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O account of the story of Buckinghamshire could be considered complete which did not include particulars of the prehistoric antiquities found from time to time within its borders. In these relics we find the only existing traces of periods and peoples that have long since passed away; and, fragmentary and partial as this species of evidence might at first appear, it is remarkable to find how important and how precise are the conclusions to which it leads.

The prehistoric antiquities of Buckinghamshire cannot, it is true, be accurately described as of first-rate interest in point of numbers or special importance, but it would obviously be unfair to judge of the richness of this or any other county by the number of recorded antiquities found in it. The simple fact is that many of the English counties have been practically neglected as far as their prehistoric remains are concerned, and it is only in quite recent years that scientific methods have been applied to the deciphering and illustrating of some of the most interesting phases of the early history of mankind.

Yet if the prehistoric remains of this county are numerically few, they are characteristic of each of the various periods into which archæologists divide the prehistoric past.

Following the plan already adopted in these volumes, it is proposed to describe and figure the more important of these remains under their respective heads, prefixing to each section a few introductory remarks in order to give to the general reader an intelligible idea of the succession and relation of the stages or phases of human culture.

The main divisions of prehistoric civilization have received the designations: (1) palæolithic age, (2) neolithic age, (3) bronze age, and (4) prehistoric iron age. It is proposed to adhere to this method of division on the present occasion, but it must be confessed that the use of precise terms of this kind is not entirely convenient and is not without its dangers. There is constant need to remember, when using these terms, that they apply, not to definite periods of time, but to stages of culture and progress, usually regular as to succession, but very irregular as to chronology, and, except in the division between the palæolithic and neolithic stages, largely represented by periods of transition and overlapping.

The materials for the reconstruction of the story of Buckinghamshire in palaeolithic times are few and not particularly important. They