – to do it: well worth having, on its own.

No 3 (4 pages) has the title Environmental Standards for the Permanent Storage of Excavated Material. It is divided into Minimum Standards (for temporary storage) and Target Standards (for longer term) and each of these is subdivided into Basic Store and Sensitive Material Store; and sub­divided again as to detail – humidity, temperature, light and particulate pollution (i.e. dust to the uniniated).

Copies of all these are obtainable free from UKIC, The Tate Gallery, Millbank, London SW1P 4RG (send an sae, 9″x6″).

On a wider aspect of conservation – this time of something larger than finds – a new post-graduate diploma, Planning for Conservation, is being launched after Christmas by the Polytechnic of North London. It is described as ‘the first course of its kind,’ and is said to be designed for both amateurs and professionals who are concerned with conserving ancient build­ings or historic landscapes.

It will be a 2-year part-time course, starting January 1985 – one evening a week and occasional day visits and a residential long weekend. Further details from Dr R Millman, Dept of Geography, Polytechnic of North London, Holloway Road, N7.

Some months ago the following article appeared in The Times Literary Supplement. Three HADAS members drew our attention to it, so we asked the Editor of the TLS if we might reprint – And he very kindly replied ‘Do.’ Here, then, by courtesy of the TLS, is:

THE ORIGINS OF DRACULA

By Philip Temple

‘And then …. He took a key from his pocket and held it up. And then we spend the night, you and I, in the churchyard where Lucy lies. This is the key that locks the tomb. I had it from the coffin-man to give to Arthur.’ My heart sank within me, for I felt that there was some fearful ordeal before us. I could do nothing, however, so I plucked up what heart I could and said that we had better hasten, as the afternoon was passing …”

As readers of Dracula – rather than viewers of Dracula films – know some of the tale’s most bizarre action takes place in a churchyard near London. Lucy Westenra, who falls victim to the Count and becomes one of the Un-Dead, is entombed in the family mausoleum at ‘Kingstead.’ By day she sleeps in her coffin: After dusk she preys on small children in the Hampstead neighbourhood. Several such children are found, one of them on “the Shooter’s Hill side of Hampstead Heath each has been bitten in the throat. It is in the Westenra tomb that her fiance Arthur Holmwood –helped by Professor;Van Helsing, Dr.Seward and Quincey P Morris – exorcises her soul by putting a stake through her heart and cutting off her head.

It has generally been thought that Stoker’s model for ‘Kingstead Churchyard’ was Highgate Cemetery but this theory is soon disproved. In the process some interesting light was thrown on Stoker’s sources for the story

Factual accuracy of geography and even train timetables— characterises Dracula , a device which makes the story more credible to the reader. Stoker goes to some lengths to pinpoint Kingstead, and the place he evidently had in mind was Hendon, which lies between Hampstead and Kingsbury, and was still a large village in the 1890s.

Seward and Van Helsing set off about ten from Jack’s Straw’s Castle in Hampstead.“It was then very dark, and the scattered lamps made the darkness greater when we were once again outside their individual radius. The Professor had evidently noted the road we were to ‘go, for he went on unhesitatingly: but as for me, I was in quite a mix-up as to locality. As we went further, we met fewer and fewer people, till at last we were somewhat surprised when we met even the patrol of horse police going their usual suburban round. At last we reached the wall of the churchyard, which we climbed over.”

As Seward refers to, Jack Straw’s Castle and later to the Spaniards Inn familiarly enough, it is obvious that they were not going to Highgate: the road would have taken them past the Spaniard’s, in which case Seward would have known the way. Nor can they have been crossing the Heath to Highgate because there were street lamps on the way. Nor can they have been going to Hampstead churchyard (which does resemble the description of the church­yard at Kingstead): as this would have meant going further into Hampstead village. The inference is that they were going along North End Road, through Golder’s Green and along Brent Street to Hendon parish church. The route was straightforward, once the right direction had been taken at the inn. The area was still largely countryside. Evelyn Waugh, writing of his childhood at North End, described Golders Green as having been ‘a grassy crossroad with a sign pointing to London’, Finchley and Hendon; such a place as where ‘the Woman in White’ was encountered. By the 1890s Hendon was large and growing: 1,400 houses in 1879; 2,636 in 1893, the year in which Dracula is set. It was said in 1894 that Hendon.

‘though within seven miles of St Giles’ Church, retains much of the aspect of an old Middlesex village. An exquisite view is seen from the churchyard …London might be hundreds of miles away, and the village-like church strengthens the illusion.’.

Near the east end of St Mary’s is the tomb of Philip Rundell, who died in 1827. This tomb described by the architect W P Griffith in 1838 ‘as a massive mausoleum constructed of stone’ must have been the model for the Westenra tomb in Dracula. Mausoleums, of course, are rare buildings in churchyards. Although other nearby churchyards contain plenty of vaults, they have no actual mausoleums.

It would have taken only about an hour to reach Hendon from the inn, a ‘distance of about three miles. This fits in well with Stoker’s times, for it was just midnight when Seward and van Helsing, having opened Lucy’s coffin and found it empty, took up their hiding places in the churchyard to await the return of the UnDead.

Despite alterations to the church by Temple Moore in the early twentieth century, the general look of the churchyard is much as it was when -the sculptor and one-time Pre-Raphaelite Thomas Woolner was buried there in 1892: “The graves are sheltered from the blasts by spreading cedars, ancient yews, and lovely evergreen trees. The old church walls are covered ‘with ivy, and there is an avenue of limes arched overhead, from the entrance gates to the south door.” Ivy and lime-trees have gone, but the village churchyard character remains. Even in Stoker’s day it was something of a survival. There were large buildings overlooking the churchyard, which was hardly the remote place described in Dracula:

“Lucy lies in the tomb of her kin, a lordly death-house in a lonely churchyard, away from teeming London; where the air is fresh, and the sun rises over Hampstead Hill, and where wild flowers grow of their own accord.”

Incidentally, the sun as seen from the churchyard does rise over .Hampstead. This would not be the case with Highgate Cemetery, which lies east of Hampstead.

Stoker may well have had some link with Hendon, perhaps through, Woolner who had lived at St Peter’s Ouvroir in Brent Street. Stoker knew Rossetti, and lived near him in Cheyne Walk, Chelsea. Sir Hall Caine, who was, after Sir Henry Irving, probably Stoker’s closest associate, was one of Rossetti’s closest friends, and his companion until Rossetti died in 1882. It has been credibly suggested that Caine may have written the final draft of Dracula for Stoker. There may well have been a closer link with Hendon: the Hendon & Finchley Times reported as local news in 1893 the publication of a souvenir booklet to mark Henry Irving’s revival of King Lear at the Lyceum where Stoker was manager. At all events, Hendon was a convenient location for ‘Kingstead.’ But something happened at the churchyard in 1828 which may well have been Stoker’s inspiration for the exorcism in the first place, which he then fitted into the story and turned into a classic piece of vampire horror:

“Arthur took the stake and hammer, and when once his mind was set on action his hands never trembled or even quivered. Van Helsing opened his missal and began to read, and Quincey and I followed as well as we could Arthur placed the point over the heart, and as I looked I could see its dint in the white flesh. Then he struck with all his might. The Thing in the coffin writhed; and a hideous, blood-curdling screech came from the opened red lips. The body shook and quivered and twisted in wild contortions; the sharp white teeth champed to­gether till the lips were cut and the mouth was smeared with a crimson foam. But Arthur never faltered. He looked like a figure of Thor as his untrembling arm rose and fell, driving deeper and deeper the mercy-bearing stake, whilst the blood from the pierced heart welled and spurted up around it. His face was, set, and high duty seemed to shine through it; .the sight of it gave courage so that our voices seemed to ring through the little vault.”

The first part of the exorcism over, Lucy’s head was severed and the mouth stuffed with garlic,

In November 1828 a man called Holm of an old Hendon family asked the vicar’s permission to open a vault in the churchyard of St Mary’s. His son, a Medical student, wanted to collect up bones in the vault. Eventually the vicar agreed to allow the vault to be opened for just an hour the next morning. The coffins, he said, were not to be tampered with. But at 7.30 in the morning a local saw three men in the vault. One of them – ­the medical student Henry Holm – pulled the shroud off a body, then cut off the head which he put into a bag. The body was his mother’s: she had died about twenty years before. Holm and his companions – the sexton’s son and a man called Wood. – were found guilty of breaking open the vault and sever­ing a head from one of the bodies ‘to the outrage of public decency’. Because their purpose was allegedly scientific – Holm wanted to carry out a phrenological examination with a view to tracing a hereditary disorder – they got off fairly leniently. Holm was fined £50, the others £5 each. The vault in question was near the Rundell mausoleum, and the inscription can still be read. Henry Haley Holm died at 39 in 1846, his mother Hannah Maria died at 36 in 1809.

Did Stoker know this story? The chances are that he did. It was pub­lished as an item of interest in Lloyd’s Weekly Newspaper 1892. On the same page was a long ‘rave’ review, with illustrations, of Irving’s pro­duction of King Lear at the Lyceum. The play ‘evoked one of the heartiest and most spontaneous demonstrations of unalloyed satisfaction ever heard within the walls of the Lyceum’. As Irving’s manager, Stoker would almost certainly have seen the review and therefore no doubt the Hendon story. This would explain not only the name Holmwood, but why the churchyard at Kingstead figures in the novel at all. The similarity of the factual and fictional events is obvious. In one case a son cuts his mother’s head off, to trace an hereditary disorder, in the other a man helps to cut off his fiancee’s head to cure another disorder. In fact, Stoker puts far more emphasis on cutting off the head than on the staking of the body, although the staking is the thing most people remember:

“‘Good God!’ he cried. What do you mean? Has there been any mistake? Has she been buried alive?’ He groaned in anguish that not even hope could soften.

‘I did not say she was alive, my child; I did not think it. I go no further than to say that she might be Un-Dead.’

‘Un-Dead! Not alive! What do you mean? Is this all a nightmare, or what is it?’

‘There are mysteries which men can only guess at, which age by age they may solve only in part. Believe me, we are now on the verge of one.

But I have not done. May I cut off the head of dead Miss Lucy?'”

A final curious point concerns the child found on the ‘Shooter’s Hill side’ of Hampstead Heath. Shooter’s Hill, of course, is miles away from Hampstead across the Thames. Surely what was intended was the ‘Shoot-up Hill side.’ ‘Shoot-up Hill is the stretch of the Edgware Road going north from Kilburn, just to the west of Hampstead. In the 1890s the fringes of the Heath extended almost to this point, certainly as far as West Hampstead and the Hampstead Cemetery at Fortune Green. It was therefore in this area that the child was found. This reinforces the idea that Lucy Westenra was entombed up the road in Hendon. But it also seems to be a reference to Wilkie Collins’s novel “The Woman in White” Stoker was clearly influenced by the book, particularly in his use of letters and diary extracts to form the narrative. There are other interesting similarities: the stories both involve private asylums, for instance (they also have villains known as ‘the Count’). It was on the Shoot-up Hill side of Hampstead that Walter Hartright first met the Woman in White. Stoker must have known this, and Lucy would, of course, have been dressed in white grave clothes. The link must have been in his mind.

Even without final proof it seems likely that part of the inspiration for Dracula came not only from books and tales from Transylvania, which have always been known as its sources, but from something that happened in Hendon churchyard in 1828.

Note: the TLS published the article in its issue of November 4, 1983.

Perhaps it is as well that by then the HADAS project of recording the inscriptions in Hendon churchyard had been completed. Otherwise we might have found volunteer recorders rather thin on the ground, specially towards dusk! With the tale of Henry Holm (not to mention Lucy Westenra) Hendon churchyard in the gloaming takes on a certain creepiness.

FRIEZE ON THE TALLY-HO GAUMONT

Last month’s Newsletter mentioned that the Borough Planning Officer had been asked to ensure that the frieze on the soon-to-be-demolished Gaumont at Tally-Ho would be preserved. Subsequently HADAS member BILL FIRTH sent us this note:

With reference to the fate of the frieze on the Gaumont, it seems that there have been a number of different approaches on this. The August 1984 GLIAS Newsletter carries an item indicating that Markheath Securities PLC (the company proposing development) are intending to remove the frieze carefully for re-use on one of the new cinemas in the proposed development.

Another member rang to ask us ‘what the frieze portrayed; it is an Art Deco stone mural in low-relief, and it shows the cinema arts: about nine or ten figures, from the waist up, filming, producing and acting, with lights, cameras and other equipment.

We also had a follow-up to last month’s article on Elias Ashmole’s links with the Borough of Barnet. This came from Gillian Gear, co-author of the booklet East Barnet Village, published in 1980.

She rang to say that the Keeper of Lions at the Tower in the mid-17c, Ralph Gill, had actually lived in East Barnet, at a house called the Clockhouse. Gill’s daughter married Mr Green, who in 1639 owned Mount Pleasant, the house at which Ashmole had stayed in East Barnet four years earlier. No doubt Mr Green and Miss Gill met because they were such near neighbours.

‘The Clockhouse stood close to what is now the junction of Churchill. Road, Cat Hill and East Barnet Road (TQ 2720 9535), where there is today a small shopping parade called Clockhouse Parade. The clock tower above. the present shops once stood on the Clockhouse – it shows in an early photo of the house reproduced in Mrs Gear’s booklet.

The Clockhouse, built in the reign of Henry VIII by Thomas Dudman, appears to have been divided into two houses round the mid-1830s, and one part was then called Arlington Towers. It was finally demolished about 1925, when a builder from Golders Green called Percy (whether this was his first or second name is unclear) built the shopping parade.

One question which sticks in the mind is why someone holding the office of Keeper of the Queen’s Lions lived as far away from the Tower as East Barnet. He might perhaps have been expected to live over the shop, as it were, so that if one of his charges got fractious he was at hand. Maybe this office had become, in the 1630s, a sinecure? Perhaps some HADAS member knowledgable about the Tower can enlighten us?

SITES TO WATCH

Applications for development approval which might be of some archaeo­logical interest have slowed down in the last month or so. These are two of possible interest:

Land at Rookery Way, rear of properties in industrial units,

Rookery Close, NW9 vehicle access etc.

Part of W.Hendon hospital site, Fryent erection of primary

Grove, NW9 school (outline)

(Both the above are near enough to the line of Watling St to be worth looking at)

Should you be passing and notice signs of activity on either site, please let Christine Arnott (455 2751) or John Enderby (203 2630) know.

Recent applications for changes to Listed buildings include:

‘Alterations (internal and external) and a new porch at Garden Hill and its adjacent ‘cottage’ (formerly the stable block) in Totteridge Village. The house is dated c 1730, built of pink brick with a slate mansard roof. It has a panelled hall with a carved overmantel and a stair case with barley-sugar bannisters, both features contemporary with the original house.

At Lawrence Campe Almshouses in Friern Barnet Lane, one .of the oldest buildings in the Borough, improvements and restoration have been going on for some years, and are continuing. Latest plan is for amended alterations to interiors and to the rear elevation. Most members will doubtless know this fine row of seven 2-storey red brick cottages facing the North Middlesex golf course, originally built about 1612 and renovated in 1843 and 1899. They have casement windows with stone mullions, Tudor arch doorways and an interesting line of stone plaques at first-floor level. The Heritage of London Trust – a charitable organisation set up a little while ago with GLA encouragement ‘to conserve and enhance Greater London’s architecturally significant buildings’ – made a contribution of £15,000 towards, in particular, halting and repairing the erosion of -the stone and brickwork.

WHAT’S ON ELSEWHERE

Sat Oct 20 CBA Group 7 whose territory marches with the northern boundary of LBB, and to which several HADAS members belong) is holding its AGM and Annual Conference at Campus West Theatre, Welwyn Garden City. This year’s subject is the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, with half-hour talks on each of them, starting with the Pyramids and ending with the Pharos at Alexandria. Chairman will be an old friend of HADAS’s, Dr John Alexander. AGM 10 am, epilogue 4.30. Tickets £3.20 from E J Heathman, 92 Charmouth Rd, St Albans, before Oct 10 if you want them sent by post.

Sat Nov 17 LAMAS Local History Conference, Museum of London, 11am-5.30 pm.

The theme this year (for both talks and displays) will be transport in

London, from medieval times to twentieth century air transport. Bill Firth will be arranging an exhibit for HADAS based on the contribution made by our area to the beginning of aviation. Tickets, £2.50 including tea, from Keith Bailey, 52 Revelstoke Rd, Wimbledon Park, SW18 5DP (please enclose a large sae).

Sat Nov 24 The Oxford University Dept for External Studies is organizing a day school at Bulmershe College, Woodlands Av, Earley, Reading on Historical Photographs, 10 am-4 pm, fee £6, £4.40 for OAPs – including coffee, lunch and tea. Although the afternoon sessions look specially at local (Berks & Oxon) photos, the morning sessions are on general subjects – techniques for interpreting and dating photos and the conservation and care of historic photos. Enrol with the Tutor in Charge, Woodley Hill House, Bracknell College, Eastcourt Av, Earley, Reading.

·

NEW DEPARTURES

Clay Tobacco Pipes

The first Newsletter of the Society for Clay Pipe Research has recently been published. To get a sample copy and further details of how to join this new society (subscription £3), send a large sae to Mrs Philomena Jackson, 13 Sommerville Rd, Bishopston, Bristol.

Farmland .and Building. Another new society which aims to launch itself

soon is the Historic and Farmland and Buildings Group, Its inaugural meeting will take place during a weekend conference on the history and conservation of farm buildings, organised on Nov 16-18 by the Oxford University Dept. of External Studies at Rewley House, Wellington Sq, Oxford (from whom further details are obtainable).

A VIEW DOWN TWENTY-ONE CENTURIES JEAN SNELLING

Reports on the final weekend outing of 1984

Our visit to Lincoln (Sept 15-16) was packed with memorable interest thanks to Dorothy Newbury’s meticulous planning and the generous guiding of Michael Jones, David Stocker and John Welford of the Lincoln Archaeological Trust, who shared with us some archaeological highlights and problems of this remarkable city. Lincoln has so much that I can hope to give only a few outstanding impressions of a weekend that was crammed with exciting events.

The city’s position fills a river-worn gap in the north-south ridge of Jurassic limestone and climbs the northern heights. The fortified hill and inland port give splendid views from, above and below; for us, alas, lost in mist. Our hotel was high on the green hillside which provided Romans and Normans with building stone. Ermine Street, struggling up the steep slope, still forms the spine of the upper and lower Roman and medieval cities and their suburbs south of the river.

Through the medieval and sometimes regrettable modern city, the Norman castle, cathedral and ruined bishop’s palace rear up high on the hill; old fortifications all of them, built within the walls and gates of the Roman upper and lower cities. Norman stone houses for Jewish financiers and a Norman guildhall remain in the lower city and southern suburb. Deep below are the Roman remains, now emerging in excavations. The Hadrianic forum and upper city, overlying the old fortress of earth and wood, lie under castle bailey and cathedral; Roman town houses and workshops yield fragments through both cities and suburbs.

Between Romans and Normans in the lower city is a 10c Viking settlement. Lincoln being one of the five Danish boroughs. Here were wooden houses, metal workings and potsherds from the near east and from China, the result of Viking track, Below them, near the waterfront – somewhere – are thought to be the first Roman fort and the earlier Iron Age Tribal settlement.

From Norman times the medieval city flourished, keeping up its old walls and gates, making diagonal streets for short’cuts in disregard of the regular Roman plan below, building 47 churches, spreading over and beyond the old suburbs. The wool and cloth trades brought the height of prosperity, then they and the city declined together from the late 14c. Great and small buildings suffered severely in the Civil War.

Highlights for us included a descent into a house cellar in Bailgate, revealing the bases of three great columns of the Roman forum and a homely collection of mosaics and pottery. There was the sight of the Roman city wall discovered underlying the foundations of the cathedral only 2-3 weeks ago. There were all the gates to sort out – city gates, cathedral close gates sates of castle and palace, and ‘gates’ that were Danish street names. There was our discreet entry into the Vicars Choral private garden, surrounded by their lovely medieval houses. There was the extraordinary 18c chapel of the old town prison; tier upon tier of boxed cells enabling each prisoner to see no more than his own feet and the preacher’s head.

Perhaps most remarkable was the church of St Paul in the Bail. Recent excavation on this Victorian site revealed several pre-Conquest levels of a Saxon church, set low in the middle of the Roman forum. It was hoped that the undated lowest church would be the one mentioned by Bede as having been founded by Paulinus in 625-632 AD. It contained graves, one perhaps an altar-tomb with bones and an enamelled hanging bowl of a type sometimes found in Anglo-Saxon burials. Now radio-carbon dating indicates a late 4c date for the earliest bones. This raises the question of a Romano-British origin for the church, perhaps 5c; though adult burials within city walls would then have been prohibited. At present this is a puzzle with no answer.

We ended our visit at the exhibition ‘Lincoln Comes of Age’ (open for about another month) in the Greyfriars museum. Here were gathered Lincoln treasures, some usually housed far away: the bronze parade shield of Iron Age date from the river Witham; Roman inscriptions; the hanging bowl from St Paul in the Bail; the 8c Witham Pins in silver gilt, the cathedral’s original copy of Magna Carta; Jewels, tools, documents, arms and illus­trations of ancient and modern life and work in Lincoln, with reminders of Lincoln Green and scarlet cloth. The exhibition reinforced our impression of the strength of archaeology in Lincoln today.

STOP PRESS

We had an SOS just as this Newsletter went to press – from Stephen Pierpoint, Finds Officer of the Greater London Archaeology unit (northern section). ‘Im writing in the hope that through your Newsletter we might get some publicity for our finds processing work,’ he says.

At the moment he is working on what he describes as “exceedingly” prolific finds from the very large Roman cemetery at Tenter Street and the site of Clerkenwell nunnery:” so there is Roman and Medieval material to be handled. There are also a few Iron Age finds from Clerkenwell Work is mainly washing and marking but there is some cataloguing.

Work takes place every Tuesday evening from 6-9 pm at the Museum Of London’s Department of Greater London Archaeology at 42 Theobalds Road, WC1. If HADAS members would prefer to help during the week, however, in normal working hours, that could be arranged.

The need is urgent. Perhaps we could form a small HADAS group to go down together regularly once or twice a week: if you would like to help, please ring Brigid Grafton Green and we will see if we can arrange a day and time when it would be convenient for several members to go together. (455 9040).

Newsletter 163: September 1984

A DATE FOR WEST HEATH

With something very close to a sound of trumpets DAPHNE LORIMER, who is co-author with DESMOND COLLINS of the final report on West Heath, Phase 1: 1976-81, announced last week that the HADAS site at West Heath now has a definite date. This is her statement for the Newsletter:

Members may remember that 18 months ago, through the good offices of Margaret Maher, Dr Joan Huxtable of the Research Laboratory of the Dept. of Art & Archaeology, Oxford (whose help HADAS greatly appreciates) under­took the positive dating of West Heath by thermoluminescence. Six samples of burnt struck flints and their surrounding soil were taken from the area of trench XVM at varying depths.

Initial results were promising, so calcium fluoride capsules were buried on the site for one year to obtain the environmental dose. In July this year the probes were removed and dates for each sample were calculated. These varied from

12000 years plus or minus 1500 years BP to

7300 years plus or minus 750 years BP

There was no evidence from the buried soil that the flints were not coeval. The average age calculated for the site from the 6 samples is:

about 9625 plus or minus 900 BP, or about 7675 BC

This result puts West Heath in the relatively select group of Mesolith­ic sites which have an absolute date and provides a most satisfactory con­clusion to the report which is now in the hands of Dr Hugh Chapman at the Museum of London.

Note: Those members wishing to read more about TL techniques are referred to papers by Joan Huxtable & Roger Jacobi (1982) in Archaeometry 24.2, 164-9; and Aitken & Alldred (1972) Archaeometry 14.2, 257-267.

PROGRAMME NEWS

Sat/Sun Sept 15/16 trip to Lincoln. 35 members are booked for this weekend to see the Lincoln “Comes of Age” exhibition, showing 21 centuries of living history. We have no waiting list – and fortunately no cancellations, though one member may have to cancel at the last moment. So if anyone might still like to come (cost £39) please ring Dorothy Newbury (203 0950).

Autumn Programme. The new season of lectures begins next month at Hendon Library, The Burroughs, NW4. Coffee 8 pm; lectures begin 8.30 pm.

Tues Oct 2 (not 22 as printed in programme card). Isbister, Tomb of Eagles: lecturer, John Hedges. The 48 members who went on our memorable 10-day Orkney trip in 1978 will have fond memories of Isbister and of John Hedges, who is that rare bird, a professional freelance archaeologist.

We are lucky that he can come to talk to us and show his slides of the excavation. His publication on the subject is due out this October. He well remembers our visit and looks forward to meeting us again.

Sat Oct 6 (please note change in originally advertised date). Minimart St Mary’s Church House (top of Greyhound Hill, Hendon NW4, opposite Church Farm House Museum). The initial flood of goods for sale seems to have subsided during August, so please start turning out now and bring your goodies to Dorothy (203 0950) or Christine (455 2751). If you can’t deliver please ring us. For further details see insert in this Newsletter.

Tues Nov 6. The Industrial Archaeology of London’s Dockland by Robert Carr

Lecture Information (for new members): buses 183 & 143 pass the Library door which is 10 minutes’ walk from Hendon Central Underground station and only a few minutes’ walk from the 113 (Edgware) bus and 240 & 125 (Quadrant, Hendon) buses. There are 2 free car parks opposite the Library. Members may bring a guest to one lecture, but guests who wish to attend further lectures should be invited to join the Society. Will old members please welcome new ones, and make them feel at home? New members please make yourselves known.

MORE DIGGING AT WEST HEATH

The initial 6-week dig at West Heath closed on July 31, but digging has now resumed once more on 4 days each week: Thursday, Friday, Saturday & Sunday. Volunteers will be most welcome, particularly those who can make a regular commitment. Don’t be shy about coming, though, even if you can put in only an occasional day or half-day.

Times as before – 9 am-6 pm.

At the moment it is uncertain how long the dig will go on, but certain­ly well into September. We are anxious to complete the trenches which have been opened this year, and shall continue ‘till that is accomplished. Any­one who wants to check whether digging is continuing should ring either Margaret Maher (907 0333) or Sheila Woodward (952 3897).

ANGLO-SAXONS AT REPTON A report on the Aug 18 outing by MARGARET TAYLOR

Beautiful weather, a full coach and a prompt start heralded a day of great interest for all. We were guided off the Ml through narrow lanes by Mr and Mrs Kitching of the Repton Local History group and were received at Repton School by Professor Martin Biddle, who gave up the morning to conduct us round the complicated sites that he has been excavating for 10 years.

The Anglo-Saxon monastery stands on a low bluff overlooking the valley of the Old River Trent where there has been a long sequence of human activity from Mesolithic times, ending with over 1200 years of Christianity. The Anglo-Saxon monastery existed for two centuries – 670-873 AD. It came to an abrupt end when the Vikings used it for a defensive fortress in the winter of 873-4.

The 1159 Augustinian Priory was suppressed by Henry VIII but Repton School was founded in 1557 using the buildings which have since featured in the two films of ‘Goodbye Mr Chips’ in 1938 and 1984.

The excavation around the east end of the church of St Wystan has uncovered massive stepped foundation plinths and the Anglo-Saxon doorway, but across to the building when it was a mausoleum has not been revealed. We went into an atmosphere of mystery, murders and miracles associated with this mausoleum. A large defensive ditch from the Viking occupation has been traced encircling the church and the mound cemetery west of the church. The Prior’s Hall overlooking the Old River Trent is one of the earliest brick buildings, dated 1430, showing. Dutch influence.

In the Vicarage garden the excavation of a large mound has uncovered a major 2-cell building which looks like a Christian foundation. Finds included disarticulated bones of 250 skeletons associated with 10C objects: iron axe, iron sword. Eighth century silver coins were placed over the clay of the collapsed ceiling of the building. Further inhumation burials were dug into the mound. It is not certain yet whether this discovery is associated with the Viking army which ‘drove King Burgred across the sea and conquered all that land.’ When the new vicar arrived this year he must have been startled to find his lawn covered with bones and to be asked would his wife mind if the skulls were dried off in her airing cupboard?

A second excavated mound has revealed a fine Anglo-Saxon carved stone grave cover. Northeast of the church later burials have been cleared and have revealed a stone channel leading into the crypt, possibly suggesting an early use as a baptistery.

The visit to the crypt was for me the most moving experience of the day, it is the earliest complete building in England, and has unusual -‘barley sugar’ pillars. The crypt had been filled with rubbish and unknown for many centuries and there are still unsolved problems about access when it was a mausoleum, as no doorway has been found. A future investigation of the west wall may solve this but there are structural hazards involved.

We were conducted round part of the school and were amazed at the size of the huge piers of the Norman tower. These, which now partly lie under a modern building, compare in size with Southwark Cathedral.

The Prior undercroft is now an attractive museum. One wall incorporates many carved stone fragments, while another has medieval tiles. We visited the library above the undercroft, where documents and manuscripts would have detained some HADAS members all afternoon. The library was once a teaching room and has the old headmaster’s desk and a fine set of 18 stained glass windows, copies of some now in the British Museum showing the adven­tures of an Anglo-Saxon soldier, Guthlacus, of 697- AD.

Our guides, Mr Kitching and Mr Ash, gave us much information and fascinating stories of various ‘characters,’ including one of a drunken steeplejack who was rescued when tiddly (presumably from his steeple) by his 12-year-old daughter, Bessie. We were indeed grateful to them and to the ladies at the Village Hall who provided an enormous and delicious homemade tea which revived us for our 2-hour journey home. Many thanks to Dorothy Newbury for the excellent arrangements for such a worthwhile visit.

BEHIND THE SCENES AT A ROMAN POTTERY by TESSA SMITH

Early in August two HADAS members set up a further small display in one of the downstairs rooms at Church Farm House Museum, Hendon. We used some more of the finds from the early Brockley Hill digs, and this time our chosen theme was Techniques and Technology in Roman Pottery. Oddly enough, we had to adopt some new techniques and technology for setting up the exhibit, too.

Part of this display centres around the now somewhat fragile model of a Roman kiln, made some years ago by a member of HADAS. It has now to be treated with respect, which means your heart is in your mouth when handling it: but it is still an excellent reproduction in miniature, showing the pedestal and raised floor, the flue and stokehole, the pebble platform surround and the domed top. It’s in section, so you can see inside.

It was decided to fill the kiln with clay miniatures of Brockley Hill ware, flagons, bowls and mortaria. Making these out of modelling clay, in what we christened the Brockley Hill (Miniatures) Pottery, suddenly made quite normal sized fingers seem elephantine. It needed diligent use of fine wooden tools to fix the tiny handles, manipulate the minute flagon rings and stamp the potter’s name on the miniature mortaria. The kiln was then stacked and arranged with the tiny pots, like a doll’s house for archaeologists.

According to excavation reports, charcoal of oak, ash and hazel was found in the flues and stokeholes of some Brockley Hill kilns. Therefore a search was made beforehand to try to find evidence for these trees growing at Brockley Hill today, and sure enough both ash and oak were flourishing on almost the exact sites of kilns of potters such as Melvs and Matvgenvs. Whilst searching the undergrowth, hoping either for stray sherds or at least for twigs of oak and ash, this archaeologist encountered a ditch digger who said, with apparent inside knowledge, that he knew all about the Roman potteries round here. It was a bit eerie. Could he have been the ghost of a potter past? Or had he just read the blue plaque which is now, thanks to the Borough Planning Department, renewed and re-erected after vandalism?

The ditch that this possible phantom potter was clearing measured the entire length of Brockley Hill southwards, but even better it was trenched in parts to a depth of 4 ft. He issued an invitation to help yourself’ to any soil samples needed; and before you could say Sulloniacae one intrepid HADAS member was down in the ditch gazing with questioning eyes at the stratified layers of the section. A clear cut across this bit of Claygate Beds down to the ditch bottom showed top soil, dark and loamy, then a layer of hard clay, below this 6 ins of pebble and under this patches of softer yellow clay. Samples were scooped up avidly.

Later the, natural yellow clay was easily moulded into small and simple bowl-type and cylinder-type forms. These, together with the kiln model, some excavated Brockley Hill ware which had been selected earlier, the clay miniatures and all the other equipment needed for mounting an exhibition were gathered together at the museum. In case you’ve never thought about it, the ‘other equipment’ means rulers, scissors, captions, writing imple­ments, maps, drawings, typewriter and paper, polish and duster, bluetack and assorted sellotapes, lining paper, card, stands, pine of different shapes, hammer and screwdriver: the list is practically endless and the only sure thing about it is that the thing you forget is the vital thing you’ll need.

It was thought somewhat naively by one of the setter-uppers that it would take a couple of hours to do the two display cases. Those of you who normally mount our exhibitions will smile knowingly.

One of the Church Farm House Museum display cases is what is known as ‘a challenge.’ It has an angled display area, the front of which drops away steeply and is almost impossible to reach from behind. (It’s totally -impossible to reach from the front because the glass is fixed).

This was the point at which a small sinuous cat burglar would have come in very handy; instead we had to make do with the top half of a reasonably well-endowed HADAS member, inserted through the aperture of a sliding panel about 8 ins by 12 ins. Groping blindly she sought to affix charts, captions and drawings on the awkward front slope (and of course halfway down that slope was the one place where the unruly oak and ash twigs could be most tastefully arranged). The only guidance, as she could see nothing, was the hissed instructions of her accomplices out in front. Up a bit, right – no, my right, your left! Down a bit that end. Right a bit. That’s it … now Press! If there’d been an aisle, we’d have been rolling in it. As there wasn’t we just had quiet hysterics from time to time.

Final highlight of the exhibit is the fire. Cunningly concealed inside the arched flue of the model kiln is an amazingly lifelike red glow (provided it has been switched on). We do hope it remains safe and secure, or else there could be another firing of Brockley Hill ware, this time at Church Farm House! Anyway, do go along and have a look. Our small HADAS display will be on show until early October at least, in the downstairs room on the left as you go in.

Upstairs at the Museum, from now until October 21, you will find an excellent exhibition under the title ‘From the Slade to the Somme,’ It consists of paintings and drawings by Philip Dadd (1880-1916), nephew of Kate Greenaway and descendant of several other well-known Victorian artists and illustrators. Artistic talent alighted on Philip, too, as this exhibition of his magazine and book illustrations, posters, etc. shows.

SITES TO WATCH

We didn’t have space in the August Newsletter for our usual list of sites to watch, so this month there’s double measure.

The following sites, which might have some archaeological interest, have appeared on recent Borough of Barnet planning application lists. Some have been mentioned before in the Newsletter, so for them this is just a reminder; Applications for a site often appear several times in the lists: at first, perhaps as an ‘outline;’ then, ‘amended’ or ‘with additions;’ and then possibly with ‘details’ which did not need to be itemised at the outline stage, e.g. landscaping, tree-planting, access roads, etc. Those to which we want to draw your attention now are

Grounds of the Norwegian Barn, Edgwarebury Lane, 18m high radio mast & Elstree radio base station

(An amended plan for a development we noted earlier: all this area of Edgwarebury is worth keeping an eye on for signs of Roman occupation; it’s pretty close to Brockley Hill)

16 Grass Park, N3 Side/rear extensions & a new portico

(An amended application originally put forward in 1982. This is near the site of the original Grass, or Grotes, Farm – a moated farmhouse as early as 1315. Demolished in 1923.)

Land fronting The Hyde, Edgware Rd, NV9, NW of the Industrial/warehouse

Silk Bridge building, roads

(An outline application: all sites as near as this to the line of Watling St are worth watching. Same applies to the following site)

Edgware General Hospital, Burnt Oak Broadway 2-storey extension to the Path Lab

Land at Old Fold Manor Golf Club, Old Fold Single-storey Artisans Lane, Hadley club house, parking, access:

(Amended application. Near site of original moated manor of the Frowyke goldsmith family, the moat of which still remains around the 18th green. The manor house existed at and before the time of the Battle of Barnet in 1471)

4 Farrington Cottages, Moon Lane, Maxon St, semi-detached dwelling

Barnet house

(second amended application which- we originally noted earlier this year. Any building in this crowded centre of Barnet is worth observing for possible medieval evidence)

Planning applications for the following sites, noted in previous Newsletters, have now been approved:

Land adjoining 53 Ashley Lane, NW4 3 houses

Land bounded by Springwood Cres, Burrell Cl, 53 houses, access

Knightswood Cl, Edgware roads, etc

Convent of St Mary Hale Lane, Edgware (approved by LBB, still subject to

GLC approval) houses, flats, etc

It has been agreed that the Eleanor Palmer Trust should proceed with detailed plans for the Elizabeth Allen School site in historic Wood Street, Barnet.

‘Should members notice signs of development activity on any of the sites mentioned, please let Christine Arnett (455 2751) know. She and John Enderby have taken over jointly as organisers of our site-watching operations,

LISTED BUILDINGS

Recent planning applications which affect listed buildings include:

Two applications for Holy Trinity Church hall, Church Lane, East Finchley. The church hall is not itself a Listed building, but it stands in close proximity to Holy TrinityChurch, which is listed, and to its quiet ­surrounding churchyard. The-church was built by Anthony Salvin, Victorian architect and one of East Finchley’s most notable inhabitants, c 1849 of ragstone with freestone dressings. One application, for change of use to a community centre, would not involve demolition of the hall.’ The other would: it is for the erection of 13 2-storey terraced houses, which would certainly affect the setting and amenity of the Church.

There is an unusual application for the barn at Laurel Farm, Totteridge, Green, N20: to take down and refurbish it, and rebuild it to form a dwelling house. Laurel Farm is a Grade II Listed building – a 17c timber-framed house with a later timber-framed rear addition. The 18c barn is also Listed – a 4-bay timber-framed barn with a modern roof. We have mentioned this application to the SPAB (whose current Barn Survey was noted in the August Newsletter) in case it would be of interest to them to watch the re-jigging of an ancient barn to serve a new purpose.

St Mary’s Abbey, The Ridgeway, NW7, has applied to use part of its chapel for the storage and distribution of religious educational material. This is a Grade II building designed by G Goldie c 1888 in red bricks: a cruciform aisleless chapel with a central tower and 3 side chapels.

Approval has been given for various maintenance projects at the Old Forge, Holcombe Hill, NW7: the replacement of a door, repainting of window frames and demolition of a porch and re-erection of a new one. The Old Forge and its attendant cottage form a picturesque 18c group of two 2-storey cottages with a one-storey forge building between.

It was interesting to see that the Town Planning and Research Committee of LBB has asked the Borough Planning Officer to bear in mind a request that the fine frieze on the front of the -Gaumont cinema at Tally-ho should be preserved when the cinema is demolished. We are glad to say that HADAS member KEN VAUSE kindly went out in various lights to photograph the frieze for record purposes some 18 months ago.

House of History: ASHMOLE TO BETJEMAN by Brigid Grafton Green

The current issue of Antiquity carries a lively account of the junketings last year for the tercentenary of the oldest museum in the Country, Oxford’s Ashmolean, which opened to the Public on June 6, 1683, the first institutional museum in Britain so to do, antedating the British Museum by 70 years.’

Anyone who has links with Oxford must have a soft spot for the Ash­molean. It’s the museum on which I cut my infant academic teeth if that’s not too mixed a metaphor.; and much later, when embroiled in the second year of the Diploma in Archaeology – which in those days encompassed, believe it or not, in a single year the vast field of Western Asia, Greece, the Aegean, Anatolia and Egypt – I remember an entrancing week spent among one of the Ashmolean’s great glories: its Minoan material from Arthur Evans’ digs in Crete , particularly its Middle and Late Minoan pottery and seals.

Elias Ashmole (1617-1692) from whom the Ashmolean takes its name, has a tenuous connection with our London Borough of Barnet, though when he lived between Cockfosters and Barnet in the 1630s a system of local authorities like ours wasn’t even a gleam in a governmental eye. Elias was described by a contemporary as ‘the greatest virtuoso and curioso that ever was known or read of in England.’ He had an ‘insatiable curiosity for knowledge’ and great zeal in research; and he was, in 1661, one of the 114 founders of the Royal Society, who agreed ‘to meete together Weekely to consult and debate, conderning the promoting of Experimentall
learning.’ When his diary describes how he cured himself of ague by hang­ing three spiders around his neck, the gulf which lies between 17C experi­mentation and science today certainly shows,

In his youth Ashmole was an alchemist, an astrologer and an antiquarian; though as time went on the first two interests gave place to the last. He was born at Lichfield, the son of a saddler, though rather an upmarket saddler, as the boy was educated at Lichfield Grammar School and then joined the London household of one of his mother’s relatives, a baron of the exchequer. It was at the age of 18, while he was in process of becoming a solicitor – an aim he finally achieved in 1641 – that he spent a summer at a house named Mount Pleasant in East Barnet. Frederick Cass, in “East Barnet” quotes the relevant entry from Ashmole’s diary: ‘July 11 1635. Came to live at Mount Pleasant, near Barnet, and stayed there all the summer’ (Diary of Elias Ashmole, pub 1717; it is the main authority for our knowledge of Ashmole),

Elias was a royalist, and was appointed by the King a commissioner of excise in Lichfield; later his employment brought him to Oxford, and he became a student, reading physics and mathematics, at Brasenose

He had married at 21;’ his wife died in childbirth within a few years. ‘In 1647 he married again, this time a well-heeled lady 20 years his senior, thrice widowed and with grown-up sons one of them as old as Elias. It seems to have been 4 cat and dog union, both with the lady and with her disapproving family.

The Restoration brought him honours and preferment. He became Windsor Herald and wrote the standard, and much acclaimed, work on the Institution, Laws and Ceremonies of the Order of the Garter. He had become friendly with John Tradescant, a great collector of rare specimens of natural history and ethnography and keeper of the botanic garden at Chelsea; when Tradescant died his ‘museum’ was bequeathed to Ashmole, who decided eventually to offer it, with additions of his own, to Oxford, provided a suitable build­ing could be provided. The Old Ashmolean was completed in 1682, 12 wagons of ‘curiosities’ made their way from London to Oxford, Dr Plot, Professor of Chemistry, was appointed as first curator and in 1683 the Ashmolean Museum opened its doors, primarily at first as a scientific institution. Today art aim archaeology are its highlights.

The house in which Ashmole spent that summer of 1635 remained, though no doubt much altered from time to time, until 1932, when it was demolished to make way for a new estate. It stood on the corner of today’s Freston Gardens and Leys Gardens, at TQ 2805 9577, so, it must virtually have strad­dled what is now the boundary between the Boroughs of Barnet and Enfield.

The house had several changes of name in its long history. The earliest reference that has been found is dated 1533 (again, it comes from Cass) when it was owned by Robert Rolfe. When Ashmole was staying them a century later it was called Mount Pleasant. In 1639 a Mr Green took it over. His principal claim to fame seems to have been that he married the daughter of the keeper of lions at the Tower. No doubt the lion-keeper, Ralph Gill, visited East Barnet on occasion. In the late 18c the property was owned by William Henry Ashurst.

The house was first called Belmont in 1811, and it was known under that name probably until 1914 It appears on the OS map of 1860 as Belmont, which is the reason that its site can be pinpointed so precisely today. In 1826 it Wes the home of David Bevan and then of his son, Robert Cooper Lee Bevan, who succeeded in 1846, He was a banker and became head of the great banking house that is now Barclays. Later R C L Bevan owned Trent Park, and Belmont was sold to Henry Alexander and then to Mr Hanbury.

In 1914 came the final change of name, when it became Heddon Court prep school for boys – and that is what it remained until it was pulled down before the Belmont estate was built between 1932-34. Now a complex of roads north of Cat Hill recall all the names: Mount Pleasant curves round to join Cockfosters Road; Belmont Avenue, Heddon Road and Heddon Court Avenue are all nearby. About a mile and a half to the south east, in Burleigh Gardens, N14 (again, close to the LBB boundary) is a school called the Ashmole School, It would be easy to jump to the conclusion that this was the site where Ashmole had lived; but the fact which is commemorated by the name of the school is merely his general link with the area.

As Heddon Court the house attracted another notable: John Betjeman, later Poet Laureate, was cricket master there in the 1920s and one of his poems (Cricket Master: an Incident) commemorates the fact. It opens

My undergraduate eyes beholding

As 1 climbed your slope, Cat Hill:

Emerald chestnut fans unfolding,

Symbols of my hope, Cat Hill.

What cared I for past disaster,

Applicant for cricket master,

Nothing much of cricket knowing

Conscious but of money owing?

Somehow I would cope, Cat Hill.

Then the tale is told of how a non-cricketer tries, disastrously, to teach cricket, and the final stanza paints the fate of Cat Hill:

Shops and villas have invaded

Your chestnut quiet there, Cat Hill

Cricket field and pitch degraded,

Nothing did they spare, Cat Hill.

I am thirty summers older

Richer, wickeder and colder,

Fuller too of care, Cat Hill.

Note: grateful thanks to Douglas Austin, East Barnet local historian, for much real information which has been used in this article;’ and thanks, too, to Gillian Gear’s and Diana Goodwin’s booklet, East Barnet Village (pub; 1980), which filled several gaps in the story. See Cass, Frederick, East Barnet (1885-92); and for general

Reference on Elias Ashmolean, see C H Josten’s pamphlet of that name, published by the Ashmolean Museum (1978); and the DNB.

ELECTRONIC ARCHAEOLOGY

The Newsletter is grateful to HADAS member ANN KAHN for the- following paragraphs from a journal with the horrific title ‘Communication Technology Impact. Archaeology is not a subject which graces CTI pages very often but researchers at the University of Toronto are utilising advanced word processing technology to reveal the secrets of the 5000 year old writings of Mesopotamian scribes. The Royal Inscriptions of Mesopotamia, believed to be examples of the world’s first written language, are being tracked down, edited and published with the invaluable help of computers. Dr Kirk Grayson, project leader, explains that the tiny wedge-shaped cuneiform symbols – ‘the most complicated writing system ever invented next to Chinese’ – are translated into the Roman alphabet through the use of five word processors with 256K of memory; and specially formulated Unix software, developed by Bell Laboratories, New York,

The translation project, which hopes to publish twenty volumes by its year 2001 deadline, has received a tremendous boost by the technological breakthrough, for printing of the symbols is made a lot easier by computer­ised photocomposition. Moreover, with the data in machine-readable form, other researchers worldwide will have access to the Inscriptions. Over 0400,000 per annum is being provided, by the University of Toronto and the Canadian Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council, for the non-profit making project; and with the use of computers speeding up translation of ‘all the official inscriptions of all the kings of Assyria, Babylonia and Sumeria over a period of 3000 years,’ the end-product looks likely to make a significant contribution to late 20c archaeological and ancient history research.”

Thank heavens for the variety of HADAS members’ interests and for their keen eye for a good archaeological story!

SAD NEWS FOR THE NEWSLETTER

A few weeks ago we learnt, with great regret, that RENE FRAUCHIGER has decided to move from the Borough of Barnet. Various legal arrangements still have to be completed, so the move may not take place for a little while yet. We are -glad to say too that Rene won’t be going far – only from her present house in Edgware a mile or two north to Radlett, where her daughter and grandchildren live. We hope that HADAS will still be able to keep in touch with her.

She has been one of the most important people in the Society, so far as the Newsletter is concerned, because for years she has housed our duplicator; and since January 1977 she has ‘rolled off’ every Newsletter that members have had – that’s 92 issues, counting this one you are reading. And having rolled them off, she has been in charge too of paging them up, ‘stuffing’ and stamping the envelopes and seeing they all get to post 400-plus every month. When I say the newsletter is going to miss her horribly it’s a masterly understatement.

Although the change is not imminent, this seems the right moment to ask our readers whether any of them feel able to help us cover the work which Rene has done so long and so responsibly.

For instance, is there anyone prepared to take over the ‘rolling off’ job their own house ‑that would mean giving house-room to the Gestetner duplicator (Rene kept it in an empty garage, an ideal place) and being prepared to operate it towards the end of each month? The stuffing, stamping etc. could be done elsewhere, if necessary.

Alternatively, if we can find some central spot where the duplicator could live (e.g. in Hendon) is there a member (or members) either well-versed in the habits of such a beast, or prepared to learn them, who could give a morning or an afternoon (rolling off takes about 2-3 hours) each month to this job? If. we could find more than one person it would be onerous. Volunteers for stuffing and stamping – either on a regular or an occasional basis – would also be most welcome.

Should any of you feel able to help in any of these ways, please give me a ring on 455 9040. –

BRIGID GRAFTON GREEN

MORE AUTUMN CLASSES

One of- the HGS Institute autumn courses which we did not mention in last month 1B round-up of winter classes will be on ‘Modern London and its Transport Systems. That May not sound all that archaeological, but anyone with a leaning to Industrial Archaeology is likely to find it rewarding, -and so will local historians

The lecturer is John .Freeborn, who is hear of Interpretation•& Display at the London Transport Museum in Covent Garden. HADAS members may recall, the excellent lecture he gave to the Society in October 1980 on the Transport Museum. He assures us that the Institute course (20 lectures, 2 visits) won’t be just dry technology;’ he is particularly interested in the interaction of transport and people and how this has caused the growth of London outwards. Mr. Freeborn lives in the Borough; and transport is the key to local history in Barnet for the last 77 years. The visits he has planned include a special underground railway journey and an inside view of the Transport Museum. Lectures will be on Weds, 7.30-9.30 pm, starting Oct 3. Enrol now at HGS Institute (455 9951)..

Another course that sounds intriguing is on Thursdays from Oct 4 at 6.30 pm at the Museum of London. It is on Clothing and Fashion in London from medieval to modern times, and the lecturer is Kay Staniland. Further Details from the Museum Press Office 600 3699, ext 240/280. Finally, a reminder about two course 7 with which HAMS is particularly involved, and for which we hope many members will enrol:

1. The first year of the Certificate in Archaeology at HGS Institute on the Prehistory of SE England, Thurs 2-4 pm starting Sept 27. Lecturer Tony Legge. Holding this course in the afternoons is experimental: please help to make it a success by joining.

2. At the Old Schoolhouse, 136 Tottenham Lane N8, at the invitation of the Hornsey Historical Society, 4 HADAS lecturers will again take a course in basic archaeology. This is of 12 lectures, starting Oct 1; on Mons from 7.30-9.30 pm. Any HADAS member who feels, a bit shaky about basic chronology will find these lectures helpful; and the speakers plan to cover new ground, so even if you have been to this course before, it will be worthwhile to sign on again.

Margaret Maher will be dealing with Paleolithic subjects; Daphne Lorimer with Mesolithic and Neolithic; Sheila Woodward with the metal ages; and Brigid Grafton Green with the Roman period. Enrolment will be at the Old Schoolhouse on lecture nights, preferably October 1. Any further informa­tion can be obtained from Brigid Grafton Green (455.9040).

OTHER FORTHCOMING EVENTS

The Lutyens/Elgar son-et-lumiere celebration at St Jude on the Hill, Hampstead Garden Suburb, which was postponed from the spring, will now take place on Sept 20, starting 8 pm. It’s one of the London events arranged in connection with the Royal Institute of British Architects 150th anniversary celebrations. Tickets £4.50, obtainable from the New HGS Trust, 862 Finchley Road, NW11 (455 1066).

The Museum of London has some interesting Thursday Workshops lined up this autumn. Workshops are at 1.10 pm in the Education Department, and are ‘led’ by specialist members of the museum staff: main pleasure at most of them lies in being able to handle objects. This is the programme:

Sept 20 Prehistoric Treasure from the Thames

Sept 27 Tudor Knitwear

Oct 4 The Quacks of London

11 Roman London: Model of the Waterfront

18 Roman London: Reconstructing the Forum

25 Roman London: New Finds from Southwark

Nov 1 Film: The London Blitz

8 Roman London: New Finds from the City

15 Feminine Foundations: Lingerie for the Edwardian Lady

22 Christmas Cards

29 Heraldry & Archaeology

Dec 6 Restoration of Charles II

Incidentally, there is a new restaurant at the Museum called the Fountains Restaurant which looks most attractive – especially on a summer day, when there are tables outside overlooking the Rotunda garden with its 18c drinking fountain. Seats for 70 inside, too: snacks, cold drinks, wine. Open Mon-Sat, 10-6.30; Suns 12-6.30.

JOURNALS FOR LOCAL HISTORIANS

Interest in local history has been growing steadily for at least the last decade – witness the increasing numbers who flock to the LAMAS Local History Conference each November, and the founding two years ago of the British Association for Local History.

Perhaps it is a natural economic consequence that we should now get an upsurge in the publications catering for this interest. Apart from the various Family History publications, two new local history journals have seen the light of day this summer, neither of them with very imaginative titles. One is called Exploring Local History, the other just Local History. When you bear in mind that we have for many years had an admirable little quarterly called Local Historian and that the Newsletter of the BALH, hitherto mysteriously called NAB, is about to re-christen itself Local History News, it looks like a confused future for local historian readers.

A comparison of the first issues of the two new magazines is quite illuminating. Exploring Local History (hereafter referred to as Exploring), first issue April 1964, is a monthly, published in Bristol at 75p a copy. You can’t buy single copies, however – it is obtainable only by post at £9.50 for 12 issues.

Local History (hereafter LH), first issue July 1984, is published every 2 months in Nottingham. —You can buy a single copy of that at £1.50, of which 25p is for postage; an annual subscription for 6 issues costs £7.0, incl. postage.

You might expect that the 2-monthly LH, at £1.50, would be larger and longer than the monthly Exploring at 75p but you’d be wrong. LH is 20 pages (including 4 pages of cover) and is quarto size. Exploring is a trifle largerabout A4 and contains 32 pages, including 4 pages of cover.

The only reasons I can deduce for the surprising difference in price ­one issue of Exploring, with 32 pages, costing half one issue of LH,. With only 20 are that LH carries no commercial advertising and has a few ads- for hotels, travel firms, publishers. Also LH is printed on a heavier, coated paper. This provides it with one advantage: its photos reproduce more clearly. Exploring’s photos are a bit fuzzy and so are some of its line reproductions. The first issue might just as well not have tried to reproduce a 1736 plan of Sheffield, because it is unreadable.

Both magazines declare roundly that their main aims are to provide the amateur historian with a platform for his/her opinions, to publish his/her future articles and to offer a forum for the exchange of his/her ideas.

The content of both first issues seems scrappy and uncoordinated, with Exploring carrying a bit more news and paying a trifle more attention to archaeology than LH. Neither, however really seems to come off. However, it may be unfair to judge on a first issue, which probably went to press in fairly fraught circumstances: perhaps we should reserve judgment until we have seen how later issues shape up.

Any member who is interested in becoming a subscriber to either of these magazines can find out further details from Brigid Grafton Green.

MOVE TO MATLOCK

The British Association for Local History, to which HADAS is affiliated, has now moved out of London. Its new address is Manager’s House, Cromford Mill, Cromford, Nr Matlock, Derbyshire.

BALH has become a tenant of the Arkwright Society, and shares part of the buildings which that Society acquired in 1979. Both the buildings, and the site on which they stand, have a considerable interest for industrial archaeologists, for it was here that, from 1771 onwards, Richard Arkwright built up his business, creating in Cromford. the world’s first successful water-powered cotton spinning mill – the ‘cradle of the industrial revolution.’

Newsletter 162: August, 1984

HADAS DIARY

Sat Aug 18. Repton Derbyshire – our last day-trip this summer. Colin Ditching of the Repton Village History Group will meet the coach as it leaves the M1 and take us through country lanes to the ancient village of Repton, where he will guide us through its long history; Excava­tions have been conducted here for the last 10 summers and are going on this August under Martin Biddle, who will show us the site and tell about their discoveries. If you wish to go on this outing please com­plete the enclosed form and return it to me with your cheque as soon as possible.

Sat/Sun Sep 15/16. The Lincoln weekend has proved very popular with too many for minibuses, so we are having a coach to take and fetch us. The whole weekend will be spent in Lincoln itself so transport won’t be needed there. We have filled the original small hotel and spread to two others. There is no waiting list, so any late-comers please ring me in case there are cancellations.

Sat Oct 6. Minimart (don’t forget the change of date). We are getting off to a good start collecting goods. Several members are moving house and HADAS is benefitting from their overflow. Please start turning out now and ring me or Christine Arnott (455 2751) when you have anything ready: unwanted gifts and toilet goods, clothing for all ages and sizes, all sorts of bric-a-brac, pictures, crockery, household utensils, curtains, linens, toys and games. If in doubt, ring and ask us. If you are making jams or pickles, make an extra jar for Brigid on the food stall. Thanks, everyone, you always do a grand job and I am sure you will do it again! Excellent ploughman’s lunches on the day, as usual.

DOROTHY NEWBURY (203 0950)

LIGHT RELIEF AT WEST HEATH by SHEILA,WOODWARD

The 6½ week dig at West Heath, due to end on July 31, has been blessed for the most part with dry, sunny weather and, in true British style, some of us have been complaining about the heat! In fact the site is a very pleasant place in which to spend a summer’s day.

HADAS members have responded well to our call for volunteers and to date over 50 have taken part in the dig. We are particularly grateful to those who have been able to give us regular help for several days each week. Special thanks are also due to our surveyor, Barrie Martin, who helped us to lay out the trenches and to Dan Lampert who, with our extra­mural students, carried out a contour survey of the site.

The site is being dug in one-metre squares and 17 squares are at present open. The flint flakes and burnt stones so familiar to all West diggers are being found, but it is too early yet to make any general assessment of these finds. Both dry and wet sieving are being operated. We have received several compliments from members of the public on the neatness of our trenches. However, it was rather disconcerting to hear one lady observe to her husband: ‘Isn’t it amazing, after all these years, how wonderfully preserved those steps are?’ and to be asked by another whether we were landscaping the Heath and making a series of steps down to the Leg of Mutton pond!

Other comments and questions we have cherished include ‘Are you the sketching party from Westfield College?’ ‘Have you found Robin Hood?’ and a dire warning against crossing ley lines for fear of incurring the wrath of the Druids. It was a 5-year-old who administered the Coup-de-grace with a dismissive ‘I know all about the Stone Age. We’ve read the book at school and we’ve finished it.’

Joking apart, it’s pleasant to have so much public interest and support. Two school parties have had a conducted tour of the site, and other visitors have included GLC Area Manager Malcolm Craig, members of the GLC staff and Mark Newcomer and some of his post-graduate students from the Institute of Archaeology. It was also delightful to welcome Dr Joyce Roberts, our ‘resident botanist’ of the earlier dig, who was on a fleeting visit to London from her Berwick home.

A final story: a party of 9-year-olds, gazing at our showcase flints, were told that they might find something similar if they looked carefully further up the Heath. ‘Like this, you mean?’ asked one little lad, casually pulling a core from the ground outside the fence!

AND WEST HEATH – THROUGH OTHER EYES

One of the school parties which Sheila mentions above was of 8 and 9-year-olds from the Hall School. They represented The Hall Express, the school’s wall newspaper. Afterwards we saw some of the reports filed by those budding journalists. Here are a few: the spelling is original (in more than one sense!):

From reporter Andrew Jackson: On Wednesday I went with the newspaper group to a dig where there trying to find out the way people lived in the ice age. I am not quite shure wereabouts it is but I do now that it is nere Hamstead. It is in an inclosher and there is string round all ‘the trenches so that you will not spoil the spicel layers. They dig in layers so not to miss anything and after that sieve it all once in a big sieve once in a medium sieve and once in a small sieve and then they put the remaining stuff in some water if any of the flint is covered in earth.

Reported by E Bell: On Wednesday June 27 the Hall Express went to Hampstead Heath to see an archaeological dig made by Hendon & District Archaeological Society.

The Site was about 30’ feet long and 30ft wide. The archaeologists were studying so carefully, but it looked as if they were looking for some mysterious treasure But to them it probably seemed as if flint was treasure. We were shown a box full of flint tools and then she showed us some newly dug up tools which someone was studying. Out of the whole 30 foot their were 2 diches each going down down like stairs. Each person who was digging dug very carefully with a very small trowel. They have this small trowel so they don’t miss some flint. They put it in a square sieve and pour the soil into the seive and the flint is left in the seive; but if the flint is dirty it is nut into a bucket and washed.

And by Ben Slater: We went to the Archaeologist dig. They had not dug f. r down threw the sand and stones. They started Digging in 1976 and ended at 198. They found quiet a lot of stones on the surface outside the area. When they dig stones up they put them in a bucket and tip it out in the sive and strain it. The area they are diging was lived in about 6000 years ago. The people who lived there used to make tiny tools from small pieces of flint. They used to live in small hollows.

The reporters’ stories were accompanied by graphic drawings which alas we can’t reproduce. But I’m darned if I’d like to meet on a dark the kind of rampant , Mesolithic West heather a Hall school Journalist portrays, bearded, starko and stone axe in hand!

COMMITTEE CORNER

At its July meeting the Committee welcomed a new colleague – Michael Purton, elected at the AGM; Another pleasant duty was to pass a vote of thanks to our Hon. Auditor, Ron Penney, and to agree to send him a small token of our appreciation for his help, always most willingly given.

Phyllis Fletcher retorted that membership is keeping up well this year with 1983. To July, 272 members had paid their subscriptions. That includes several new members enrolled as a result of West Heath, However, Phyllis still has over a hundred names on her ‘unrenewed’ list, and would dearly like to see it grow smaller.

The Committee has been asked to investigate the possibility of life membership, so the Hon. Treasurer is looking into the actuarial implications and seeing what action would be necessary under our constitution.

Some members with long memories may recall that back in 1980 a young man named Steve Herman (who was for a time a member of HADAS) began, with funding from the GLC and encouragement from the Borough of Barnet, to make a film on the early history of the area, which he called Barnet before Domesday. A lot of his material came from HADAS People and HADAS digs. So long, however, has been the film’s gestation that everyone had almost forgotten it. Mr. Herman has now surfaced again and hopes the film may be ready for showing this summer.

The Society was recently asked to trace the whereabouts of a Victorian horse trough which used to stand at the corner of Wellgarth and North End Roads, in Golders Green. In fact the Research Committee of the mid-1970s had followed the tribulations of that particular trough quite carefully. It had been removed by the Borough Engineer’s department for safe-keeping while flats were built on the corner site. The entrance– through which large lorries constantly delivered bricks, stone, cement, etc – was beside the trough and the chances of it being knocked about were considerable. At the time the Borough Engineer informed HADAS that it would be kept safely at Summers Lane depot until it could be reinstated: so we are now going into a huddle with the Borough Engineer about it.

The Committee heard a report on the continuing work (now mainly administrative) -which will, in due course, result in the first West Heath report. : The virtually complete text (over 250 pages) has been typed: only the final summary – into which it may be possible to put a TL dating as a finishing touch – remains to be done. Work is also well advanced on the illustrations; and a Plan is under way to raise grants from as many interested sources as possible towards the cost of publication, which we hope will be undertaken by LAMAS, either as part of the Transactions or as one of their Special Papers.

Members will recall that Elizabeth Sanderson, our site-watching co-ordinator, had to give up that work a couple of months ago. Christine Arnott and John Enderby have now agreed to share the job between them. The fact that John has a pretty encyclopedic knowledge of the layout of the Borough will be a great advantage. No doubt as soon as they get into their stride there will be reports from them in the Newsletter.

Advance notice was given that our neighbours in Hampstead propose to celebrate their millennium in 1986. They base their 1000 years of history of Westminster Abbey Charter which defined Hampstead in 986. We look forward to hearing more about their celebrations.The Committee has arranged, to relieve our hard-pressed publications secretary, Pete Griffiths, of some of his workload. Joyce Slatter has kindly agreed to take charge of dealing with book orders, either from members or non-members. Should you want to buy any publications, please get in touch with her at 5 Sentinel House, Sentinel Sq, NW4 2EN (phone

202 4397).

NEW SHIRES

It may help in ordering if we list some of the latest Shire titles. Six volumes in the Shire Archaeology series have not yet been reviewed in the Newsletter:

Aerial Archaeology in Britain by D N Riley

Archaeology of Gardens by Christopher Taylor

The Gods of the Roman Empire by Miranda J Green

Greek Coinage by N K Rutter

Post-medieval Pottery 1650-1800 by Jo Draper

Roman Forts in Britain by D J Breeze.

These cost £1.95 each. Such names as Chris Taylor, Miranda Green and J D Breeze are themselves a guarantee of a well-handled subject. In the Shire Album series “Clay Tobacco Pipes”, by Eric G Ayto, originally published in 1979 (and reviewed in the Newsletter) has just been reprinted at 95p it is a good buy.

GLASS AND GOLDSMITHS

The Newsletter has mentioned before now the remarkable find of coloured enamelled glass made at Foster Lane in the City a couple of years ago. Some fifty fragments were found, probably of early 14c date. These have now been pieced together as far as is possible, in the Museum of London’s Conservation department, and a fascinating small exhibit has been mounted. Next time you are in the Museum, do have a look at it – it is to the left of the bookstall.

Enamel is coloured glass which fuses at a lower temperature than Ordinary glass. Ground up, it can be applied like paint to a glass vessel and then fired to fix it permanently. The technique was in use in Syria well before it got to Europe, but certainly by 1300 enamelled glass was being made in Venice.

The site on which the glass was found, in Foster Lane, is just south of Goldsmiths Hall. There is documentary evidence that the area, at the west end of Cheapside, was a centre of goldsmithing from certainly the early 1200s. It was rich in rubbish and cess-pits, and in one of the latter – a square, chalk-lined pit – accompanied by domestic pottery and fragments of crucibles the glass was found. It was an unexpected find among what appeared to be mostly household rubbish.

The glass comprises parts of at least six beakers, each up to 5 in. or so in height, decorated with figures of saints and a horseman, orna­mental foliage, heraldic designs and inscriptions, in red, blue, yellow and other bright colours. When whole, they must have looked spectacular. The vivid colours like blue and red have been applied to the back of the glass, while the white outlines and the inscriptions are applied to the front. It is suggested that this may have been a device to prevent the colours running in the furnace.

One of the Latin inscriptions is ‘MAGISTER. BA …’ while on the rim of a beaker is ‘SBARTOLOMEUSFE …’ (probably …s Bartolomeus fecit‑) ‘Bartholomew made me’ It is interesting – and perhaps significant – that medieval Venetian records show a Bartholomew working there as a painter of glass between 1290-1325.

How did such expensive and luxurious objects come to thrown in quantity into a cesspit? The Museum experts advance two possible theories. One is that decorated drinking glasses were at this time often fitted into ornamental gold or silver bases, and that was goldsmiths’ work. -Were the goldsmiths doing that, was there a disaster in the workshop and did the glasses have to be jettisoned? the other suggestion is that the owner decided to realise the value of the bullion mounts and sent the glasses to have their bases removed!

CORNWALL CONFERENCE by BRIAN WRIGLEY

After the somewhat unenthusiastic – even critical – references in the Newsletter to the Prehistoric Society’s Spring Conference in London, it is a pleasure to be able to report that the Summer Conference, held from May 26 to June 2, was a most enjoyable and instructive event. There were lively and interesting lectures and splendidly organised field trips to fascinating and famous sites with guides (mostly Nicholas Johnson and Henrietta Quinnell) who had tremendous stores of information – and also the ability to project a learned discourse in voices that could be heard from one side of a field to the other.

Cornwall is of course rich in prehistoric sites. The message that came over to us, however; was that the problem for, Cornish archaeology is that the whole landscape, with -its routes and field boundaries of immemor­ial antiquity, is almost one vast archaeological site from sea to sea, with all the attendant, ever-present problems of priorities in preservation. Currently, we gathered, concentration is on mapping and. recording before the present form of the landscape disappears under changed methods of farming.

There was again a good representation of HADAS members. They must indeed have formed something like a sixth of the whole party.

POVERTY IN LONDON

The London Topographical/Society. has produced for its members another of its splendid annual offerings. This time it is a reproduction of Charles Booth’s map of London poverty, first published in 1889-1.

The map is in four 21″x25″ sheets in 7 colours. The colours are the key element. Booth’s system was to use each colour to show streets according to the !general condition of the inhabitants:’ starting with’ black .(‘lowest class. Vicious, semi-criminal’) through shades of blue, purple and red to yellow (‘Upper-middle and upper classes. Wealthy’).

The maps: are introducedby Professor. David Reeder of Leicester University, there.is.a biographical note on Charles Booth, a list of further reading and a note about the records on which Booth’s survey was founded -.392 notebooks and 55 volumes of house-to-house surveys and 6 boxes of 1:2500 OS map hand coloured. These are lodged in the British

Library of Political and Economic Science at the London School of Economics. You can consult them by ‘Making an appointment with the archivist The collection is described as being ‘briefly and rather inadequate­ly’ listed, but it is said to be a quarry that is full of potential nuggets for researchers.

The main aim of the London Topographical Society is to assist the study and appreciation of London’s history and topography by making available facsimile maps, plans and views. Its members receive the annual publication free each year, and can buy any extra productions at a 25% discount. Gels among past annual publications include Thomas Milne’s 1800 Land Use map of London and its environs, in 6 sheets; and the 1810 Rheinbeck Panorama of London.

The LTS subscription is only £5 a year, so you get some real bargains. Non-members, for instance, who want to buy the Booth maps will pay £12.50 for them anyone who would like to join LTS should write to the Member­ship Secretary, Trevor Ford, 59 Gladesmore Rd, London N15).

HADAS has an especially soft spot for LTS because a HADAS member, Dr Ann Saunders, is the Hon Editor and therefore responsible for its magni­ficent publications. 1984 is quite a year for Dr Saunders. As well as producing the Booth maps for LTS, she has had her fine book, The Art and Architecture of London, published by Phaidon.

AUTUMN CLASSES.

As the Newsletter went to press the list of the University’s extra­mural courses arrived; so did the HGS Institute’s 1984-5 prospectus. Here are details of a few local courses which might interest members:

The Romans on Weds starting Sept 26 at 10 am at Owens Adult Education

Centre, 60 Chandos Avenue, Totteridge N20. Lecturer Tony Rook.

Greek and Roman Art & Archaeology, Tues from Sept 25, 7 pm, Camden Adult

Education List, Haverstock School. A C King.

Landscape Archaeology, Tues from Sept 25, 7.30 pm Community Centre, Allum

Lane, Elstree. A R Wilmott.

The Roman East, Wed from Sept 26, 7.30pm, Hendon Library, The Burroughs, NW4. Margaret Roxan.

Industrial Archaeology Mon from Sept 24, 7.30 pm, de Havilland College,

The Walk, Potters Bar. Dr D P Smith.

There are also some interesting new, but non-local, courses:

Art, Politics and Religion in Ancient Egypt. This will consists of 6 linked weekends at monthly intervals, starting Sat Oct 13, 10.30 am. At the Mary Ward Centre, 9 Tavistock Place. Mrs S Gee.’

Everyday Life in Medieval London, Thurs from Sept 27, 6.30 pm Museum of London, P L Armitage and A Vince.

Shipwreck Archaeology, Tues from Oct 2, 6 pm, Museum of London, Peter Marsden

There are central courses, mostly at the Institute of Archaeology, in all years of the Diploma in Archaeology; and continuing central post-diploma courses on animal bones, human skeletal remains and plant remains.

And of course, as the Newsletter mentioned last month, it will be possible this autumn to start the first year of the Certificate in Field Archaeology locally, at the HGS Institute. Tony Legge will take the pre­history of SE England from 2-4 pm.Thurs, starting Sept 27, at the Quaker Meeting. House, Central Square, NW11.

Other HGS Institute courses are: Basic Geology: an Introduction to Palaeontology and Stratigraphy (Thurs, 7.30-9.30 pm); Discovering England (Mons, 10-12 noon); Antique British Pottery & Porcelain, 1650-1900

(Tues, 7.30-9.30pm); Care & Restoration of Antiques (Weds 7.30-9.30 pm) and London’s Heritage (iris 10-12 noon). Further details from the HGS Institute office, 455-9951 (but not between Aug 6-17).

ALL ABOUT BARNS

The Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings – whose secretary, you may remember, is HADAS member Philip Venning – has recently launched a Barns Campaign. Part of this is described as a Domesday Survey of every barn in England and Wales, built of traditional materials, whether still in agricultural use or converted.’

The SPAB is calling for volunteers to visit all barns in their local parish and to fill in a simple questionnaire of some 25 or so questions. It has invited HADAS to take responsibility for dealing with the parishes in the Borough of Barnet, and we would like to accept – provided enough members are prepared to volunteer to help.

It should not be too tough a job because; alas, LBB has already lost most of its old barns. If we could find 4 or Volunteers, particularly in the northern part of the Borough; prepared to visit two or three Thithe barns each and to fill in the questionnaire, we think we could do all that SPAB requires.

Members who would like to take part in this piece of field work are asked to contact Brigid Grafton Green (455 9040; or drop her a note at 88Temple Fortune Lane, NW11).

RUMOURS OF WARS

There is no doubt that attitudes to nuclear weaponry arouse strong

Passions even in the unwarlike world of archaeology. Our note in the
last Newsletter about the new organisation, Archaeologists for Peace, produced- immediate reactions.

First came a letter from a member who warmly welcomed the new group. ‘I’ve written off for details at once,’ it said.

Hot on its heels came a phone call from a member who had almost been inspired to write saying that archaeology shouldn’t be dragged into poli­tics.’ We begged her to put it in writing, but she never got round to it. However, one of our younger members, Robert Michel, now reading archaeology at Southampton University, who has been with us since his junior days, did put pen to paper. He wrote:

Dear Editor,

Do archaeologists need a separate voice in the debate on the arms race? Surely any of tour colleagues who feel sufficiently strongly on the matter can join one of the established organisations.

I for one would be unhappy to see archaeology as a profession/hobby dragged into the inevitably political arms race debate. As archaeologists, our concern is with the reconstruction of man’s past through the remains recoverable from the archaeological record. Our concern about the arms race and allied matters should be pursued in our capacity as private individuals, and I hope archaeologists will give this new organisation a very wide berth.

Yours sincerely,

Robert Michel

PS: Keep up the good work

NEW MEMBERS

It is some time since we listed HADAS’s new members and wished them harpy digging 7 of every kind. The following have joined the. Society in the last few months:

Susan Abraham, Hendon; Fred Armstrong, N. Finchley; Isobel Barrett, Hampstead; .Rae Bloxham, Finchley; Mr & Mrs Borrill, Mill Hill; Valerie

Brown, Kenton; Jonathan Chandler, Highgate; Stuart Goldshaft, Edgware; ‘ ,Paul Grandidge, HGS; Philip & Sarah Harris, Finchley; Miss W’S Hartnell, New Southgate; Bernadette Joslin, N. Finchley; Mr R V Kerman, Mill Hill; Lisa & Tracey Maher, Kenton; Marianne Mays, N. Finchley; Spike Milligan, Hadley; Fiona Monteith, Orpington; Gavin Morgan, Hendon; Irene Owen, Barnet;’ Mary Rawitzer, Highgate; Mr A Rayner Finchley; Miss M V

Rowland; Wandsworth; Malcolm Smith, Muswell Hill; J Symes, N19; Mr P D Wernick, Hendon; John Whitehorn, Barnet; Robert & Sue Woolley, Golders Grn.

We have also a now corporate member – the Mount School, Mill Hill.

A warm welcome to all the above.

PARAGRAPHS ABOUT PEOPLE

One horribly frustrated member this summer is MYFANWY STEWART. She has always been a most staunch West Heath supporter, and this season he was to have been one of the three ’eminences’ who kept the new dig running (Margaret Maher and Sheila Woodward being the others). Alas, with West Heath only a week old Myfanwy pulled a hip muscle. To add insult to injury she didn’t do it digging, either – she was just lifting up a grandchild at home! She had to spend a week on her back and then take life very slowly – and no West Heath. However, it must have been some consolation to hear that she had passed her degree in Archaeology this summer – with an upper 2: many congratulations.

Myfanwy’s Mum, MRS IRENE OWEN, who joined HADAS in May, has been one of the dig’s keenest supporters. She’s made her way to West Heath fre­quently – and it’s no easy place to get to by public transport from. Chipp­ing Barnet. She has a particularly neat hand for flint marking, we’re told, not to mention being an outstanding coffee-maker;

Several HADAS members took part in this year’s annual Open Week at the HGS Institute – the last under the friendly eye of JOHN ENDERBY., who retires at the end of this month. JOYCE SLATTER, ENID HILL and VALENTINE SHELDON, took charge. of the bookstall, selling £30 worth of books and en­rolling new members;. while CHRISTINE ARNOTT organised an exhibit on HADAS’s work. We are most grateful for their help and also for Mr Enderby’s invitation to take part.

News recently came of two former HADAS members who, for various reasons, have had to give up membership. They will, we feel sure, be

remembered by many who worked in West Heath Phase 1. NICOLE DOUEK took her degree in Ancient History at University College in summer ’83. She is about to start working for a PhD in September, on an aspect of her pet subject: Ancient Egypt.

It was a pleasure to get a letter – via the Diplomatic Bag from GILL BRAITHWAITE, who took an archaeological degree some 4 years ago just before she was wafted, off to Washington where her husband is No 2 at the British Embassy. She tells us she tries desperately to keep up with what’s happening in British archaeology – but it’s difficult at such a distance; and she sends her best wishes to all her friends in HADAS.

We also noticed – this time in the CBA Newsletter – that another.’ ex-HADAS member is managing to keep up his archaeology. DR ERIC GRANT, of the Geography department of Middlesex Poly, who was a HADAS member. all through the ’70s, has received a grant of £500 for an excavation in Langport, Somerset, ‘to elucidate the development of the Saxon and medieval town.’

HADAS member on the move this summer is CELIA GOULD. She has loft Hendon after many years to live at Winchmore Hill (at 23A Percy Rd, N21 phone 360 6129, if you would care to alter your members’ list).