Page:Archaeological Journal, Volume 3.djvu/139

Rh existing on this particular spot, until the discovery chanced to take place, in the course of a different, though not less interesting inquiry, the search for a church, churchyard, and village, supposed to have formerly existed there. As far as regards the objects for which they were made, these researches were completely successful, establishing the fact of the existence of a church, and cemetery around it; disclosing also some little remaining portion of the foundation of the former, with fragments of the edifice itself, uninscribed monumental stones, and encaustic tiles, nearly all of which would afford probable conjectures as to dates; while the colour and nature of the soil shewed with tolerable accuracy how far the building had extended. Around, and without it, the number of bodies, and their regular position, left no doubt as to the existence of a churchyard; while lower down in the field, the remains of buildings scattered thickly over part of it, and entering into a little close below, which itself reaches up to the Horton road, and the change visible in the quality of the soil, here naturally a cold clay, into a rich black mould of some depth, afforded convincing proofs of long continued inhabitancy. But amongst the discoveries which the spade brought to light, not the least unlooked for and curious was the fact, that the Romans had been amongst the original occupants of the spot, as was abundantly proved by the remains of their pottery in endless varieties, fragments of vessels, cinerary urns, trinkets, and coins found here. There were also evidences of what may be called a transition state; for the inhabitants of a later period had pounded the red and thick Roman tiles, appearing here in very great quantities, and worked them up with lime for their new building. These remains, it should be observed, were principally discovered, not on the site of the church, but amongst the scattered ruins of the village.

There is a passage in Hearne's Diaries, now preserved in the Bodleian Library, which is valuable as describing the state of the place in his time. He is writing on Nov. 15, 1732. "One Mr. Mendi," he says, "a Joyner, a good cleaver Workman, who works at Woodbury Farm by Beckley, told me last night of Foundations of old buildings, frequently dug up there, and that there is a Tradition that there hath been a Town there. He said an earthen Pot was sometime since