NEWSLETTER No 137: JULY 1982

OUTINGS – NEWS AND INFORMATION from Dorothy Newbury

Visit to Canterbury on SATURDAY, 10th JULY. Please note that Dorothy Newbury will be away from July 3rd – 10th and applications should be made to MR. VICTOR JONES, 10 HEATH CLOSE, N, W. 11 Telephone 458 .6180. The full details of this outing are given in the itinerary – a previous HADAS visit was made in June 1965. Paul Craddock who works at the British Museum, a member who left the area a few year ago, will be leading the visit. Last year he conducted an excellent trip to Swanscombe and Lullingstone, ending with a lovely tea at his charming old house in Rochester his wife Brenda has agreed to provide tea again, and from what I heard last year, not only was the tea excellent but also the welcome that went with it

For the benefit of new members (who we will be very pleased to see on ouroutings) we do not issue tickers, but please ring Victor Jones if you wish to confirm that your application has been received We often have late cancellations, so if you decide at the last minute that you would like to join an outing, please always ring to make sure that a place is available If you wish to join the outing to Canterbury, please complete the enclosed application form and send it with your cheque to VICTOR JONES as soon as possible

Future visits this year

Saturday 14th August – to Colchester

Saturday 25th September – to Greensted and Waltham Abbey

Friday 3rd Sept -Sunday 5th Sept The proposed visit to Newcastle and district has had to be cancelled due to lack of support Sorry to disappoint those members who were keen to go

NOTE FROM THE ROMAN GROUP

The next meeting of the Roman Group will be on Wednesday, 28th July at Peter and Jenny Griffiths, 8 Jubilee Avenue, London Colney, Herts (Telephone 612 3156)

The Roman Group are hoping to organise a walk at the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital at Stanmore on Wednesday, 21st July at 7p m Members plan to observe the area round the tennis court where excavations resulted in Roman finds This walk has not yet been confirmed by the hospital but if you are interested, please let Tessa Smith know as the party will be limited Her telephone number is 958 9159

DIALOGUE FOR DAME AND CANON

One of the events in the recent 75th anniversary celebrations in Hampstead Garden Suburb was an imaginary conversation piece between Henrietta and Samuel Barnett This was scripted by Kitty Slack from Dame Henrietta’s biography of her husband (“Canon Barnett – His Life, Work and Friends” published by John Murray in 1918) and was delivered by two Suburb residents, actor Cyril Luckham and his wife Violet

It was a great success, and many people have asked for a repeat so there will be another performance in the rebuilt Institute Hall on Thursday 8th July at 8pm. Tickets price £1 will be sold in aid of the St Jude’s Appeal fund and the Institute Rebuilding fund. They are obtainable from the HGS institute or at the door on the night.

VISIT TO KING’S LYNN on Saturday, 12th June. Report by Reva Brown

As usual on HADAS outings, the trip to Castle Rising and King’s Lynn proved to be a day of pleasure and information not only were there no hitches in the organ­isation of the day, but also it seemed that Nell Penny had a direct line to the weather­man – it rained when-We were on the coach and eased when it was necessary to walk around and see the sights we had come to view

The first stop was Castle Rising, about 5 miles from King’s Lynn, a fortified dwelling begun about 1150 in King Stephen’s reign by William de Albini who married the widow of Henry I and who was Earl of Sussex and of Arundel. Through de Albini’s descendants, Castle Rising passed to the family of de Montalt, and for some thirty years it was the home of Isabella, :Mother of Edward III – he and the Black Prince visited Isabella at the castle In 1544, Henry VIII granted it to the Duke of Norfolk, and it was held by a branch of the Howard family until 1958 when it was handed into the guardianship of the Department of the Environment

The principal building still standing is the Great Tower (or keep) This is of squat rectangular type, its height less than the other dimensions length,(east-west) 78½ feet breadth 68½ feet. Two storeys with walls up to 3 feet thick are strengthened by buttresses and the windows are unusually large parts of the gatehouse remain and north of the keep are the foundations of a Norman chapel The high earth wall which surrounds the castle Was put up at the same time as the castle was built, and the great building nestles in the hollow created by the erection of the banks which surround it It is possible to walk round on top of the grassy rampart of the inner enclosure This is encircled by a ditch with scarp going down about 100 feet To east and west are further enclosures defended by ditches, cut out by the Normans In the grounds are a beech and oak With commemorative plaques giving the information that they were planted by the Prince of Wales in 1864

At King’s Lynn, we were met by Miss Bullock, a member of the Preservation Trust. Starting off at Tuesday Market, she guided us along King Street, Queen Street and into Nelson street explaining the origins and development of the town. Keys were produced and we were allowed into locked buildings of considerable interest. The Preservation Trust has uncovered behind what looks like a Tudor facade, three parallel buildings of great age, one of them probably going back to the 12th century The Trust hope to open this complex as a Heritage building, with exhibitions about King’s. Lynn and its complicated past

The origins of the town are still being investigated, but it is known that about 1100 Herbert de Lesinga, the first, Bishop of Norwich, had the first St Margaret’s church built on the central of three islands, where four streams, or ‘fleets’, run into the Ouse, to serve an already established community By 1160, this community was so prosperous

that it was necessary for Bishop Turbus to reclaim the island to the north and lay it out as the New Lande with its own market and chapel of ease, linked by two wide steets to the old settlement The town Was then called Bishop’s Lynn and was changed to its present name by Henry VIII

On our informative walk, we saw the Corn Exchange, several historic inns, the Custom House We went into Clifton House which has a handsome early 18th century front and portico with twisted columns, thought to be the work of Lynn’s creative architect of the period, Henry Bell The house contains panelling and plasterwork from the early and mid-18th century In the entrance hall there are two rooms with early 14th century tiled floors exposed to view and the crypt has beautiful late 14th century brick-vaulted undercroft with tracers of a yet earlier stone house of about 1200.Our last call was at the 15th century Hall of the Trinity •Guild, where the undercroft has been refurnished as the Regalia Rooms, and houses the civic regalia, plate and charters of Lynn, including the unique 14th century cup of richly enameled silver gift,’ known as the King John Cup. Once we were seated in Thoresby College, with a grand view of the Ouse, to be refreshed by an excellent tea and spread provided by the members of the Preservation Society, it began to pour down heavily, The College was built around 1511 by Thomas Thoresby as a college for thirteen Priests of the Trinity Guild After the usual changes of ownership – the place has been a private home, a school, a warehouse for a mineral water factory, – the Trust has restored it as flatlets for retired people, as well as a Youth Hostel. The west wing – once the priests’ dining room (in which we had our tea) – is also used for meetings The work of the Preservation Trust was explained to use, and it is a record of rescue & preservation of many buildings which are now being used and enjoyed when they might have become derelict and have been pulled down.

King’s Lynn had its period of prosperity when the Ouse was an important waterway and the town traded with Europe. Industrialisation passes it by and as a result, it contains many buildings of great interest and beauty which might well otherwise have been destroyed in the name of modernisation and progress.

Once again HADAS has provided us with more than an enjoyable day out I am sure I was not the only person who travelled home with new knowledge and an increased appreciation of our past

DOCUMENRARY GROUP

The next Group meeting will be towards the end of September (precise date later) During the summer group members will, carry on gently with various current projects (such as the survey of field names in the, borough, a map of 18/19th century brickworks, a study of tin tabernacles etc.) but the call of the trowel (both archaeological and garden variety) becomes paramount about this time of year

The group would be delighted to have more members, as “one-off’ bits of research crop up fairly constantly., e.g. the notes on a field next to East Barnet church in last month’s Newsletter anyone who would like to be on the documentary rota for odd jobs, or who would like advance warning of the autumn group meeting, please let Brigid Grafton Green have your name.

CORRESPONDENCE

Our senior Vice-President, Eric Wookey, sends us this letter:

“I have just received back from the photo-framers the 90th birthday scroll which

all of you gave me at the A.G.M. U looks splendid and makes quite the nicest birthday

present I had, Even the figure 90 seems toned down a bit, and does not hit you between

the eyes As for ‘bottles’, they go as quickly as ‘they come, and this doesn’t

Quite a few nice people must have got together to think this one up. Will you accept my grateful thanks?”

WINGS OVER NORTH WEST LONDON a note by Bill Firth

In the Newsletter for April 1981 we announced a research project under the above working title, to investigate the local aircraft industry Some of you may be wondering what has happened

We got off to an enthusiastic and productive start with quite a lot of progress on Handley Page at Cricklewood and Grahame-White at Hendon, but someone to research de Havilland at Stag Lane proved elusive Then the Gremlins struck and the project was nearly grounded As, an, example, arranged a day off to Investigate the RAF Museum’s archives but, as t was leaving hothe for the Museum, the ‘phone rang and the office requested my presence (the firm landed a fat contract which was nice but it didn’t help my research) Now, following some desultory activity, there are signs of a renaissance.

I had better not say more in case the Gremlins are still around, but I would add an appeal for more help, particularly to research de Havilland Any offers to Bill Firth (455 7164) PLEASE

NEW MEMBERSHIP SECRETARY

Members who have already pa d their subscriptions for this year will have noticed that we now have a new officer a membership secretary PHYLLIS FLETCHER has kindly agreed tb take on all the duties, hitherto shared between the Hon. Secretary and the Hon Treasurer, which concern membership matters

That means that as well as collecting your sub, she will make sure that you have a current membership card plus – if you are a new member – all the information you want about HADAS She will keep the membership list up to date (quite a job with over 400 members) and answer any enquiries from members that come her way

And by the way, if you haven’t yet paid your 1982-83 subscription, please do and get Phyllis off to a flying start Subscriptions run from April 1st each year, and should be sent to Miss Phyllis Fletcher, 27 Decoy Avenue, NW11 OES They are:

Full membership £3.00

Under 18 £2.00

Over 60 £2.00

Family membership

1st member £3.00

Additional members £1.00

LECTURES AND COURSES

Members who have been following the current Billingsgate excavation can get up-to-date information from two lunch-time lectures at the Museum of London this month On Thursday, July 8th there is a Museum workshop on the subject of Computers In Archaeology, geared particularly to Billingsgate, given by Kevin Flude and on July 9yh Steve Roskams will report on Current Progress in Billingsgate Both are at 1 10p m

Other Museum events include a workshop on Housekeeping in Limehouse in the 1830s (July 1st, by Joanna Clark, based on the Young Manuscripts) and Wren and the Growth of London, by Frank Kelsall, on July 2nd Both at 1 10p m

Madingley Hall, Cambridge, has a number of interesting one-day Saturday courses including:

September 4th The Romans in Britain (Morag Woodhuysen)

September 18th The Medieval English Town (Dr Rosemary Horrox)

September 25th Radio Carbon – Exploded or Exploding? (Professor Colin Renfrew Dr V. R. Switsur, & Dr. David Trump)

November 27th The Golden Age of Athens (Richard Evans)

December 11th The Civilisation of Ancient Egypt (Barry Kemp) One-day courses begin a 10.30a m. and end about 6 30p m.

Madingley is some 4 miles out of Cambridge, so with an early start a one-day course is a feasible proposition for North Londoners The fee, which includes morning coffee, lunch and tea, is usually £10. Further details (and also information about equally interesting full weekend courses) are available from the University of Cambridge Board of Extra Mural Studies, Madingley Hall, Madingley, Cambridge, CB3 8AQ

In Newsletter No 121 – March 1981 – TESSA SMITH described one of the eight objects which form the Moxom Collection of Roman Pottery from Brockley Hill, now kept at Church Farm House Museum It was, she had discovered, a spacer used to separate tiles from the wall of a hypocaust since then, Tessa has been investigating another Moxom oddity – this time a pottery flagon of unusual shape (for drawings of it, by DAVE KING, see final page) This is the story of her research.

A FLAGON REJECTED by TESSA SMITH

The first thing one notices about the Moxon flagon is its shape it is square – & square shapes in pottery, particularly Roman pottery, are rare

As soon as you start to examine it closely, you notice other curious points the neck looks pressed in at one side, the square base is caved-in and cracked. The flagon is, like so many other Brockley Hill vessels, a waster, or potter’s reject

Then you see that it is cracked down the length of one side, which means that it could have been slab-built the crack occurs at the weakest point, where two edges had been welded together during construction. When I peered inside the flagon by torchlight however, I discovered what looked like ring-marks on the inside walls you can imagine my excitement, because that indicated wheel-thrown construction and not slab-building at all. How had this thrown pot, initially curved, taken on a final square form? My first thought was that the flagon, while drying, could have toppled over on the bench and, under pressure of its own weight, one side could have taken on the flatness of the bench top the Roman potter noticing this, could have then flattened the other three sides on the bench to match, and thus invented a new shape of flagon Very romantic!

Next I consulted potters with specialised knowledge – first HADAS member Myfanwy Stewart, then professional potter Brett Sampson It was agreed that the int­erior ring marks were evidence of the use of the wheel. The slightly curved base was also a clear indication that the pot was originally thrown. The method of squaring the flagon was thought either to have been done on a flat bench, which could have caused the caving-in at the base or, more likely, the flagon may have been laid in the potter’s hand, his thumb pressed against the neck, at the near-leather-hard stage (incidentally, this could account for the neck distortion) while a wooden slat would have been used to flatten the cylindrical sides, rather like a butter pat This would, incidentally, leave traces of ‘knife’ marks’ noted by Philip Suggett in 1955 (1)

One modern potter showed me a pot he had made recently in just this manner, complete with thrown neck and rim, showing what a simple and satisfactory method of manufacture it was. A third method was considered – namely, that a thick cylindrical shape could have been thrown, then the sides pared down with a knife to give a square form this would also give ‘knife marks’ . No hand-made coiled pots of Roman origin have been found at Brockley Hill this Method would have been too time-consuming for the Romans, and was ruled out. Opinion was that the flagon was definitely a wheel-thrown form, later squared off .

Next point to consider was whether the Brockley Hill potter could have had know­ledge of other square-sided pots at the time (AD50 – 160), or whether the form could be original enquiries to many archaeologists and to the British Museum and the Museum of London brought the same response no one had ever seen anything in pottery quite like the Moxon square flagon (2)

if the potter had not copied his idea from some other ceramic, what about glass? Was it just a coincidence that the flagon happened to look so much like the new square bottles which were all the rage in the Roman provinces just then?

One novelty which the Romans brought to Britain was newly invented blown glass It was easier to manufacture than the older type of mould-pressed glass, and the square bottle was already widely known in the provinces by the mid-1st century AD At Brockley Hill, various examples of Roman glass of the period A050 – 120 have been found

Whole glass bottles of similar shape and date to the Moxon flagon are known from Verulamium, Edmonton and Moorfields (5) so there is clear evidence that square glass bottles were available which could have been copied in clay Imitations of glass and metal vessels have been noted at Brockley Hill (6)

To investigate this further, I consulted Hugh Chapman of the Museum of London He suggested I look at the base of the pot for markings similar to the concentric rings

found on the base of Roman glass bottles. These rings are the result of the gob of glass splaying out, due to centrifugal force, in the initial stage of glass making a

reeded (or grooved) handle and a flat rim were other points to note Although the shape of the Brockley Hill flagon is similar to that of many Roman

glass bottles, also the rim is flat and the handle reeded, beneath the base only the most casual scratch marks can be seen, typical of a pot that has been sliced from the

wheel. No attempt had been made to copy the underside rings of a Roman glass bottle It seems that it was sufficient for the potter to: attempt a rough clay replica.

But why? Could it have had some connection with a burial? The glass bottles from Edmonton and Moorfields had both been associated with burials. An eyewitness

to the finding of the Moxon Collection is reported to have said that the objects were found “all together” and “accompanied by two burials” (7)

During the late first early second century. AD it was normal practice for the dead to be cremated on a pyre. The ashes were collected and placed in a container for

burial, usually an ordinary domestic pot but sometimes something more elaborate like a glass jar (8) on the other hand the eyewitness report is unsubstantiated and no .

evidence has been found since of these two burials In fact from the Borough of Barnet two Roman cremation burials are known both were in jars, not glass bottles

Alternatively the flagon could have been made for general use It would probably have been cheaper to produce than imported glassware, and the shape could have

been more practical than a. curved flagon Was it perhaps designed as another kind of domestic jug? Plenty of glass bottles of this shape are found on occupation sites &

are unconnected with burials ft seems to me that: the potter may have been simply trying to copy anew shape, in clay, for domestic use, perhaps to boost dwindling

orders for flagons from :the Brockley Hill potteries. It might perhaps be helpful here to mention the history of flagon development at Brockley Hill.

The earliest flagons from the site were of Hofheim types collared flagons, dated AD5O -~60, (9) Knowledge of this flagon design was brough to Brockley Hill by master

potters from Gaul in pre-Flavian. times. A wide variety of flagon forms was then produced during the early years of the potteries pinch-mouthed flagons, derived from a metal form (10) two-handled flagons with a squat bulbous body and disc-mouthed flagons. The most popular line of production was ring-necked flagons, usually single handled, with long, flaring necks. These were characterised by a number of moulded rings at the rim, which form the basis of classification. These flagons were strong and imposing, and were supplied to the Roman army, which used a number of flagon types in Claudian days, later rationalizing them to just one or two standard forms In the Flavian period (ad 69-96)Brockley Hill .production settled down to a steady standardisation of output of ring necked flagons (11) In one dig alone at Brockleyy Hill at least 462 ring-necked flagons were represented in the finds, all being long-necked types (12).

However, in the early second century the Verulamium region ( of which the Brockley Hill potteries were a part lost its northern mortaria markets to the Mancetter-

Hartshill kilns, which must have been a serious blow (13) Decline in output by AD120-130 was apparent and it is clear that the potteries of this region were facing

fierce competition offered by the Oxford and Warwickshire potteries With lost trade and dwindling markets for Brockley Hill wares there seems to

have evolved a new spirit of experimentation ft was now, AD 120, that several new forms of flagon appeared (15) Long-necked flagons were superseded by flagons of

short expanding neck type There were experiments with a new finer type of red clay, and for the first time slipped wares appeared (16) It was time for new thinking and design for this reason I would suggest it is the most likely time for the square Moxom flagon to have been made

The flagon is the largest piece in the Moxom Collection, 21cm high, with high square shoulders, stubby neck and disc rim. The Handle is angled sharply down and is reeded It is dirty pinkish-buff in colour, in the granulated fabric, rough to the touch, which is typical of most Brockley Hill wares : Its outer measurements are 17x 8×8 cm = 1088,cm (3) and its capacity is under once lltre Like the Moxom spacer, it was found during the laying of tennis courts at Brockley Hill House in 1909 (

The tennis courts were built on what was later discovered(18)to be an unusually large oval clay pit with a maximum width of about 70 feet The kiln for firing pots made from clay from the pit was no doubt destroyed when the tennis courts were built its wasters, however, date it to the latter end of the firs century AD After the kiln had gone out of use, the pit continued to be used during the succeeding cent-

ury as a dump for rubbish and later wasters –

After studying this unique flagon, I am still left with a number of unanswered questions. Perhaps the most interesting one is, why was it unique? Why, having made the experimental prototype, did the potter reject the idea – and the flagon.?

Footnotes to the text

(1) Suggett (1955)

(2) Those consulted included Catherine Johns, British museum Hugh Chapman, Museum of London Graham Webster. University of Birmingham Kevin Blockley, of the Canterbury Archaeological Unit & Tony Rook, Welwyn Archaeological Soc

(3) Isings (1957) 64

(4) Appelbaum (1951), 222 Castle and Warbis (1973), 106

(5) Frere (1972) Harden (1970) RCHM 1928)

(6) Suggett (1954), 272

(7) Suggett (1955), 60

(8) Marsden, 76

(9) Castle (1972). 36

(10) Richardson (1948) Marsh and Tyers (1978). 551

(11) Marsh & Tyers (1978), 549

(12) Castle (1972)

(13) Marsh & Tyers (1978) 534

(14) Castle (1976) 224

(15) Marsh & Tyers (1978) 550

(16) Ibid

(17) HADAS newsletter 121 March 1981

(18) Suggett (1956) 65

BIBLIOGRAPHY

APPELBAUM, Shimon (1951) “Sulloniacae 1950” Trans LMAS NS vol X pt3, 201-228

CASTLE, Stephen (1973) “Trial Excavations in Field 410”, Lond. Arch vol 2, Nos 2

(Spring) and 4 (Autumn) (1976) “Roman Pottery from Brockley Hill, Middx 1966 & 1972-4” Trans LMAS vol 27, 206-227

CASTLE, Stephen & WARBIS, John (1973) “Excavations in Field No 157, Brockley Hill” Trans LMAS vol 24, 85-110

FRERE, Sheppard (1372) “Verulamium Excavations 1955-61 Vol 1

HARDEN, D, B. (1970) “Glass in London” (publication of the Museum of London)

ISINGS, Clara (1957) “Roman Glass from Dated Finds”

MARSDEN, Peter (1380) “Roman London”

MARSH, Geoff & TYERS, Paul (1978) “The Roman Pottery from Southwark” Southwark Excavations 1972-74, Pt II, 533-582

RCHM (1928) London III Roman

SUGGETT. Philip (1954) “Excavations at Brockley Hill, Middx March 1952 – May 1953” Trans LMAS NS vol Xi pt 3 253-276

(1955) “The Moxom Collection”, Trans LMAS vol 18 pt 1, 60-64 (1956) “Report on Excavations at Brockley Hill. Middx 1953-54” Trans LMAS vol 19 pt 1, 65-75

Members may be interested to know of the formation of a new local society which meets at Hendon Library on Wednesdays The Hendon & Hampstead Antique Ceramics and Glass Club has been started by Mr & Mrs Pulver, both of whom lecture at H.G.S. Institute

The club’s inaugural programme includes an outing to the Spode Museum on Thursday. 29th July a lecture (with slides) by Rosalind Pulver at 8p m on Wednesday 11th August at Hendon Library entitled “The Development of Glass from Earliest Times” and an outing to the Gladstone Pottery Museum, Stoke on Sunday, 12th Sept

Membership subscription is £5 p a (visitors £1 50 per visit) Full details from Mrs Pulver at 115 Church Street, N. W 8 (Telephone 202 3508 or 723 6383)

New publication from Barnet Libraries

“COACHING DAYS IN BARNET” by Suzan Carr

This ten-page booklet published last month contains many hitherto unpublished illustrations of Barnet’s inns from the Barnet Museum collection It also includes a time-table of stage and mail coaches known to have passed through the town in 1836 Spare a thought for the eleven passengers perched on the top of “The Express” on their 25½ hour journey to Leeds ‘

The booklet is available from all Barnet Libraries price 50p

Newsletter 136: June, 1982

THE AGM – TALK ABOUT DIGS

The Society’s 21st Annual General Meeting was held at Hendon Library on May 11. The Chair was taken by senior Vice-President Eric Wookey, who at once endeared himself to the company by remarking, apropos the Library accoustics, “I hope I shall be quite legible at the back of the hall.”

Brian Jarman only a few days earlier he had again been returned as one of the Barnet Councillors for Childs Hill – moved the Annual. Report. While he did so members completed voting papers which had been handed to them at the door. This year there were 17 nominations for the 13 places on the Committee, so an election was held. The papers were collected and the tellers retired to count them.

Next the Hon. Treasurer, Jeremy Clynes, presented his report and accounts – for the eighth and last time, as he was retiring from the Treasurership. The year had been a successful one financially, ending with a Surplus of £526 – the largest in our 21-year history membership, however, was slightly down – 433 against 443 last year.

The Treasurer was followed by the Chairman of the Research sub­committee, Sheila Woodward, also retiring this year, who reported on the work of the various, research groups, the final stage of the West Heath dig and digs in the basement of the Manor House, Finchley, and at the Old Bull site, Chipping Barnet.

The Treasurer had ended his report on.a slightly sombre note, saying that he did so in the hope of provoking discussion. In this he succeed­ed, and the discussion followed his report and continued on the same theme after the Research subcommittee report.

Clynes felt that, although the Society today is financially better off, it is not now planning archaeological and publishing projects comparable with its programme of 5 years ago. The argument sparked off by this proposition was concerned almost entirely with excavation, cover­ing such points as the importance of digs in the Society’s scheme of work; the need to find suitable sites and, particularly, sites with some archaeological potential; the possibility of digging in a threatened area near East Barnet parish church; and whether our aim should be to undertake research digs as well as rescue digs.

The officers for the coming year, who were declared elected, are:

Chairman: Councillor Brian Jarman

Vice Chairman: Ted Sammes

Hon. Secretary: Brigid Grafton Green

Hon. Treasurer: Victor Jones

The tellers announced the result of the poll for Committee places and the following were declared elected:

Mrs Christine Arnott

John de F Enderby

Miss Marjorie Errington

Peter Fauvel Clinch

Mr Peter Griffiths

Mr George Ingram

Mrs Daphne Lorimer

Miss Isobel McPherson

Mrs Dorothy Newbury

Mrs Nell Penny

Mrs June Porges

Mrs Tessa Smith

Miss Sheila Woodward

The Meeting ended with two pleasant ceremonies. Mr Wookey has this year achieved the mag-

nificent age of 90 and to mark the event Councillor Jarman presented him with an illuminated vellum designed and executed by HADAS member William Morris.

The prizes in our poster competition for Schools members were presented to representatives of the schools concerned. First prize of l0 went to the Henrietta Barnett School for a most accomplished painting of Stonehenge; a special highly commended prize of £2 (donated by Daphne Lorimer) went to a poster from Whitefield School, showing the White Swan in Golders Green road in the last century.

After the business Meeting was over, Dorothy Newbury showed slides of Christmas dinner at the RAF Museum and of the 21st birthday party.

TRIBUTE TO A TREASURER

Jeremy Clynes has just resigned the Treasurership of HADAS after 8 years hard work. He took over in May, 1974, from Richard Deacon. At that time I had been Hon. Secretary of the Society for 4 years. I must confess to viewing the change with a twinge of trepidation, and wonder­ing what rocks lay before us with such a very youthful and untried hand on the financial tiller. I needn’t have worried.. Jeremy took to the job as a duck to water, and our bank account had never been in better hands nor looked healthier.

But that, of course, isn’t all you ask of a Treasurer – if you’re a Secretary, that is. Treasurers and Secretaries have to work hand in glove, and it can be painful and embarassing if the hand is too heavy or the glove pinches. Again, any foreboding was unnecessary; There couldn’t have been a more comfortable colleague to work with, nor one who was more reliable, enthusiastic and helpful, especially in a crisis.

It is good to know that, although he has resigned as Treasurer, Jeremy intends to continue to manage the sales of our own and Shire publications – a job he does with great flair and about which he takes immense trouble. It’s also a job which makes a notable contribution to the HADAS kitty. Brigid Grafton Green

A DMV IN EAST BARNET?

One question which arose at the AGM, but was not discussed in detail, was the future of the 3 acre field, now the subject of a plan­ning application, which lies to the south of East Barnet Church. Some details of its history may therefore he of interest.

This field the centre of which is at OS grid ref TQ 278 945, slopes steeply from NW to SE. On three sides it is bounded by roads; hilt on the north its boundary is formed by the perimeters of Church Farm, of the churchyard of the parish church of St Mary the Virgin and of the garden of the modern Rectory, sliced out of the churchyard about 15 years. ago; The Church is the oldest building in East Barnet; Church Farm, too, has a considerable history.

In the 18/19 c East Barnet village wads a mile from the Church, centred on the junction of East’Barnet Road., Cat Hill and Church Hill Road, where there were cottages, the Cat Inn (burnt down in 1955) and ‘ the bridge.- originally Katebrygge – over Pymmes Brook. Localopinion, however considers that this was a. later village, and that the original medieval village of East Barnet was near the Church. Two possible sites-have been postulated for it: one is the field now being considered for outline planning permission. The other is in Oakhill Park, north-east of the Church and sloping steeply away from it eastwards, to Pymmes Brook.

There is strong feeling locally against the proposed development, both on environmental grounds and because it is felt that this may be the site of a deserted medieval village. There appears, however, to be

some doubt among historians whether there ever was a village by the Church. In 1965 the DMV Research Group included East Barnet in its list of 38 DMVs in Hertfordshire. The evidence on which it was decided to include East Barnet has not been published, so it is impossible to assess.

In 1972 Phillimore published, for the Hertfordshire Local History Council, a booklet called Deserted Medieval Villages of Hertfordshire, researched and written by K Rutherford-Davis, Chairman of the East Herts Archaeological Society. This states, on p3, that “in the writer’s opinion inclusion of East Barnet (by the DMVRG) is mistaken.” The booklet is now out of print, and a revised edition; under the title

“Deserted Villages of Hertfordshire” will appear towards the end of this year. (The change in title is due to the inclusion of a village deserted in the 19c – Kitts End, beside Wrotham Park, very close to our northern border). Mr Rutherford Davis tells us that he has thankfully dropped-East Barnet from the booklet altogether. The official reason is that it is now in Greater London, not Herts; but Mr Davis still believes that it should not have been listed as a dmv. Incidentally, his original booklet gives the position of the site of the dmv (if it exists) As. TQ 277 946 – placing it fair and square in Oakhill Park.

The earliest map of the area in the LBB: Local History Collection is an enclosure map of 1817, which Shows the’site proposed for development (recognisable in shape but larger in area, since at that date it took in much of the present grounds of Church Farm) as agricultural land in the freehold tenure of John Bacon. It is possible that there may be an earlier map in the collection kept at Barnet Museum, but the Museum has not yet re-opened after its’extensive repairs and renovation. Indeed, Mr Bill Taylor, the Curator, now thinks that it may not be open again until about October. We have therefore not been able to explore this source.

The evidence on which the supposition of a possible DMV seems principally to depend is the age of the Church itself. As early as 1885 the Rev Frederic Cass, Vicar of nearby Monken Hadley church, published what has been for nearly a century the standard work on East Barnet. He pointed out that the north wall of the original nave and the archway of the south porch, with a fragment of the south wall of the nave adjoining, date “probably from the end of the llth or the commencement of the following century.” In 1951 the Society for the Protection of Anbient Buildings made a survey Of the fabric of St Mary’s and dated the north wall to early Norman times..

Church farm, owned today by the Council (it was presented to East Barnet Urban District in 1936, and inherited by LBB when the Barnets, Finchley & Hendon amalgamated in 1963) is used for various purposes. The Public Health Inspector has an office there; there is a Teachers Centre and a swimming pool used by local schools; local organisations hire rooms in it for meetings.

The 1341 Census states that Church Farm was occupied by Joshua and Martha East both aged 25, and their three small children. There were also 4 servants or farm workers living in the house. This is probably the same house which is shown on the 1817 map, at the north end of a long narrow strip of land (2 roods 5 perches) immediately beside the church. It was owned by John Bacon and described in the accompanying index merely as “house, etc.”

In 1860 Colonel Gillum, a veteran of the Crimean War, founded a home for orphan boys at Church Farm, using the old farmhouse and adding other buildings. He called it the Church Farm Boys Home. The boys received agricultural and industrial training, and themselves farmed the land, then 56 acres. Many of the buildings in the present complex date from the time of Colonel Gillum, and there may be still earlier buildings among them.

HADAS has, along with other concerned organisations, been asked by LBB planning Department to comment on the outline planning application (which will probably come before the Planning Committee in June), and to provide any historical background that it can. We have done so, and have advised that,-should outline permission be given, any developer-be told that time should be allowed for archaeological investigation of the site before development’. Even if such investigation wore to provide only negative evidence, that at least would-settle some of the ambiguities now surrounding the possibility of East Barnet as a DMV.

For Further reading

Cass, Frederic Charles, East Barnet (1885)

Taylor, W S, History of the Parish Church of East Barnet (1st ed. 1940, revised 1966)

Rutherford Davis, K, The Deserted Medieval Villages of Hertfordshire, (Phillimore, for Hertfordshire Local History Council, 1973)

Gear, Gillian, and Goodwin, Diana, East Barnet Village (Barnet Press, 1980)

The guide to the 900th anniversary Festival of St Mary the Virgin, 1980, contains a brief history of the Church

FIRST OF THE SUMMER OUTINGS

On Sat June 12 the first of our anniversary outings will take us to-Castle Rising and Kings Lynn. This was a favourite in 1976. NELL PENNY took us then, and is taking us again this year.

The Medieval castle at Castle Rising, almost hidden by the extensive earth ramparts of its outer and inner baileys, has the remains of an impressive -rectangular stone keep. The Great Hall has corbels-carved with grotesque faces, and an arcaded gallery running its length. The present Castle was built about 1150 by William de Albini. From 1329 Isabella’, mother of Edward III, lived there in semi-confinement after she had been overthrown by her son.

‘Packed lunch can be eaten in the castle grounds (loos there) and if time, the village is nearby with church, village cross and Bede house.

In the 130, with the diversion of the Ouse and the decline of the Port at Rising, Kings Lynn became the third largest seaport in the country. It has a charter granted by King John, two guildhalls, two market places and merchant houses and churches as relics of its medieval greatness. Unlike many places, Lynn is not a story of constant thought­less destruction of historic monuments. It is watched over by a dynamic Preservation Trust, which has restored an impressive number of buildings and converted them to modern use.

If you would like to join this outing please complete the enclosed booking form and send it, with cheque, to Dorothy Newbury as soon as possible.

THE REST OF THE SUMMER PROGRAMME

Sat, July 10 Visit to Canterbury

Sat. Aug 14 Visit to Colchester

Sat. Sept 25 Visit to Greensted/Waltham Abbey

Fri.-Sent 3-Sun. Sept 5. Autumn weekend at Newcastle and Hadrian’s Wall. Costs have risen enormously, both for University accommodation and coach transport. They would have brought this trip, as originally proposed, to well over £100 for 4 days. Rail travel is now being considered, and the duration reduced to 3 days, Friday morning to Sunday evening. The University can hold the rooms until June 10. Will any member who is interested please contact me before that date in order to ascertain if sufficient numbers will warrant proceeding with further arrangements.

Dorothy Newbury, (203 0950) 55 Sunningfields Rd, NW4

The Prehistoric Group continues its processing of West Heath finds at College Farm every Wednesday morning. Anyone wishing to help should first contact Christine Arnott on 455 2751.

The Roman Group will meet at 8 Hereford House, Stratton Close, Edgware at 8 pm on Wed. June 16. Everyone- welcome, but let Tessa Smith (958-

9159) know if you intend coming.

The Documentary Group, will be meeting soon (date not yet finalised) and new members will be very welcome. Please contact Brigid Grafton Green on 455 9040 if you want to help with documentary research.

BUYING BOOKS BY POST

HADAS members who want to add to their archaeological libraries may like to know of a firm of antiquarian booksellers which specialises in archaeology. They are the husband and wife team of A P & R Baker, 2 Brancepeth Terrace, Willington, Crook, Co Durham.

The Bakers began specialising 7½years ago: they issue about 8 catalogues a year. The catalogues include second-hand books, journals and offprints, and in these days, with the price of new books rocketing into realms where often only a library can afford them, it’s a pleasure to .be able to find a book you missed when it was first published at something near the original price.

Anthony Baker says “we aim to provide for the whole run of archaeologists, from the needs of a specialist academic library or research project to the introductory/general material asked for by someone who is just beginning in archaeology, perhaps by attending an evening class, We also keep extensive ‘wants’ lists, both from indi­vidual customers and in the form of unsuccessful orders for items in our catalogues (usually we have only one copy of a book in stock at once).”

If you would like to get onto the Baker mailing list, drop them a note. We understand that the next catalogue is due out about the end of May.

JUNIOR MEMBERS

The Committee is very sorry to have lost its helpful junior representative, Bryan Hackett. He is about to start preparing for ordeal by 0-level, sometime in the future – and that means no time for archaeology.

Before he left the Committee Bryan suggested we put a note in the Newsletter asking, if any other junior member (or possibly a pair of members, if you would like moral support) would care to take his place. Would anyone who is interested and wants to know more about it please ring the Hon. Secretary?

ARCHAEOLOGY LECTURES AT BARNET COLLEGE

A note from JEAN SNELLING

An evening course on Field Archaeology and the Post-Roman period in south-east England will take place at Barnet College from Sept 1982 to April 1983 next. It will be on Wednesday evenings from 7.30-9.30.

It is in fact the third year (mainly dealing with the medieval period) of the London University Extension Certificate in Field Archaeo­logy (which HADAS was responsible for persuading Barnet College to start seven or eight years ago). For this Certificate, the three years need not necessarily be studied in numerical order.

Now students who want to do the Certificate, and also class members who do not necessarily intend to take the exams, will both be welcome, and we hope very much that HADAS members will continue to support these classes. University fees for 24 2-hour lectures will probably increase a little on the £11 rate of 1981-2.

The lecturer will be David Beard, site supervisor of the Southwark Roman-medieval excavation at Calvert’s Buildings. He invites written enquiries about the course to him c/o Southwark & Lambeth Archaeological Projects, Post-medical Centre, English Grounds, Morgans Lane, SE1 2HT.

HADAS DRESSES UP – AND LETS ITS HAIR DOWN

We celebrated our one and only 21st birthday in April as everyone must know. One member who joined us was JULIUS BAKER, just back from a trip to Africa. We thought the contrast might be piquant, so we asked him to describe the party, and this is what he writes:

The evening of April 24 was really windy and as we wandered

around Central Square, Hampstead Garden Suburb, looking in the eerie evening light: for the way to St Judes Church Hall, we saw strange beings converging on a low building. We followed them – men and women in clothes of curious cut, clutching wildly at hair and garments that whipped and billowed in the wind.

Only a few days before we had explored the narrow lanes of the ancient Arab town of Lamu, off the Kenyan coast some 150 miles north of Mombasa. A week before we had wandered about the country markets

of Ethiopia. We had seen a variety of regional and. tribal costumes and hair-dos – but nothing remotely resembling the garb and styles that wafted past us that evening.

At the hall a comely serving wench provided a welcoming drink of mulsum from 1st century Rome, which tuned our senses nicely to the gentle early music played by the Vestry Consort recorder group of HGS music-makers. Our delight at this introduction to the festivities was enhanced by the setting: our eyes feasted on large murals of archaeological scenes, painted specially for this evening’s event by’ Mary Spiegelhalter, a member now living in Devon. On the walls, too, were colourful posters entered by children from local schools in HADAS’ “historical poster” competition. And there were flower arrange­ments, beautifully done by HADAS member Helena Nash.

The setting, indeed, was all colour and excitement: but it paled beside the spectacle of the people in the hall. They were, of course, HADAS members and their guests. I’ve known many of them for years. Yet even by the end of the evening. I hadn’t succeeded in penetrating some of the disguises.

Only by his activity as Master of Ceremonies and Town Crier did I know that the Elizabethan courtier, in doublet and hose with a red beard, was John Enderby, principal of the Institute. The Chinese gentleman with pigtail, skull cap and long drooping moustache, richly attired, turned out to be Eric Arnott. Someone’ somehow told me that the Edwardian tennis lady and her sporty escort were Helen and Daniel Lampert; and that a vision in purple velvet, who would have brought a lump to the throat of every Victorian stage-door johnnie, was none other than Joan Wrigley.

There was a distinct Roman element. Eric Wookey, a Vice President and an unbelievable 90, wore the imperial toga and bayleaves– very authentic, but the eye beneath the laurel wreath was much more friendly’ than the malevolent stare of Tiberius, whom he represented. Ted Sammes, too, was a toga-clad Roman.

An Anglo-Salton with staff and sandals turned out to be Peter Pickering. His wife didn’t match him: she wads in Stuart gown and headdress. Nora Williams, a blondied Boudicca, sported a spear. Sheila Woodward, in Roman matron’s gear, was the presiding genius of the

mulsum bar Miss Sheldon had had the happy thought of representing the HADAS Memorial Mug, by wearing on her head a lifelike, but outsize, mug; while Marion Newbury looked ripping as a 1920s flapper.

Desmond Collins was striking as a military man – was he ab out Balaclava time, or Peninsula War? Vincent Foster’s dating was more secure: he wore his grandfather’s uniform as an officer of 1914-18. June Porges came as an archaeologist of the turn of the century, and Alec Gouldsmith as an Egyptologist; while Percy Reboul might have stepped straight from an Edwardian melodrama – flowered waistcoat, twirling moustachios and no doubt a lugger (complete with weeping heroine) moored somewhere on the River Brent.

That’s just a small sample of what was on view. It was abundantly clear that most people had gone to a great deal of trouble to make this HADAS evening a success. I thought to myself that there can’t be many organisations in London whose influence with their members is st rong enough to get them to enter so completely into the spirit of the occasion – and to do it so well.

Real festivities started after the Mayoress, Councillor Rosa Freedman; the Bishop of Edmontonl the Rt. Rev Bill Westwood, and the Chairman, Councillor Brian Jarman, had taken their seats.

The Angel Norris team took over the floor – and I mean took over. They are well built ‘men and at first glance do not look like disciples of the terpsichorian art, but their agility and co-ordination in performing these ancient English rustic and parochial dances was extra­ordinary. The floor area available was rather small, but that Merely underlined their extraordinary speed, neatness of movement and dexterity.

A trumpet fanfare by the Arnett grandson heralded the entrance of the buffet centrepiece the Boar’s Head, borne by Brian Wibberley, wearing an Elizabethan tabard made (but you would never have guessed it) from jumble sale curtains; He and his wife Rosemary had prepared and richly decorated the Head, which had been so well stuffed with pate that it actually kept its rather forbidding shape, tusks and all.

The Head was followed by six solemn cooks in chef’s gear: hats, aprons and overalls – each bearing a main dish. Led by Brigid Grafton Green, they were Daphne Lorimer; Nell Penny, Sheila Woodward, Dorothy Newbury and Myfanwy Stewart. Brigid is a cordon bleu, but in addition she and several of the others had, some time ago, attended courses in Roman cookery run by Southampton University.

The table was now covered with mouth-watering delicacies. There was soon a queue of people trying at the same time to look nonchalant and yet to make sure of getting a taste of everything. There were 21 dishes and dressings; made from recipes from Roman times to today.

From Rome came Sala Catabia, described as an hors d’oeuvre – but for me it was a very tasty main dish of a. mould of wholemeal bread stuffed with chicken, cheese, cucumber, spices and herbs. Also from Rome was Uinutal Porci. cum Armeniacis – a fricasee of pork, cooked with apricots, wine and many spices; and also Pisa Trita, a puree of peas with herbs, mentioned later in nursery rhyme as “pease porridge.”

From the 15c there was the Duke of Burgundy’s favourite chicken dish; from the 16c stuffed mushrooms; from the 18c asparagus boats and- Salmagundy, from the 19c syllabub and Mrs Beeton’s salad; and from the 20c Carrots a l’Orientale (an Escoffier recipe) and Pavlova•- a dessert of meringue, .cream and fresh fruit.

Finally, with coffee, came the Birthday Cake, baked by Christine Arnett and decorated most artistically by Len Pothiphar-of the HGS Horticultural Society.

During the buffet John Enderby, Lilly Lewy and Percy Reboul reminded us what life was like 21 years ago; by reading news items of the time. And there was a hilarious raffle, with Mr Wookey drawing winning tickets from his top hat (which, by the way, he didn’t wear when he was Tiberius!)

Then the Morrismen had a second go, finally leading all those members still capable of dancing in a folk dance which (though not literally) brought the house down. So ended a HADAS occasion that has already become part of Society legend.

THE: TASTE OF HISTORY

So many people have asked for recipes from the birthday buffet that the Newsletter proposes to publish one ocasiónally. We are starting with the Duke of Burgundys chicken, which was one of the hot dishes served. It vanished almost as soon as it appeared on the table, but luckily we had kept some spares in reserve.

Philip the Good was Duke (for all practical purposes king) of

Burgundy from 1419-67, and is said to have enjoyed this dish all his life you will need for it, for a good main course for 6 people, a roasting chicken of about 3½ lbs., divided into 8 skinned joints;

2 large or 4 smaller onions, very finely sliced; from 2-4 ozs of butter; ¼lb small-size open mushrooms; ½pint stock, made from giblets and carcass, with part of a stock cube added; 1 gill sherry or dry white wine (the traditional thing is brandy; but you may think that too ritzy); 1 gill single cream; 2 egg yolks; plain flour for thickening; a generous ¼lb split almonds, browned in the oven.

Flour the chicken joints and saute them in butter quite fast till nicely brown all round. Start with 2 oz butter, and add more if needed. Add onions to the pan and cook for only 2 minutes with the chicken. Then cover the pan, with a paper under the lid, and transfer it to the oven at gas Reg 4 (electric 350°F) for 30 minutes. Add the peeled mushrooms and cook for another 10 minutes. Remove the chicken joints and mushrooms from the pan and keep hot.

Add about 1 piled tbsp. of flour to the onion mixture in the pan and cook, stirring, over a low heat till the flour ‘cracks’.’ Then add stock (a gill to start with, more as necessary) and cook, stirring, till it thickens. Add wine (or brandy) and bubble to throw off the alcohol. Taste, season. Finally, add the yolks, broken down in cream, and stir over gentle heat till almost bubbling. The sauce should be just thick enough for than pouring.

Meantime, take the chicken meat from the bones, cut into pieces about l½ square, place down the centre of a serving dish and put the mushrooms on top. Spoon the sauce over, dot very generously with the browned almonds.

This dish can be made well ahead and reheated gently, under a covering of foil, when you want it.

Shortcut for modern cooks you could use chicken joints down the centre of the dish, and save the chore of cutting the meat into pieces. Then you will probably need to allow more chicken, and you’will not be able to serve it as a buffet dish, to be eaten with a fork.

Last word: we understand that, so far as this dish is concerned,one can forget the modern rule of white wine with chicken. At Philip’s table it was served (naturally) with the wine of the country ­Burgundy. It is said that with it even a very average Burgundy tastes magnificent.

After the party there was, as always, some clearing up: and we found a few things that had been left behind. If anyone recognises anything on the following list, they can reclaim it by ringing Christine Arnott (435 2751):

a red glove;

a dumpy umbrella;

a yellow plate

a small formica-topped tray

LETTER FROM AMERICA

DOROTHY NEWBURY has heard from MAXINE HAMILTON, an American member who joined us when she was living in Highgate a few years ago. She has now returned to America but will be remembered both by West Heath diggers and by those who went with HADAS to Orkney in 1978. She writes:

“I still receive the Newsletter and read it with great interest and, indeed, envy of the fascinating lectures and excursions. I haven’t gotten into any archaeological group here and don’t know when I will.

I am trying to continue with my PhD. Yesterday I was at the Congress Library (I am reading the papers of a Confederate agent during our Civil War) and met a pro­fessor from Sheffield University. We had a chat over lunch and I felt quite homesick. Give my best wishes to the people who would remember me”

I think (adds Dorothy Newbury) that it is gratifying to all those people involved in writing, typing, gathering information, running off, collating and distributing the Newsletter to know how it is appreciated far and wide. As Programme secretary I probably speak to a wider section of the membership of the Society than anyone, and I would like to record that I am frequently told that it is well worth the Membership fee just to receive twelve interesting newsletters every year.

NEWSLETTER 135 May 1982
HADAS DIARY

Tuesday May 11 – HADAS Annual General Meeting at Central Library, The Burroughs, NW4, Coffee 8 p.m.; meeting 8.30; slide show afterwards.

Thursday May 13 – Documentary Group Meeting 8 p.m., 21 Village Road N.3. (New members of the Group welcome: please let Isobel McPherson know if you intend to come).

Saturday June 12 – HADAS OUTING to King’s Lynn.
Saturday July 10 – HADAS OUTING to Canterbury.

For the Birthday Year some of the most popular outings of the last 21 years are being repeated.

OTHER EVENTS

Saturday May 22 – Herts. Archaeological Council Annual Conference at Campus West Theatre, Welwyn Garden City 10.30-5.00. Price £1.50 at the door. Subjects ­Current Archaeological Research in Hertfordshire,and Urbanisation.

Wednesday May 5,12,19,26 at 1.10 p.m. at the London Museum – lectures on Sylvia Pankhurst, Goldsmiths at Work in the 18th Century, Rococo Silver, Hall-marking of gold, silver and platinum.

Thursday May 6,13,20,27 – Museum Workshop at 1,10pm at the Museum.- Subjects:-The Photographic Archive, Preserving our Textile Heritage, Health and Sickness in 16th-17th Century London,

Friday May 7,14, 21 at 1.10pm in Museum – Lectures re Sir Christopher Wren, Subjects – London and the Great Fire, The Rebuilding of the City, and Oxford, Gresham College and the Royal Society 1654-1723.

DAVE KING sends us this note:

The Institute of Archaeology (31-34 Gordon Square) is, after many years, enrolling members. The new membership scheme started in January, 1982,. The annual subscription is £5; it offers these advantages:

1 A free copy of the Institute’s Annual Report.

2 A copy of the list of forthcoming meetings on classical and archaeological subjects. Published three times a year, at the start of each university term.

3 The chance of buying the Institute’s Bulletin and Occasional Publications at 20% discount.

4 Use of the Institute’s library for reference purposes.

There is a separate library subscription for those who wish to borrow books, but “only bona fide reseach students, with an academic referee, are likely to be allowed to borrow books.”

Professor Evans, Director of the Institute, is “very enthusiastic” about members

of local societies taking out Institute membership.

The position regarding the library – which might be the greatest inducement to HADAS members – is more complicated than it seems. Anybody may use the Institute Library, though the librarians reserve the right to refuse permission if it is very crowded.. Institute members would be subject to this condition like anyone else, but it is considered “highly unlikely” that a member would be turned away on Saturdays or in the evenings.

ADDITIONS TO THE STATUTORY LIST

The Borough Planning Officer kindly provides, the following details of recent additions to the List of Buildings of Architectural and Historic Interest:

Crown Public House and 3 lamp standards in front, Cricklewood Broadway, NW2..

151 High Street, Chipping Barnet

Church- House, The Ridgeway, NW7

Nos. 1264-70 (even) High Road, Whetstone

164 East End Road, N3

All are of considerable interest, and HADAS is happy to know that they have been given some protection.

The mention of the lamp standards in front of the Crown is interesting. When it was announced six or seven years ago that the Statutory List for the Borough was to be updated, HADAS recommended the inclusion in the new List of certain items of street furniture – a category which hitherto had not appeared on the Borough List. The updating has not yet been published, although we understand that it has been completed. The lamp standards, we hope, presage the inclusion in it of other items of historic street furniture.

They are described in the Historic Buildings Schedule. like this:

“Early 20th C. Circular tapered granite plinths and cast-iron shafts, whose bases are urn -shaped and supported by four winged iron dragons linked by garlands through their jaws. Above the urn a ball swathed in acanthus leaves supports a tapering quadrangular section leading to a square necking. The lampholder heads have been removed.”Text Box: The group of houses in Whetstone include the one which Mary Allaway recorded: her drawings of it were published in Newsletter No.131. At the time she recording we were told that the group might be listed: it is most encouraging to know that it has been. The official Schedule describes the buildings basically as “mid 16th C. timber-framed, re-fronted in brick during the 18th C”..

Church House at Mill Hill is also part of a group, and is of red brick with a tiled roof, dated 18th C.

We have been interested for several years in 151 High Street, Barnet, for which at the moment there is an application for demolition. The exterior does not look much, but the Schedule describes the building as c, 1700, with a room on the ground floor with wainscoting “of simple 17th C. type with panels of even size, and similar paneling, painted, on the first floor room above and a corner fireplace with a simple chimney piece of the period.” HADAS has, in fact, written to ask the owners if we may record the building, should permission to demolish be given.

HADAS CONFERENCE Report by Sheila Woodward

HADAS members always turn out in force for the Conference of London Archaeologists held each spring at the Museum of London. This year they had a very special reason for attending. The first speaker was our own Daphne Lorimer, talking about our West Heath dig. In the brief space of her allotted 20 minutes Daphne gave the Conference a clear exposition of the nature of the site, the method and scope of the excavation and its ancillary research projects, and an initial assessment and interpretation of the results. The range and quality of flint tools from the site is impressive, and projects such as the analysis of flint-density and the conjoining of cores have added to our knowledge of the manufacturing of such tools. Other work undertaken by HADAS members has included experiments to establish the degree of heat required to produce colour changes in burnt stone, the analysis of charcoal remains from the site, and the study of the pollen profile for the area. Daphne illustrated her talk with some excellent slides, and on display in the Education Department of the Museum was a collection of some of the best of the West Heath finds, beautifully displayed and guaranteed to bring joy to any flint-lover’s heart.

The rest of the morning was devoted to a selection of mini-reports on recent excavations, and research in the London area. One of the liveliest was given by Gustav Milne, who, in his own inimitable style, updated his earlier reports on the Roman waterfront. He even made a tentative claim to have found, in an apparent “return” of an otherwise continuous line of quays, the first fragment of positive evidence for the siting of the Roman London Bridge on the line of Fish Street Hill.

In the afternoon session, entitled “Environment and Man” Philip Armitage resented at interesting study of the Evolution of British cattle from prehistoric to modern times, and Jennifer Hillam talked about the use of tree-ring dating in recent London excavations. Finally, Peter Reynolds, Director of the Butser Ancient Farm Project, expressed some forceful and provocative views on the efficiency of Bronze Age and Iron Age agriculture and the sophistication and affluence of those societies. His message was clear: don’t be fooled by Roman propaganda about conquering the barbarians and improving their standard of living. The prehistorians in the audience applauded loudly!

PREHISTORIC BURIAL RITES IN BRITAIN – PROFESSOR GRIMES
REPORT BY HELEN GORDON

The Presidential Address was a pleasure to hear, Professor Grimes gave us an” expert and exciting survey of prehistoric burials and the information they provide about the central role of death in the life and religion of the people. In the course of the evening he raised many questions: What were those people doing when they shoved their contemporaries’ bones into these tombs? Why did they select and position certain bones, and tuck little ones into nooks and crannies, and were they trying to keep the bones safe from the living world, or the living world safe from the world of the dead when they sometimes made the entrances so small that the skeletal remains could hardly be got through the holes? What were the ritual functions implied by the architecture, and why did they sometimes continue to use an architectural feature when apparently its function had fallen into disuse? What kind of people were selected to be (partially) preserved in this way?

Professor Grimes demonstrated the nature of these problems by illustrations of burials mainly in Wales and the west of Britain, dating from the Paleolithic to the Bronze Age. Little is known of the Paleolithic or Mesolithic customs in Britain, apart from them “Red Lady of Paviland” (thought to have been a Romano-Briton when first excavated by William Buckland in 1823, but later C14-dated at 16,000 BC; her red-ochred bones are actually those of a young man of 22), and undated skeletons in caves which may have been Mesolithic But with the advent of the Neolithic farmers who spread across Europe from the east from 8,000 B.C. onwards and reached the extreme west about 4,000 BC, chambered tombs appeared in many parts of Britain.

It is unfortunate that most prehistoric tombs were rifled by tomb robbers, or excavated before modern methods were known, and often the contents were lost, But accumulated evidence, confirmed by the few untouched tombs such as Stanhill, shows that they were in fact osstaries, usually containing partial. remains of numbers of individuals of both sexes and any age. They remained in use over periods as long as .1000 years, and the bones were often selected and arranged; usually only the last. individual to be inserted appeared to be intact.

The architecture of the tombs, though based on the same general design,shows considerable diversity. The tomb Tinkinswood demonstrates the normal wedge-shaped mound with the concave facade and forecourt, but the capstone is immense and weighs 70 tons, and the entrance is at the side. It is possible that the front walls had been covered with earth; in some cases even cap-stones may have been covered so that the location of the chamber was secret. On the other hand some portal stones have been so carefully chosen that it is improbable that they were covered. Entrances were sometimes blocked so as to be unrecognisable not only from the outside but also from the inside, and some entrances were made very small by placing stones at an angle, or cutting “port-holes” in blocking stones. Sometimes a large stone blocked the entrance which could be moved to re-open the chamber; this can be seen at Pentre Ifan where the central stone in the portal stands short of the cap-stone. But in another case the central stone, though free of the cap-stone, was itself so blocked with packing stones that the whole structure would have collapsed if it has been moved; change of use had not brought change to the traditional method of construction. These variations give the impression of a need to separate the living from the dead,

Earthen long-barrows, which usually contain some form of timber ossiary, bear a resemblance in their overall pattern to the stone-built tombs. The two types show regional distribution, though they co-exist in some areas, and some were combined in different phases. Earth barrows sometimes had stone platforms for exposure, and it is thought that the bones were brought in one operation.

With the onset of the bronze age in the second millenium BC, a new circular form of burial mound appeared. The mound varied in size up to 80 ft, in

diameter, and the primary burial was usually in the centre,sometimes in a pit, or on the land surface, or in a kist; additional burials might be inserted at the same time or later. The barrow might be defined by stone rings, or ditches. Standing stones can mark a burial site, and when excavated other stones may be revealed in some ritual position; in one example a large number of small stones set on edge accompanied a crowded pit burial.

Professor Grimes with his excellent slides then demonstrated a richness in variety on the basic theme too complex to be described here in detail, and he pointed out that over all there appears to be a continuity of purpose; an area of interment remains in some way special, or sacred, even though the sepulchral monument may be changed or augmented over an immense period of time, across cultural boundaries, as indicated by a possibly Christian extended burial near a barrow, and an Anglo-Saxon cemetery near six round barrows and a long barrow.

If this is Professor Grimes’ first address to HADAS since he became our President, it is to be hoped that he will allow his Presidential duties to become a little more onerous, and that it will be less than 17 years before we hear him again.

A TRIAL TRENCH IN THE GARDEN OF 14 CEDARS CLOSE, HENDON NW4
REPORT BY PERCY. REBOUL ON THE DIG OF APRIL-OCTOBER 1980

1. Introduction

In April 1980 the Hon. Secretary of HADAS was contacted by Mr. Michael Miller, owner of 14 Cedars Close, Hendon NW4. He stated that, during the course of excavating a 60 cm. wide trench on the lawn of his back garden, to take new land drains, an “old wall” had appeared and he would like it investigated. A cursory examination, showed the structure to be of potential interest, and digging started immediately following agreement with Mr. Miller.

For a number of reasons it was decided to limit the investigation to a trial trench. The wall was adjacent to a valuable cherry tree whose root system intermingled with the structure; the garden contained cultivated flowerbeds and recently-planted saplings which could not be disturbed; there would have been some problems with locating a large spoil heap and the owner was anxious to complete the land drainage system as soon as possible. The decision was there­fore taken to dig two small trial trenches, one north and one south of the brick wall which had been discovered. The final (and unusually asymmetrical) configuration of the trench was the result of the above factors. (See Excavation Plan, fig.1).

2. Documentary Research

The Site, The Cedars Close area has always been recognised by HADAS as of potential archaeological interest, evidenced by the “Abbot’s Bower” blue plaque, commemorating “the country seat of successive Abbots of Westminster,” erected although the precise position of the medieval manor house is unknown) at the junction of Cedars Close and Parson Street,*

At the time this Report is published, the plaque has vanished. The Borough Planning Officer assumes that it has been stolen. He is investigating the possibility of replacing it. In brief, this interest centres mainly around:

(a) The first manor house, timber-built in 1325/6 as a country retreat for the Abbots of Westminster

(b) The rebuilding of the original house around 1550 by the Herbert Family

(c) The final re-build in the 1720s when it was known as Hendon Place. The first Baron Tenterden, Land Chief Justice, bought the estate in the early 19th C., renaming the house Tenterden Hall

(d) The demolition of Tenterden Hall in 1934 to make way for the present Cedars Close

3. Evidence from Maps

Concurrent with the opening of the trial trench, HADAS members Dave King and Edward Sammes investigated evidence from OS, tithe and estate maps, —Dave King examined:

25″ OS maps dated 1863, 1904 and 1956

Tithe map of 1836

Estate map of 1796

His conclusion, making due allowance for the differing scale of the maps and overlaying/superimposing against the most recent large-scale OS map, was that the find was probably the north section of the walled kitchen garden of Hendon Place as outlined in the 25″ OS map of 1863. More specifically, it appeared to be a greenhouse or glass structure built against the garden wall.

Further evidence for a greenhouse structure was confirmed in the 1836 tithe map provided information on earlier forms of cultivation. The tithe book of 1836 describes plot 928 as “a walled garden” and plot 929 as “melon ground, gardeners’ cottages, sheds, etc. Based on nothing more than its romantic imagery, the site was promptly christened “the melon house”.

3. Evidence from Excavation
The South Trench

This trench, the first to be dug, was south of the brick structure. The north face of the trench was the structure itself and the south face was the land drain trench excavated (west to east) by the builders.

The removal of 20 cm of topsoil, which included the existing lawn, revealed that the brick structure was 80 cm wide – substantial and mode from excellent bricks very well built and pointed. A 10 cm thick concrete raft had been constructed running from the rebated edge of the south face of the brickwork in. a southerly direction (see Section J, fig.1). The extent of this raft or its use is not known. It was probably constructed c. 1934 as part of site levelling. operations – possibly to remove the danger of subsidence. An interesting feature was clay land drains placed on top of the concrete raft subsequently covered with the 20 cm of top soil. With the breaking through of the concrete raft, the springing of a well-built brick arch was quickly revealed. The section drawing shows details of this feature and another adjacent arch. Natural clay was found at a depth of 180 cm. The brickwork throughout was in excellent condition and of high quality workman­ship, its structure having been covered with an ash like backfill. There was no stratification.

Small finds in the South trench included:.

(a) Substantial quantities of mid to late 19th c. glazed pottery, the sherds being mostly small. The best piece was a complete base of a Spode teacup but as the infill was probably brought from another ­site and dumped, these finds are of no value for dating.

(b) Quantities of oyster shells

(c) Various metal objects such as a pair of large iron gate hinges, hand-made nails .and part of a scythe blade.

(d) Late 19th c. clay. ipe bowl and various pieces of stem.

Two features; apart from the brickwork itself, are worthy of note. The first was the brick drain at the base of the wall and running parallel, to it (see Section J). This comprised brick sides. and capping but no tile for the base ­natural clay was used to run the water away. The second was a modern-looking 9″ diam. brown glazed-ware sewer pipe running vertically from 20. cm down from topsoil to the brick drain mentioned above. This pipe was presumably installed c. 1933/4 to drain the new topsoil used in levelling the site prior to building (see Fig. 1 Section Y) It may also indicate that the ash-like backfilling south of the wall was also dumped in 1933/4 as part of levelling operations.

The North Trench

This provided nearly all the evidence for our conclusions. Its north face was some 2 m from what today is the back wall of the Millers’ garden – this was probably originally the north wall of the kitchen garden. Its south face was the north side of the brick. structure.

At 40 cm down a clearly defined “destruction layer” appeared (Fig. I, Section J). This was 20 cm thick and comprised burnt wood, charcoal, quantities of broken glass panes, terracotta earthenware gardening pots of various dimensions, metal glazing clips, putty fragments, lead strips and a long shanked screw-eye of the type used in greenhouses to secure the wires along which climbing plants such as vines are trained.

Some surprise was felt when, just below this layer, a second arched wall was found. (Fig.1 Section X). The structure was much less substantial than that uncovered in the south trench, and its workmanship was inferior. It was also earlier and may well have been associated with the growing of exotic fruits before the popularisation of the greenhouse in mid-Victorian times. No dating evidence was found, however, and this must remain speculation.

About 140 cm down two drains (at different levels and lines of direction) of’ good workmanship were uncovered; One was built entirely of brick, the other being brick and tile. These fed into a well-built brick culvert (plan view and section D Fig. l). The drains were constructed from hand-made bricks measuring 8½”x 3½” x 2½” with all courses bonded in lime mortar. Both were capped in unmortared bricks laid horizontally. Their junction with the culvert was of fine workmanship.

The brick culvert was exceptionally well-built. It came in from the west side of the trench and bent 900 into the direction of north (Fig. 1, Sections D & J). The brickwork, together with that of the feeder drains mentioned above, was similar to that of the arched wall found in the south trench and may be assumed to be contemporary. The culvert was covered by a substantial layer of large brick rubble, including conglomerates of several bricks. Of particular interest was the finding of several Tudor bricks among this random layer, which may possibly indicate that the builders had used bricks found on the site as a backfill or soak-away.Is this perhaps our first albeit speculative, evidence of the Tudor manor house at Hendon?

Several bricks were removed from the rounded top of the culvert to reveal the structure inside. A substantial deposit of silt, about 20 cm thick, lay on the base of the culvert. Sieving revealed nothing more than a few animal bones, small pieces of flat glass and more small sherds of 19th c. glazed pottery. The opportunity was taken to “rod” along the length of the culvert. It stopped at 2 m in a northerly direction, the rods almost certainly striking the garden all mentioned earlier.

Rodding in the westerly direction was inconclusive in the sense that at 20 m we ran out of rods, so it may well be of very substantial length. Possibly the drain originally ran from the house for what purpose we do not know, except that it was certainly not for sewage or foul water. It may have been part of the drainage for the small lakes abutting Parson Street (shown on the 1862 Estate map, Fig.2). The most obvious use, however, was as part of the drainage of the building which stood above them.

Small Finds from the North Trench

The finds discovered in the destruct layer have already been described above. Small quantities of mid to late l9th C. glazed pottery sherds were found adjacent to the brick drains, otherwise nothing of significance.

The most magnificent find, however, occurred at a depth of 37 cm — a cast iron pierced grill measuring 1178 x 457 mm. The grill, similar in type to those seen today in greenhouses where, typically, they are used to cover floor gulleys housing the heating pipes, was inscribed with the name “J. Weeks, Chelsea.” This firm was one of the most illustrious companies employed in greenhouse building. They started business in 1808 and finished in the 1960s, and are referred to in all the catalogues and treatises on the subject of “hothouse engineering.”

Manufacturers of horticultural buildings flourished in the period 1860-1880. Weeks & Co. were a leading London manufacturer located at Kings Road, Chelsea. They had a long tradition of supplying glasshouses and had a “winter garden” next to their works from which could be provided a complete package deal – iron and wood glazed structures, heating and ventilating equipment and even plants. Horticultural magazines of the time are filled with Weeks’ designs including, for example, glasshouses at Hampton Court and the Winter Garden at Folkestone.

5. Discussion and Conclusions

The limited nature of this trial dig makes it doubly unwise to draw too firm conclusions, but a reasonable hypothesis might be:

(a) Lord Tenterden bought the house in the 19th c. It would be reasonable for him, as a wealthy man, to improve both house and garden. The 1936 tithe map certainly shows a number of interesting features in the Garden complex, and the reference in the tithe books to “melon ground etc.” suggest that his lordship may.well have indulged the current passion for growing exotic fruits and plants; It may well have been at this time that the earlier arched wall-found in the north trench was constructed. Associated would have been the thinner type of glass found in the trenches. It is known that arched walls were used around this time to grow vines, the root systems being trained through the arches and the branches along the walls.

(b) Taxes on glass and building materials were removed in the 1840s. This, together with the impetus given to glasshouse building by the 1851 Crystal Palace, resulted in a golden age of greenhouse cultivation. Apart from the buildings themselves fuel and labour were plentiful and cheap; the middle and upper claases had money to indulge their horticultural interests and fantasies and the use of cast iron to make sophisticated heating systems was developed and marketed with considerable skill. In all of this, however, essential ingredients were plentiful heat, water .and good drainage.

(c) Sometime between 1862-741 as the estate maps reveal, the Tenterden estate was revamped and the large walled kitchen garden shown on the earlier maps was replaced by a substantial greenhouse structure. J. Weeks & Co. of Chelsea, one of the leading “hothouse engineers” was called in to carryout the work. They would certainly have built the glasshouses and associated engineering work, and it is possible too that they constructed the drainage. system comprising brick and tile drains feeding into a main culvert. This would account for the highstandardof work involved.

(d) The 1914-18 war, with shortage of fuel and manpower, would have been in part at least responsible for the decline of the complex. Between then and 1933/4, with the added problem of severe economic depression plus more sophisticated methods of importing exotic fruits, the greenhouses would have fallen into disuse and disrepair. They were finally demolished around 1934, together with the big house itself, to make way for Cedars Close. At the time of demolition, Tenterden Hall was a boys preparatory school.

All the evidence points to a greenhouse complex of some kind. One question however arises: why would the walls be of such massive dimensions? At 80 cm thick they would have supported the manor house itself!

A metal detector was run over the area west of the trenches along the presumed route of the culvert. There were several substantial readings and it could be that parts of the boiler system or more cast iron grills are just beneath the surface.

Newsletter 134: April, 1982 Birthday Number

HADAS DIARY

Tues Apr 6. A 4-star occasion for HADAS – a Presidential address, on Prehistoric Burial Rites in Britain, by Professor Grimes, to get our 21st birthday celebrations off to a flying-start. We’re celebrating throughout 1982, but April is actual anniversary month. The lecture is already a sell-out: we have issued tickets for the number of places available, and all tickets have gone.

Professor Grimes has been our President since 1965, but he has lectured to us only once before, and that as long ago as December, 1964. Until his retirement (strictly a working retirement, we understand) in the mid-1970s from the Directorship of the Institute of Archaeology in .Gordon Square and the Chair of Archaeology at London University, he was an active director of many excavations in London (particularly memorable were the Cripplegate Fort and the site of the Temple of Mithras) was Hon. Director of Excavations for the Roman and Medieval London Excavation Council from 1947 onwards, and has held a number of the top jobs in archaeology, including Director of the London Museum (for “over 10 years), Hon. Treasurer of the Council for British Archaeology and membership of the Ancient Monuments Boards and Royal Commissions of both England and Wales.

Sat Apr 25 Another red-letter date: when our birthday party takes place, at 6.30 for 6.45, at St Judes Church Hall, Central Square, Hampstead Garden Suburb (see end of this diary for further details).

Wed Apr 28. Roman Group meeting at 8 pm at 94 Hillside Gardens, Edgware. New members of the group will be welcome, but please ring Tessa Smith (958 5159) first to let her know you intend coming.

Tues May 11. HADAS Annual General Meeting at Central Library, The Burroughs, NW4. Coffee 8.pm; meeting 8.30; slide show afterwards. Our senior Vice-President, Mr Eric Wookey, has kindly agreed to take the Chair.

In the last Newsletter we suggested that you should get your tickets for the 21st birthday party by March 3. We didn’t mean to indicate that you would not be able to get a ticket after that date! There are still a few tickets left, and we notice that several people who are going to help “on the night” haven’t yet got round to providing themselves with the wherewithal to do so! If you are one of the forgetful ones, will you give Dorothy Newbury a ring when you read this (on 203 0950) and make sure that you can get in?

MORE ABOUT THE BIRTHDAY PARTY

We are delighted to say that our Vice-Presidents will he turning up in force for this event.

The Mayor of Barnet, Mrs Rosa Freedman, will of course take pride of place, as she is our chief guest of honour; but she’will be well supported by four of our other five’Vice-Presidents. Only one, Sir Maurice Laing, will be absent – he, alas, is away at a conference.

Eric Wookey is entering into the spirit of the thing, planning to come in historical garb; Daisy Hill, who was Hon. Secretary of HADAS from 1965-70, tells us she is “so very happy to accept your invitation to see all my old friends.” The Bishop of Edmonton, the- Rt Rev “Bill” Westwoodl is coming with his wife and says “the evening looks most excit­ing and we’re genuinely anxious to be with you;” while:Andrew Saunders, Chief Inspector of Ancient Monuments, who used to live in our Borough, is returning specially from his now home in Hertford. We shall be greatly honoured to have them all with us.

Other special guests will include the Borough Librarian and his wife4 Mr and Mrs David Ruddom; our West Heath Director, Desmond Collins, and his wife Ann, who are coming up from Devon; Mr and Mrs Gerry Isaaman (he’s the Editor of the Ham and High and she was Hon.-Treasurer of HADAS in the late ’60s/early 70s); and the Editor of the Hendon Times, Dennis Signy and Mrs Signy.

Regrettably, our Hon. Auditor, Mr R F Penney, is away that weekend; and so is the third Editor whom we would like to have entertained, Bill Field of the Barnet Press.

We are also sad that Vivienne Constantinides, daughter of our founder, will be sailing up the Nile to Aswan at the moment that we are sampling historic cookery in NW11. Otherwise, we gather, wild horses wouldn’t have stopped her being with us:

FLOWERS FOR A FEAST

Are you coming to the birthday party? Do you live in or near the Hampstead Garden Suburb? Have you flowers and/or greenery to offer? Then please ring Helena Nash (455 5913) and make your offers. Flowers and greenery should be delivered at St Jude’s Hall at 2 pm on the day of the party or to Nell Penny (458 1689) before 1 pm on that day.

THE HIGHGATE WOOD KILN by Tessa Smith

.On Saturday morning, Feb 13, a dozen HADAS Roman enthusiasts met at Bruce Castle Museum, Tottenham. It was the museum’s latest acquisition which drew us – a Roman kiln, lifted from Highgate Woods during excavations led by Harvey Sheldon and Anthony Brown (starting with a trial trench in 1966 and continuing through various digs up to 1974). The kiln has been on temporary display at the museum since January, and will be withdrawn from general public viewing when the next exhibition is arranged.

The kiln, dated between 60-120 AD, has solid looking furnace walls made of local baked clay and was built directly onto the topsoil at Highgate Woods. It is about 125 cm (4′) diameter and 30 cm (1′) deep, In the centre of the kiln chamber is a clay pedestal which supported the pots to be fired, and allowed hot gases to circulate in an updraught. Although radial fire-bars are absent from this particular kiln, there is in the exhibition one fire-bar which clearly shows the potters fingerprints.

The tiled flue entrance is arched and the tiles must have been brought from elsewhere. During firing the stoke-hole would have been fed continu­ally with lighted wood, and the draught of hot gases sucked through the narrow flue, to circulate round the stacked pots in the kiln chamber. Aemperature of 9000-10800c is needed to fire pots to earthenware; the whole process would have taken 1236 hours, or even longer, to complete. The flue entrance had been intentionally blocked. This may have been done at the end of firing in order to slow down cooling and thus reduce problems of cracking.

In the lecture theatre we were shown slides by the Museum curator, Claire Tarjan, of an interesting experiment made at the Highgate site by a group of teachers. The aim was to construct kilns, throw pots of locally dug clay and fire the pots. These were based on Roman originals from this area: bowls, beakers and jars. A most interesting problem arose. At first the resulting pots were of a rather pleasing pale fawn colour, but quite unlike the grey Highgate wares at which the teachers were aiming. This was solved by adding organic material both inside and outside the pots at the stacking stage.

Examples both of the modern pots and actual original Highgate Woods Roman pots are on display, as well as examples of wooden tools used by the teachers in pot-making and, decorating.

Bruce Castle Museum which, by the way, owes part of its name to Robert the Bruce, who held the Manor of-Tottenham at one time, contains a rare collection of postal material from the 16th c to the present day, a tribute to Sir Rowland Hill, whose family once owned the house. The museum also houses the local history collection of Haringey, and the Regimental Museum of the Middlesex Regiment.We all agreed it was a most worthwhile visit.

For further reading: the teachers experiments in making and firing pottery were fully described in The Horniman Museum Kiln Experiment at Highgate Wood: Pt 1 London Archaeologist, vol 2 No 1 p 12-17 Pt 2 vol 2 No 3 p 53-59

CULTURE ON ICE: Report by REVA BROWN

THE FROZEN TOMBS OF SIBERIA on the HADAS March lecture

Kenneth Whitehorn held us spellbound with his talk on March 2 on the Frozen Tombs of Siberia. He explained that these tombs exist in one of the few places in the world where weather conditions have made it possible to find literally complete remains of an ancient culture. Normally, organic materials like wood, leather, fur, felt or basketwork tend to decay in a relatively short time. The Altai, 5000 ft above sea level, where these tombs were discovered, has a short, hot summer in June and July; by August there are already frosts.

The Altai appears to have been an area where trade routes crossed, linking Greece, China and Persia. The tombs are of nomad chieftains of the 5th c BC. Their wealth lay in flocks and herds and among the arte­facts buried with them were superb horse ornaments (in one case, a complete ornamented harness and bit). These nomads led lives common over much of Europe and Asia before the emergence of the nation states with which we are familiar today.

The tombs were dug 12 to 20 feet down into the soil which freezes in winter, though this is not an area of permafrost: The chieftains were buried in “log cabins” at the bottom of the pits, in ‘massive coffins made from larch trees. They were accompanied by containers of food and drink, clothing; weapons, carpets, rugs, furniture, carts and carriages, as well as horses with ornate harness trappings. The tombs were topped by 15-ft high stone cairns, sometimes 150 ft across. The stones produced cold atmosphere in the-tombs and moisture, which penetrated, froze and increased and the subsequent build-up of ice preserved intact what had not been looted.

Mr Whitehorn showed slides of the treasures excavated from the tombs, as well as a selection of the gold objects found in Scythian tombs further south, which are now in the Hermitage Museum in Leningrad.

The memorable thing about the artefacts were the horse ornaments, made of carved wood and bone – intricately created designs of eagles, tigers, rams, boars, snakes and mythological animals. (The later art of the Celts, Franks and Anglo-Saxons bears a resemblance to the art of these nomads who lived a thousand years before them).

There were slides of human remains – one, a head covered in a plaster mask,: painted near the eyes with a design which might have been meant to represent warpaint; a section of heavily tattooed skin, again with in­tricate animal designs; and .the head of a chieftain, crushed in three places and scalped.

But it was the intact “Ordinary” things that were most amazing – a saddlebag of felt and silk, (this is the only examrle of this particular kind of ‘silk in existence – nothing exists in China itself); a leather belt decorated with appliqued cockerels; a man’s shirt made of’linen (hemp); and a -air of lady’s boots, decorated with seed pearls, with diamond shapes of silver in the soles – which would be seen when the owner sat cross legged upon a carpet in a nomad tent.

The lecture was over too soon, but memories of the treasures, ranging from the precious to the everyday, will stay in the mind for a long time.

VIKINGS and OTHERS

The Vikings in England – an Anglo-Danish exhibition on at the Yorkshire Museum, York, from the first Viking raid on Lindisfarne in 793 to the defeat of the Vikings at Stamford Bridge in. 1066. It covers the history of the Danelaw from Northumbria to the Thames. Included are finds from the Coppergate site in York. Open Mons-Sats 10 am-5pm; Suns 1-5 pm. “One hour is the recommended minimum for a visit,” says the leaflet. Adults £1.50 children and pensioners 75p.

Apr 22-25. York Archeological Weekend and more Vikings: this time, recent Viking discoveries in England. Conference fee £21 – but you arrange your own accommodation. Subjects include Viking trade and industry, textiles, pottery, “coins, sculpture, domestic crafts, metalwork. Sites include York Lincoln and Northampton. Applications by April 16 to the Director of Special Courses, Extramural Dept,’ University of Leeds.

May 1-3. Hampstead Garden Suburb Festival Week, celebrating the 75th anniversary of the founding of the Suburb on May 2, 1907. A Blue Plaque to Canon and Dame Henrietta Barnett will be unveiled on Heath End House, Hampstead, on May 2 – and HADAS has a particular interest, since back in. 1975 the Society opened the negotiations with the GLC of which the plaque will be the final result. There will be an exhibition of archives at the Free Church from May 2-8; HADAS will exhibit in the rebuilt Institute hall on hay 5 and will have a bookstall at the Teahouse from May 3-5.

May 3 1982. A demonstration of Roman army tactics and drill by the Ermine Street Guard at Crown Woods School, Riefield Road, SE9 at 12 noon, 2.15 pm and 3.30 pm. Ticket applications (students 20p, adults 50p) to Sally Kemp at Crown Woods School by May 1. The Ermine Street Guard is a society which studies the armour, arms and accoutrements of the Roman Army, reconstructs them authentically, and displays them in Roman-style exercises. Their headquarters are in Gloucestershire, so a chance to see one of their displays in the London area is comparatively rare.

NEIGHBOURLY NEWS

HADAS has received one handsome birthday present already. Our colleagues in the Mill Hill & Hendon Historical Society have given us (and their Hon. Secretary, John Collier, specified it being in honour of our birthday) a nurber of interesting rapers collected by one of their members, the late A G Clarke.

These are concerned with local history topics in Hendon and Golders Green. Mr Collier explained that when their Society, which is centred on Hill Hill, started 50 years ago it was the only one in the area; it therefore took Hendon – an historic place – under its wing as well as Mill Hill. Nowadays, however, Mill Hill & Hendon Historical tends to. do moat of its research in Mill Hill itself. It -was felt that HADAS might be able to use Mr Clarke’s Hendon papers in some of our work.

The papers arm of considerable variety: letters, photographs, news cuttings and notes, copied. by Mr: Clarke from documents of all kinds.

Many of these last are in shorthand: fortunately it is Pitman’s, and very clear and legible to anyone who knows the craft.

Apparently Mr Clarke’s study was a sight to see: its walls were completely lined with pigeon holes; and if he were asked a question on any local history topic he could go unerringly to the right hole and get you sone facts about it.

HADAS would like to thank the Mill Hill & Hendon Historical Society very much for the papers, which will undoubtedly be of help and interest in many hADAS projects. And how pleasant it is that in our area societies with kindred interests are prepared to help each other and work together.

We have heard recently from another neighbour – the Enfield Archaeo­logical Society.

Their publicity officer, John Stevens (also, incidentally, a NADAS member) has asked if we will remind our members of the existence of the Enfield Archaeological Society. It is slightly our senior, having been formed in 1955, and the western boundary .of its territory marches with the north east perimeter of HADAS’s patch; Mr Stevens thinks that perhaps keen archaeologists (especially in that area) might find membership of both societies of value.

And asks us to say that EAS would welcome new members; that it has a programme of monthly lectures on a variety of subjects and a subscription of £2 per annum. You can obtain further details from him at 3 Scarborough Road, London N9.

ALL ABOUT PEOPLE

A notable HADAS invalid during part of March has been DOROTHY NEWBURY, our Programme Secretary – now, we are happy to report, well on the road to recovery. She retired to hospital for an operation the day after the March lecture, All went according to plan and as this is written she is home again -with instructions to take it easy for a bit. However, being Dorothy, she just says “tell everyone I’m back in circulation.” She also asks the Newsletter to thank, on her behalf, all the members who sent her cards, letters and flowers.

Good news, too, from another March invalid, PETER FAUVEL-CLINCH, one

of our ace photographers. He has also had an operation, but reports that he is now fully recovered.

DAPHNE LORIMER, who has been globe-trotting again (this time to Hong Kong)-is back in London. She will be one of the .speakers at the 19th Annual Conference of London’ Archaeologists at the Museum of London on March 27 – a few days after this Newsletter goes to press. She intends to sum up the findings of the West Heath dig – just five years after Desmond Collins gave the first verbal report on it at an earlier Conference-of London Archaeologists in March 1977. Because of the timing, we won’t be able to tell you about the Conference in this issue: but we hope to have something about it in May.

The HADAS grape-vine says that this is a red-letter year for one of our keenest diggers, DAVE KING. He got married in the middle of March, and a few weeks’ time will be taking the finals of his three-year course at the Institute of Archaeology. All his HADAS friends wish him happiness in both undertakings.

,At the Prehistoric Society’s spring conference, held at the Museum of London on: March 20/21, we counted 22 HADAS heads among the audience. That’s a fair turn-out for one local society: but then the theme of the conference was one which, since West Heath, has been close to HADAS’s heart: the Archaeology of Hunter Gatherers.

THE MAKING OF THE GARDEN SUBURB by LIZ SAGUES

Tucked away at the bottom of one of the many display screens which combine ‘to form’ The Making of the Garden Suburb exhibition at Burgh House, New End Square, Hampstead, is a colour photograph of a flower display entered for one of the horticultural society shows.

The display – made entirely of dried material -‘is titled The Archives. Beside it, a caption adds: “not, we hope, as dry as dust.”

Certainly it is archive material – collected together by Brigid Grafton Green in her other guise as Suburb Archivist – which forms the exhibition. But in no way can the result be described as dry as Aust. It’s all too human too close both to residents of the Suburb and to any­one who knows it for that’.

From the beginning, when sheep and cattle grazed on the land Dame Henrietta was soon to use for her ambitious amalgam of social classes in homes that had a wide and pleasant outlook, ‘surrounded by green space for children to play on and community facilties shared by all, people predominate.

The Dame herself, of course, her husband whose involvement in the Whitechapel slums led to her pioneering, practical social work and-those who joined them in establishing the Suburb are there. Its architects ­renowned and lesser names – who are seen in domestic settings as well as professionally are there too. So are the royals, who have commended Suburb ideals. on many visits; and celebrities among the residents who have even taken major parts in local activities, as on the occasion when Michael Flanders played the lead in a Play and Pageant Union production of The Man Who Came to Dinner.

But most of: all there are the residents themselves, struggling over muddy, unlit, unmade roads to their new homes, miles from lCanyuseful shops; building up a community feeling with horticultural shows, church activities, Institute classes; surviving two wars, whose major architectural and community victim was the Club House; supporting the continuance of the Dame’s intentions, as in the 1970s rebuilding of The Orchard old people’s flats.

Photographs, pictures, plans, extracts from letters, ephemera like menus and programmes, the occasional more solid souvenir like the Dame’s family Bible or the-shovel that cut the first sod, all help to build the story of the Garden Suburb in a way that instantly seduces Visitors and holds them fast. Just one warning – allow at least an hour, ideally much more, to take it all in. Burgh House is open from noon to 5 pm, Wednesdays to Sundays, adnission is free.

FENGATE by Francis Pryor

Shire Publications £1.95

The latest in the Shire Archaeology series is this 56-page booklet, illustrated with photos, plans, maps and pictures of models and recon­structions, on the Fengate sites east of Peterborough.

The author is Director of the Welland Valley Project, and was Assistant Curator at the Royal Ontario Museum, which has contributed greatly to the cost of digs and post-excavation research.

The sites explored lie – as the name suggests – along the approaches to the fens. There are prehistoric sites from Neolithic times on through the phases of the Bronze and Iron Ages. The author first dis­cusses the original discovery of some of the sites early in this century; the use made more recently of aerial photography to map the wealth of sites in the ancient landscape; and the historic formation of fenland and the environmental changes of the last eight or nine millennia

The archaeological record begins with the Neolithic-Mesolithic hunter-gatherers, the author says, “do not concern us – evidence for their existence is very sparse.” Most important is the discovery, through trackways and enclosure systems, of a “fully-developed landscape and

a population large enough to maintain it of late Neolithic date. This evidence-the author describes as “decidedly unexpected,” and he adds that it was difficult to accept when first found in the early 1970s.

The Bronze Age settlement pattern of before 1000 BC was found to be a dispersed one; but by 400-300 BC a phase for which there was good evidence – “settlement was nucleated and continued to be so.”

The booklet suffers a little from the necessity of keeping it short – for instance, dating is admitted to be “in very round terms,” and ‘the prehistoric archaeological periods are also very generalised.” However – as with most Shire Archaeology booklets – the author knows his stuff and it is a good generalised account of some fascinating sites and a period of some four thousand years about which archaeological opinion has changed dramatically in the last decade – partly because of what was found at Fengate.

Copies of the booklet are available from our Hon Treasurer, 66 Hampstead Way, NW11 7XX. Please add 25p for postage.

HADAS HIGHLIGHTS1,/center>

In honour of our 21 years, the Newsletter charts

below the record of HADAS’s progress – with the odd set-back, too – culled from Annual Reports, Minutes and, in later years, Newsletters

1961 The Society sets itself up with President, Vice-Presidents, officers and Committee.

A membership of 73 is achieved and a credit balance of £31.10.5d.

The first dig begins at “the ruined farmhouse on Church End Farm.”

1962 Membership 62; balance £29.138d.

A Constitution is drawn up and approved.

Digging continues at Church End Farm.

1963 Membership 56; balance £31.

Exhibition of finds from Church End Farm at Church Farm House Museum, and production of a duplicated interim report on the dig.

A social sub-committee arranges a party for “old Hendonians” to exchange memories of the district
1964 Membership 103; balance £25.14.5d.

Further 6-week dig at Church End Farm.

1965 Membership 124; balance rises to £75.4.6d, owing to the start of fund-raising (by whist drive).

Further exhibition at Church Farm House Museum of Church End Farm finds from 1961, 1962, 1964.

1966 Membership 120; balance £83.11.4d.

The annual programme settles down at 7 lectures and 4 outings; hereafter it keeps, with the occasional hiccup, to this pattern.

Excavations at Church End Farm, including The Paddock, completed.

1967 Membership 104; balance £122.15.2d.

HADAS begins chasing The Viatores Roman Road No 167, with a dig in Copthall Fields. Resistivity meter first used to aid excavation.

1968 Membership 98; balance £17.13.5d. research for road 167 continues with various investigations.

1969 Membership rises to 113; bank balance sinks to “about £50”.

Reconstituted Research sub-committee (an earlier one had foundered in 1963) starts several new projects.

Dig on open area near The Chequers, Church End, Hendon; trial dig at Westhorpe, Tenterden Grove.

First. Issue of HADAS Newsletter, at first published at somewhat erratic intervals.

1970 Membership 111; balance £37.10.

Dig at Brent Lodge, Nether Street; field work at Manor House, Finchley.

Borough Conncil Libraries Dept. agrees HADAS should mark, catalogue and conserve the Brockley Hill finds.

Recording tombstones begins in Hendon St Mary’s churchyard (and continues- until 1979).

1971 Membership 149; balance £34.81.

Excavations at Thirleby Rd, Edgware, and Simonds Nursery, Finchley. resistivity survey at Manor house, Finchley; street survey (prior to demolition) at Church End Hendon. HADAS plays leading part in Quincentenary celebrations of the Battle of Barnet; providing 3 members; including Chairman and Hon. Secretary, of 7-strong organising Committee. 10,000 visitors see exhibition in old Council Chamber, Wood Street, Barnet.

First Occasional Paper – Chroniclers of the Battle of Barnet -published, and first edition sells out.

Society celebrates its 10th anniversary with party attended by Deputy Mayoress, Mrs Freedman, who cuts the birthday cake.

By invitation HADAS represents LBB on newly-constituted Borough Secretaries Committee of LAMAS (as it still does); site-watching starts and continues as a permanent feature of HADAS work.

Roman Hendon exhibition at Church Farm House Museum; HADAS arranges for Roman burial urn to remain on permanent loan at Museum. Society exhibits at LAMAS Conference of London Archaeologists; and hereafter does so annually, later adding a further regular display at LAMAS Local History Conference.

HADAS first registers its interest in fate of College Farm, Finchley, by recommending LBB to refuse plan for 101 houses on the site; a detailed history of site and buildings is prepared; from now

on HADAS makes constant representations to local and central government about the deteriorating condition of the farm.

1972 Membership 174; Balance £267.64

Excavations at 31-34 the Burroughs

Bookbox established and newsletter becomes regular monthly

Reception and lecture at Prince Albert, Golders Green Road, in honour of Mayor of Barnet, Councilor Joseph Freedman.

Travelling exhibition of photos in connection with the Festival of London prepared for showing at LBB libraries.

Portrait survey starts.

Survey of Old Ford Moat, Hadley

Regular winter weekends studying Roman pottery from Brockley Hill start at the Teahouse,Northway and continues annually

Occasional Paper No. 2, “The Blue Plaques of Barnet published

1973 Membership 234; balance £891.10

Transcription of Hendon St Mary’s parish registers starts

Index made of Listed Buildings in LBB

Church Terrace dig starts

A start is made on Industrial Archaeology projects (but proves to be a false start)

Exhibition of HADAS work at shop in Church Road, Hendon

First mention in Annual Report of desperate need for accommodation: This becomes a continuing theme.

First mention in Newsletter of field walking (at Scratch Wood), which now becomes a fairly regular activity.

1974 Membership 270; balance £588.

Archaeology in the Borough exhibition at Church Farm House Museum. First minimart held; raises £115. Almost annual event from now on. Church Terrace dig continues; dig also at Fuller Street, Hendon. Regular exhibitions at school fetes, Finchley Carnival, Friern Barnet Summer Show.

20 members survey possible buildings for Listing in LBB and HADAS makes recommendations for up-dating the Statutory List.

First “weekend away” at Ironbridge Gorge; autumn weekends become hereafter a normal feature of the programme.

1975 Membership 294; balance £573

Honey, Milk and Milestones (Occasional Paper No 3) published. Digs at St James the Great, Friern Barnet; and Woodland, Golders. Green.

Dissenters Burial Ground, Totteridge, recorded.

Industrial Archaeology section, hitherto moribund, re-starts in a quiet way.

Survey of parish boundaries starts.

Exhibition of Brockley Hill finds at Burnt Oak Library.

1976 Membership 389; balance £953.

West Heath dig starts (and continues annually each summer until

and including 1981); processing of finds goes on alongside digging, and continues, at different venues, through the winter.

Dig at site next the White Swan, Golders Green.

Exhibition in empty shop at newly-opened Brent Cross Shopping Centre.

HADAS gets its own coat of arms, designed by an artist member.

1977 Membership 444; balance £1134.62.

Second site in West Heath “bog” area, opened for short dig.

London University accepts West Heath as suitable training site for Extramural Diploma and Certificate in Field Archaeology.

For next three years a fortnight’s training dig is organised. HADAS among 6 finalists for BBC Independent Archaeologists award appears on BBC2 Chronicle programme.

First HADAS symposium, on the West Heath dig.

Archaeology in Action exhibition at Church Farm House Museum exhibition in foyer of Barnet College.

Occasional. Paper No 4, Victorian Jubilees, published.

HADAS organises and provides lecturers for 2-term course in basic archaeology at Hendon College of Further Education, Flower Lane (similar courses arranged until Easter, 1981).

Storage space for tools, etc. provided by new owners of College Farm; later this develops into offer of small room in which processing as well as storage can take place.

1978 Membership 446; balance £1899.51

Helped by a grant, HADAS invests in surveying equipment.

First full week away: a memorable trip to Orkney.

Society acquires first “home of its own” – tiny rented room at

Avenue House, Finchley, to house its growing library.

Dig at Old Rectory site, Finchley; dig in carpark of Town Hall,

Hendon.

Recording starts in churchyard of. St James, Friern Barnet.

Exhibition of Industrial Archaeology at Barnet Museum.

1979 Membership 440 balance £1411.60

Dig at 97 Southwood Lane, Highgate.

Part of New Southgate cemetery “rescue” recorded.

Five new research groups set up: Prehistoric, Roman, Medieval,Industrial Archaeology and Documentary.

Hay tedder, 1880 type, rescued with Territorial Army help, from Mill Hill and lodged at College Farm.

Unusual Christmas party researched and organised: a Roman banquet.

1980- Membership 443; balance £1847.30 (both at March ’81)*

81 Occasional Paper No 5 published: Those Were the Days.

Pinning Down the Past exhibition at Church Farm House Museum, exhibition at Centre Point, Grahame.Park.

Dig at Cedars Close, Hendon

1982 Dig in basement of Manor House, Finchley; dig behind Old Bulls, Barnet.

*membership/balance figures throughout are those for the end-of each financial year at March 31,

NEWSLETTER l33: March 1982                                                                         21st Anniversary Year

HADAS DIARY:

Tuesday March 2 – The Frozen Tombs of Siberia by Kenneth Whitehorn

Mr Whitehorn will be remembered by members for his excellent lecture last year on Sutton Hoo, and his topic this year is certain to be another Winner. He provides this introduction: “The frozen tombs of Siberia are of exceptional interest to archaeologists because the frozen soil preserved all kinds of perishable organic material which is never found elsewhere — decorative leatherwork, woodwork and silk. The art styles are similar to the famous Scythian gold which will also be shown.                                                                             The lecture will start at 8.20 pm.

Tuesday April 6 – Prehistoric Burial Rites in Britain by W.F.Grimes

All tickets for Professor Grimes’ lecture have now gone, writes Dorothy Newbury. Will any members who have tickets and subsequently find they cannot attend PLEASE LET ME KNOW so other members can use them (ring me on 203 0950).

Saturday April 24 – 21st Birthday Party

A few tickets (E7.50) remain for the anniversary party, to be held at St Jude’s Church Hall, Central Square, .Hampstead Garden Suburb, starting at 6.30pm. They will be available at the March lecture or, before March 3, from Dorothy Newbury, 55 Sunningfields Road, NW4.

Tuesday May 11 HADAS AGM Details later
A NEW HADAS DIG

The site behind the Old Bull pub – now a community centre – in the heart of old Barnet could hardly be more different from West Heath, reports Philip Venning, who is directing the society’s rescue dig there.

Work began on the weekend of February 13-14, with some back-breaking concrete shifting as well as more gentle excavation. After two weekends and a full week of effort, four significant trenches had been opened and finds were appearing in appreciable quantity. The site should have been in use – possibly as an ale house – back into medieval times- but the ground is heavily disturbed and depth of excavation is limited (by agreement with the architects of the small theatre to be built there) to a maximum of one metre over most of the available digging area.

Features noted so far include two areas of evenly-laid brick floor and a tiled area, perhaps a pathway, but it has not yet been possible to date them. Most finds are 19th century, but some earlier pottery and clay pipes have appeared. Clearly, lots of sea food was consumed nearby in the past, with oyster, mussel and scallop shells recovered – plus the “winkle pit”, which appears to contain a winkle seller’s unsold stock.. Wine bottles indicate thirsts were quenched, too.

As the Newsletter went to press, it was uncertain whether the beginning of March deadline for excavation could be extended. If it has been, diggers will be welcome on site, both weekdays and at weekends. Ring Phillip Venning to check..

YOUNG DIGGERS

Bryan Hackett, junior representative on the HADAS committee urges young members to join the Young Archaeologists’ Club.

The Young Archaeologists’ Club is the only national club for all young people interested in archaeology. The annual subscription is £2, for which members receive four copies of Young Archaeology, a fully-illustrated magazine, with news about excavations and discoveries, information about monuments and museums to visit and much more.

There are field-study holidays all over the country, from which groups study archaeological monuments in the surrounding area. There are activity days throughout the country, including one in London on March 6, so if you want to go hurry up and join (I will be going on this outing). YAC members can work on excavations throughout the country, lists of which are published in the magazine.

If you would like further information, please send a stamped, addressed envelope to Bryan Hackett, 31 Temple Fortune Hill, NW11 7XL.

… AND A REMINDER

Entries for the HADAS poster competition – title, “Scenes from History” – close on March 31. Schools or individual junior members may enter, with no limit on school entries and a maximum of three from individual members & Posters should be either double crown size (20 in by 30 in) or crown size (15 in by 20 in). There’s a prize worth £10 for the school from which the winning entry comes, or a small prize if a junior member wins. Entries should be sent to Brigid Grafton Green, 88 Temple Fortune Lane, NW11 7TX.

WEST HEATH AND OTHER MATTERS PREHISTORIC

Members of the Prehistoric Group are continuing indefatigable work on the West Heath material and slow but steady progress is being made towards the report, says Daphne Lorimer.

The group is also very interested in participating in a series of field walks in the autumn with the Roman Group. Those members who heard Dr Kinnes’ theories of Neolithic settlement in Hertfordshire at the CBA Group 7 meeting last autumn will scour the clay fields and heavy soils of the borough with renewed enthusiasm – especially where Neolithic axes have already been found. Nearby, Dr Kinnes assured us, we should find a Neolithic farm!

SCREEN SHOW

There’s just a fortnight left of the Silents to Cinerama exhibition .at Church Farm House Museum, Greyhound Hill, Hendon, based on the collection of cinema-related material built up by Maurice Cheepen, manager at some of London’s best-known cinemas from the end of World War I until his death in 1980.

 

THE MOST IMPORTANT NEOLITHIC BURIAL SITE OF OUR GENERATION

Daphne Lorimer reports on the February lecture

“The most important Neolithic burial site of our generation” was how Dr Ian Kinnes described Les Fouaillages at the February meeting. His profusely illustrated and fascinating lecture revealed how the total excavation of a hitherto unknown (and thus untouched) dolmen on L’Ancress Common in Guernsey had uncovered new and exciting evidence of Neolithic settlement in Europe.

The site was discovered by two members of La Societe Guernsiaise and a small trial excavation was undertaken. This revealed a built stone wall in a man-made mound, some Neolithic pottery and the corners of two horizontal stone slabs. Total excavation was under­taken by the society, under professional direction from the British Museum, over a period of 13 weeks during 1979, 1980 and 1981. Mechanical aids were available to assist with the raising of heavy boulders but the “rope and roller” method proved effective, provided a plank trackway was laid. The site was situated on fertile loess soil but had once been forested. A scatter of mesolithic flakes were found and the exca­vation continued down to the archaeologically-sterile raised beach.

Dr Kinnes considered the Neolithic farmers to be a highly organised, very civilised and sophisticated people. They travelled all along the North Atlantic seaboard from Spain to Northern Ireland, their settlement being distinguished by the building of exceptional funerary monuments. These monuments, Dr Kinnes said, were obviously very important to their makers, a number contain superb carvings (possibly a symbolic language), and they may well be our only available avenue to the way of thought of their builders.

In the 13th and 14th centuries at least 70 chambered tombs were known on Guernsey according to the references compiled by Lt. Col. T.W.M. De Guerin and the Lukis family, of which only 11 remain. Dr Kinnes wondered how many more than 70 would have been present in prehistoric times.

The standard monument is a simple passage grave – a round mound with a passage into the central chamber. The monuments survive along the rock coast in the northern part of the island where fairly recent sand-blow has rendered the land useless for farming.

Other monuments include the very fine late Neolithic figure (dated to about 2,400 – 2,000 BC) found buried in a church (a very similar carving, found in Southern Brittany, showed the connection between the two communities). A figure, La Grandmere, was also found outside another church, the lower half being Neolithic but the carving from the chest up Iron Age.

Returning to Les Fouaillages, Dr Kinnes said the earliest structure proved to be a triangular turf-built mound surrounded by a well-built boulder wall with a slab facade. Down the centre was a series of funerary monuments only 20 metres long. These consisted of a semi­circular paved area at the rear with a trapezoid cairn in front which separated it from an open-roofed chamber in which three pots were found. It appeared that the two rear sections had been covered by a mound from their inception and soil analysis sugests that human bones were found only in the second chamber.

The chronological date is put at about 4,500 BC, which makes it the earliest megalithic tomb in Europe, so far, and indicates that other even earlier tombs are waiting to be found on the mainland. These might not, however, be in stone as the monument is, in many ways, the stone rendition of work in timber. The tunnel chamber in the centre of the mound is very small and was possibly used for the storage of bodies. It was found filled with beach sand which must have been brought from two miles away. The early stage of the site served about 12 generations and then went out of use.

A decorated pot sherd (Bandkeramik) was found, then a whole band-keramik pot. The indication that the grave was built by bandkeramik people was, Dr Kinnes considered, startling as, elsewhere, the culture does not include the building of graves. The only other known triangular graves come from Poland (but Dr Kinnes did not propose a Guernsey-Poland connection!). The other unusual fact was that the grave stood in the middle of a settled farming community and not at the edge of a fertile area as considered up to now. In all 35,000 Linde were made, including fragments of a stone bracelet.

About 3,000 BC (500 to 600 years after the first monument went out of use) the site took on a new form. The old flat facade was concealed by a semi-curved structure and consisted of laid blocks of stone and turf with a capping of boulders. The blocking had no chamber to go with it but, when excavated, a series of circles of recumbent boulders were found, in the centre of which were the post holes for massive oak timbers (two holes were 80 cm in diameter). These circles defined mortuary areas. The posts had rotted and been replaced by dry-stone enclosures. This phase lasted until about 2,000 BC when the monument went out of use.

This phase produced many finds including complete pots, three whole stone axes and fragments of 15 or 16 others, a polissoir and the base of a bow-drill. A final votive deposit was made of eight very fine barbed and tanged arrowheads – four were honey-coloured Grand Pressigny flint and four of dark Normandy flint – and the whole area was covered by a mound of black earth. Dr Kinnes thought the mound had been meant to last for ever. No structures were associated with it but the excavation of a sample area adjacent to the mound revealed a Beaker settlement with very fine beaker pottery and flint work.

Finally a ruined monument 50 metres away was examined. It proved to be very disturbed but consisted of a closed chamber with orthostats decorated with cup marks and enclosed in a stone circle. Beaker pottery was found.

Dr Kinnes dry humour, fascinating account and superb photography produced an evening memorable even for HADAS.

GLC RECORDS: CHANGES IN OPENING HOURS

One immediate effect of the forthcoming upheavals as the GLC Record Office prepares for its autumn move to Clerkenwell (see Newsletter 131) is the closure of the County Hall Search Room all day on Mondays. Access to the History Library and map, print and photo­graphic collections is available only after 2pm on Mondays. There will also be some other “disruption”, as the head archivist puts it, advising a preliminary phone call (Search Room 633 6851, maps and prints 633 7193, photographs 633 3255 and History Library 633 7132) to avoid a wasted journey.

CONGRATULATIONS.

To HADAS junior member Simon Coleman, currently at University College School, Hampstead, who has won a scholarship to St John’s College, Cambridge, where he will read archaeology and anthropology.

CLUES TO FINCHLEY’S PAST Paddy Musgrove reports on a dig at Finchley Manor House

A short, sharp dig on January 4 and 5, in which five HADAS members took part, answered one outstanding question concerning the history of the Manor House in East End Road, Finchley. The present building dates from 1723 only, but references to the medieval manor house and the existence today of the remains of a substantial moat in the grounds have contributed to the popular belief that the present building replaced an earlier one on the same site and, in particular, that the extensive basement with its well-worn flagstones belonged to that earlier building. On the other hand, there have been those, such as Frank Marcham (Barnet Press, June 1, 1936), who believed that the earlier manor house was elsewhere.

Extensive repairs currently being carried out at the Manor House provided an opportunity of excavating part of the cellar floor. A passage runs roughly north-west to south-east down the middle of the basement area, providing access to various store rooms and domestic offices. In this we lifted two areas of flagstones, each 180 cm by 115 cm. The mid-point of one trench was 12.75 metres from the main exterior south-east wall of the building and the other was 16.95 metres.

The underneath faces of all ten flagstones showed no signs of wear, such as might be expected if they had been reused. They were set on large blobs of red sandy mortar, which rested on 12 cm of rubble, the upper surface of which in places formed a roughly concreted mass. Beneath the rubble in the more westerly of the two trenches, a 1 cm layer of brick dust was spread neatly over the surface of the undisturbed chalky Finchley boulder clay. A similar layer in the other trench lay in part on a few centimetres of dirty sand and gravel, presumably introduced to level the clay surface.

The rubble Consisted on broken bricks, hand-made roofing tiles and a considerable amount of plaster, much of which had been painted. It also contained animal bones, shells, fragments of wood and charcoal, together with pottery and other artifacts which can be dated to the 17th century or later, thus confirming that the flagstones examined definitely did NOT represent the floor of an earlier manor house cellar.

Among finds retained for future reference are the following:

Rubble: Portion of a dark brown overfired brick, 3⅝ in (92 mm) broad and 2 in (50 mm) thick, with no frog; fragments of roof tiles 6¼ in (158 mm) wide, some with circular peg holes (10 mm diameter) and one with two square holes (13 mm square); pieces of wall plaster, painted light blue and red/brown, some showing marks of laths.

Glass: Neck of wine bottle with wide string ring (17th century); fragment of very thin ancient clear sheet glass; portion of clear glass decorated stem of (?) goblet.

Bone: 10 pieces animal bone, none showing signs of butchery, but one split lengthwise.

Pottery Nine sherds of white and blue-and-white “delft”; seven other glazed sherds, two possibly of Surrey ware; three pieces of stoneware, including one of Bellarmine showing parts of mask and seal.

Clay pipes: Eight portions of tobacco pipes, including one bowl of 1640-1660 type.

Shells: 12 oyster shells; one cockle shell.

We are very grateful to the Leo Baeck College and its architects, Messrs Hildebrand and Glicker, for permission to dig on this site.

THE SUBURB IN PRINT AND ON SHOW

Two events occur this month which concern the south-eastern corner of our borough – particularly the Garden Suburb, writes Brigid Grafton Green.

One is the publication, on March.1, of a book by Kitty Slack, a HADAS member, called “Henrietta’s Dream”. The book is sub-titled “A chronicle of the Hampstead Garden Suburb, 1905-1982”.

It deals, particularly with the Suburb as a social experiment, and tries, from that aspect, to say whether the dream of the founder, Henrietta Barnett has come true. It contains, among other things, many quotations taken from the tapes which Miss Slack has made of interviews with Suburb residents. “Henrietta’s.Dream” costs £2.50 (plus 30p postage, if required) and can be obtained from Kathleen Slack, 17 Asmuns Hill, NW11 6ES.

The other event is an exhibition called The Making of the Garden Suburb, which opens at the Hampstead Museum, Burgh House, on March 6. It contains maps, photographs old and new, objects, documents, posters and other material which tell the history of the Garden Suburb.

The exhibition – in which a number of HADAS members have had a hand – celebrates the 75th anniversary this year of the Suburb’s founding. It will be open until Sunday April 24, from Wednesdays to Sundays each week, noon to 5pm, admission free. Burgh House is in New End Square, Hampstead.

ANOTHER 21st ANNIVERSARY

Ted Sammes, chairman of the Maidenhead Archaeological Society, tells us that it too is celebrating the achievement of its majority this year.

To start with there will.be a celebration dinner at the Kings Arms, Cookham. Later in the year Maidenhead itself is commemorating 400 years since Queen Elizabeth I granted the town its’ charter. During the year there will be many events and to which the archaeological society will contribute a four-week exhibition at Maidenhead library, starting on March 16 and continuing until April 8, This will show some of the early days of the society and also finds, documentary and historical material dealing with Maidenhead in medieval and later’times.

For further details contact Ted Sammes Burnham 4807, who hopes that some members may be. able to visit the exhibition on a Saturday morning. The exhibition closes at 1pm on Saturdays.

HADAS ANNIVERSARY MUGS

A reminder from Jeremy Clynes that there are a few HADAS anniversary mugs remaining. They cost £1 each from Jeremy at lectures or by post (add 50p for postage) from him at 66 Hampstead Way, NW11 7XX.

LETTER TO THE EDITOR                                                                        from Nell Penny

If the chairwoman of   Hornsey Historical Society congratulates the Newsletter, it is time a member of HADAS did the same. I always read my Newsletter soon after I get it. The February issue did not disappoint me. A meticulous analysis and history of Barnet Physick Well; an encyclopaedic article about digging at St Mary’s, Finchley; .a promise of goodies to come and many other interesting items – I must find time to go.to a lecture at the Museum of London.

So thank you contributors, editors, duplicator, distributors, et al. And next time the treasurer has to ask for an increased subscription, reflect that you can get £1.38 of postage, xp of paper and many labours of love to produce 11 sheets of very interesting material.

NUMBER 1 TOTTERIDGE LANE

Daphne Lorimer reports on site-watching

Investigations into the Dissenter’s Burial Ground in Totteridge Lane, some years ago, revealed the fact that the Dissenters origin­ally held their services in an old barn in a field adjacent to the present junction of Totteridge Lane with the High Road, Whetstone. An elderly member of the Whetstone United Reformed Church told the minister that she remembered grave stones in this field when she was a small girl although the barn had long since disappeared. When the premises of James and Sons, builders, at No 1 Totteridge Lane were sold for redevelopment, careful site–watching was undertaken, but no evidence of graves was uncovered. It is, of course, possible that the graves had been removed before the original development took place.

A BIT OF A. WHORL...

Tessa Smith is keen to investigate spindle whorls and is appealing to any fellow HADAS members who can help her research to contact her – phone 958 9159.

FOR POTTERS AND OTHERS

Rural kilns and furnaces is the title of the London Kiln Study Group’s eighth seminar, to be held at the Museum of London on April 3 and 4. The fee of £12 includes morning coffee and afternoon tea and the Saturday evening wine and cheese party. Cheques to, and more details from, the London Kiln Study Group, c/o Cuming Museum, 155 Walworth Road, London SE 17.

THE LATER PREHISTORY OF BRITAIN

There’s one lecture left in this excellent series organised by the University of London’s Extra-Mural Department and held at 7pm on Thursday evenings in the Institute of Archaeology, Gordon Square, Bloomsbury. The final subject, on March 4, is The Udal: A Scottish Tell, by I. Crawford.

There are hopes, however, that the lost 11 February lecture, by J. Barrett on the Origins of the Iron Age, might be fitted in the following week. It could be worth a call to the Extra-Mural Department (636 8000) to check.

STUDENTS PLEASE

The enterprising part-time B.Sc in Archaeological Sciences course currently under way at the North East London Polytechnic is in danger of collapsing unless more students come forward. It’s designed particularly for holders of the University of London Extra-Mural Diploma in Archaeology, but entrance requirements are flexible, as is the whole arrangement of the course. Reports from those already following it are favourable, so what about more HADAS interest? The man to contact is John Evans at the polytechnic, 555 0811 extension 41.

LOOKING AHEAD

A century of London silver design and production is to be celebrated in the Museum of London exhibition London Silver 1680 – 1780, which opens on April 19 and runs for six months. A main feature will be the reconstruction of an 18th century silversmith’s workshop.