The Lake-Dwellings of Europe / Being the Rhind Lectures in Archæology for 1888

by Robert Munro

III.—ENGLISH LAKE-DWELLINGS.

The discovery of lacustrine abodes south of the Scottish border, though the examples are by no means so numerous or so prolific in industrial remains as those of Scotland and Ireland, is, nevertheless, of special interest on account of the intermediary position in which England stands geographically to the areas of their earliest and latest development in Europe. It will be noticed that some of the recorded observations here reproduced were actually made before antiquaries realised the importance of the subject; otherwise it is impossible to conceive how such highly suggestive facts did not at once lead to more definite information.

THE MERES OF NORFOLK AND SUFFOLK.

Wretham Mere.—Sir Charles F. Bunbury, as early as 1856, noticed some appearances in a drained mere near Wretham Hall which clearly point to being the remains of a lake-dwelling. In a communication on the subject to the Geological Society he says:—

"Wretham Hall, the seat of W. Birch, Esq., is situated about six miles north of Thetford, in that extensive tract of open sandy plains which may be called upland in comparison with the fens, but of very moderate elevation above the sea-level as is shown by the slow course of the streams flowing from it. About Wretham there are several meres or small natural sheets of water without any outlet. The one to which my attention was particularly directed by Mr. Birch occupied about forty-eight acres, and was situated in a slight natural depression, the ground sloping gently to it from all sides. The water has been drawn off by machinery, for the purpose of making use, as manure, of the black peaty mud which formed the bottom. This black mud, which is in parts above twenty feet deep, is nothing else than a soft, rotten, unconsolidated peat; or perhaps it should be described as vegetable matter in a more complete state of decomposition than ordinary peat, showing no distinct trace of vegetable structure. Numerous horns of red deer have been found in this peaty mud, generally (as I was informed) at 5 or 6 feet below the surface, seldom deeper; many attached to the skull, others separate, and with the appearance of having been shed naturally. What is most remarkable, several of those which were found with the skulls attached had been sawn off just above the brow antlers—not broken, but cut off clean and smoothly, evidently by human agency. Some of the horns are of large size, measuring 9 inches round immediately below the brow antler....

"Numerous posts of oak-wood, shaped and pointed by human art, were found standing erect, entirely buried in the peat."

It appears that in 1851 a more remarkable "find" became visible on draining another mere on this same estate, though the events remained unrecorded till the years 1858 and 1862. The following notice is compiled mainly and almost verbatim from Mr. Newton's observations, which he states were directly obtained from Mr. Birch, the proprietor:—

In this mere (West Mere) there was ordinarily about four feet of water, and beneath it, about eight feet of soft black mud, partly held in suspension and requiring to be removed in scoops. Near the centre of the mere, lying below the black mud, was found a ring or circular bank of fine white earth, sufficiently solid to allow Mr. Birch to ride upon it without yielding to the weight of his pony. Outside this ring the bottom of the mere was so soft and deep as to be almost impassable until the mud was cleared away. The ring was some twenty or thirty feet across, a foot wide at the top, and about four feet in height. Not far from its inner circumference was a circular hole, about four feet and a half in diameter and some six feet deeper than the bottom of the mere. It was marked out by a circle of stout stakes or small piles, apparently of alder, and it bore traces of having been wattled. Between these two circles were the remains of a wall, about two feet high and consequently lower than the top of the ring, composed of flints packed together with marl or soft chalk. In the same place was some earth of a bright blue colour, which, when dried, crumbled to powder, and was not preserved, though traces were still to be seen on the bones. In this interspace a still greater number of bones was found, and also the remains of a much decayed ladder, the sides and rounds of which were 15 inches apart. The stakes were about four inches in diameter, very hard, as heavy as stone, and of a dark grey colour. The fragments of the ladder, on the contrary, were very rotten and light, but the remains of both, after being kept some time, exfoliated and crumbled entirely to dust. In and around this ring there lay a vast number of bones, of which no small portion were the upper parts of the skulls of Bos longifrons, with the horn cores attached, and many antlers of the red deer, either entire or in fragments. All the former, excepting one unusually large example, had a fracture the size of half-a-crown in the forehead (Babington). Of the deer's antlers, some have certainly been shed in the due course of nature; but others, on the contrary, have been separated from the head by sawing. Of the other bones found in West Mere, and I am told there were hundreds of them, most of the larger ones have been fractured at one or other extremity, doubtless in order to extract the marrow they contained. Another bone, and, as far as I can make out, the only one found which presents this peculiarity, has been polished on one side; but the reason why is not very obvious, unless it has served, as I before suggested in the case of a similar specimen, for a skate. I must add that no weapons or implements of metal which can be referred to a period at all remote were brought to light in this or any of the adjoining meres, but a great number of flint discs were found, which, according to the description I have received (for unfortunately none of them seem to have been preserved), must have closely resembled those known to the Danish antiquaries as "Sling-Stones," from the probable use made of them. (B. 46, p. 17.)

Barton Mere.—In 1869 the Rev. Harry Jones communicated a paper to the Suffolk Institute of Archæology and Natural History "on the discovery of some supposed vestiges of a pile-dwelling in Barton Mere, near Bury St. Edmund's," of which the following is an abstract:—

Barton Mere is situated in a natural depression, about four miles east of Bury St. Edmund's, and is mainly supplied by springs, but at some seasons water flows into it from the high land on the south, west, and north. When full it consists of about ten acres, and averages 7 feet in depth. On the north side of the mere there is a marly chalk, which, indeed, forms the main bottom of the mere, being overlaid with a dark clay deposit from 1 to 5 feet deep. The bottom layer of this deposit consists of a peaty coloured clay, so tenacious as to keep its shape upon the potter's wheel. Most of the bones and some fragments of pottery were found in this lower layer, which varies in thickness from a few inches to about a foot and a half. The mere is subject to occasional droughts. It has been dry at least four times in the last forty years. About thirty-eight years ago (1830), the mere being then dry, his grandfather, Mr. Quayle, who lived at Barton Mere, dug out a quantity of stuff for the purpose of laying it on the land. His digging resulted in a hole, which on two succeeding occasions when the water was low, saved enough to keep some of the fish alive, and provide a pond for the cattle. Bones and horns of deer, and several spear-heads and rings of bronze, were reported to have been found amidst six or seven stakes of wood sticking up out of the bottom and about as thick as the thin part of a man's leg.

The excavations conducted by Mr. Jones in 1867 were made by digging several holes about three feet square. In the first two holes nothing was found, but in the third an ox skull, broken bones, portions of pointed implements of bone, and a bronze socketed spear-head were disinterred. The latter, which was only 18 inches below the surface and above the peaty clay, measured 13 inches long and two inches at its widest part. The bones were of Bos longifrons, stag, pig, sheep or goat, large dog or wolf, urus (Bos primigenius), and hare. These were all in the peaty stratum. Beside, and along with the bones, were found two or three flint flakes, cores, and rude flint implements. There were several pieces of sandstone, burnt, with the mark of fire plainly upon them, and divers calcined flints. Also a fragment of a thin hand-made vessel. Besides the bones were several stags' antlers, one or two of which were gnawed, probably by dogs, and another had marks of some small-toothed animal, such as a rat. Others were cut by human hands. One antler had a hole rudely worked in it at its broadest part. There were also divers horns of the Bos longifrons, and, curiously enough, one of the vertebræ of a Saurian. The latter was a short distance off from the chief "find," and it was suggested that it might have been used as a hammer by some of the natives who brought it to the spot.

The portion of the "find" which caused most conjecture was, however, a fabric of stake and wattle. "I found one stake 2½ inches thick, and 2 feet long, lying close over the spot where we found most of the bones, but the fabric to which I now allude occurred some twenty-eight inches below the surface of the deepest part of the mere. The soil in the neighbourhood of it had been disturbed, so I took a spud and trowel and worked the thing out with my own hand. It resulted in an oval or egg-shaped structure of wattle, 5 feet 7 inches long, and 3 feet 10 inches wide. There were 14 uprights, varying from 2 to 2¾ inches in thickness, at nearly equal distances apart. Twigs and sticks were worked in these like the side of a very rough basket. At first I thought it might have been a sunken coracle, but on scooping out the clay with which it was filled, I found that the wattle ceased about 14 inches down, and that the uprights were merely stakes, from 21 to 27 inches long, driven originally into the chalk marl. The bottom of this fabric was filled with broken flints which were also found outside the lower part of the uprights and between them. The flints must have been put in, the points and edges of the points of the stakes being so sharp and clean that they could not have been driven through the bed of flints."

"The top of the wattle was on the level of the chalk marl, on which most of the bones, fragments of pottery, etc., were strewn, and which had been covered over to a depth of from 2 to 4½ feet of dark clay. No more stakes were found, but there occurred divers holes in the chalk marl, some of them nearly in line, in which we could not help thinking they might have once stood. Yet we found no remains of wood in these holes." (B. 161, p. 31.)

Professor Boyd Dawkins, under the heading "Habitations in Britain in the Bronze Age," writes as follows:—

"Sometimes, for the sake of protection, houses were built upon piles driven into a morass or bottom of a lake, as for example in Barton Mere, near Bury St. Edmund's, where bronze spear-heads have been discovered, one 13 inches long, among piles and large blocks of stone, as in some of the lakes in Switzerland. Along with them were vast quantities of the broken bones of the stag, roe, wild boar, and hare, to which must also be added the urus, an animal proved to be wild by its large bones, with strongly-marked ridges for the attachment of muscles. The inhabitants also fed upon domestic animals—the horse, short-horned ox, and domestic hog, and in all probability the dog, the bones of the last-named animal being in the same fractured state as those of the rest. Fragments of pottery were also found. The accumulation may be inferred to belong to the late, rather than the early, Bronze Age, from the discovery of a socketed spear-head. This discovery is of considerable zoological value, since it proves that the urus was living in Britain in a wild state as late as the Bronze Age. It must, however, have been very rare, since this is the only case of its occurrence at this period in Britain with which I am acquainted." ("Early Man in Britain," p. 352.)

LAKE-DWELLINGS IN THE FENLAND.

The discovery of so many submarine dwellings in Holland and the adjacent coasts of Germany which I have already described suggests that similar remains might be found in the Fens and other low-lying districts in Britain. The only reference, however, to such dwellings with which I am acquainted is the following short notice by Mr. Skertchly:—

"I detected the remains of one (lake-dwelling) at Crowland in the year 1870, during some excavations. The piles were of sallow planted very closely together, upon these was laid brushwood, and over this a layer of gravel. Immense quantities of bones, chiefly of the Keltic shorthorn, were found, together with a few bone implements, and a curious ornament of jet. Near Ely, stakes have been found in the peat, but they do not seem to belong to a lake-dwelling." ("The Fenland Past and Present," by Miller and Skertchly. 1878.)

PILE-STRUCTURES IN LONDON.

On December 18th, 1866, Col. Lane Fox (now General Fox-Pitt-Rivers) read a paper at the Anthropological Society entitled, "A Description of certain Piles found near London Wall and Southwark, possibly the Remains of Pile-Buildings."

The author commenced by observing that his attention was directed to this locality by a short paragraph in the Times of the 20th October, stating that upwards of twenty cart-loads of bones had been dug out of the excavations which were being made for the foundations of a wool warehouse near London Wall. The excavation commenced at 40 yards south of the street pavement: therefore, in all probability, at about 70 or 80 yards from the site of the old wall. The area then excavated was of an irregular oblong form, 61 yards in length, running north and south, and 23 yards wide.

A section of the soil consisted of—

"1. Gravel similar to Thames ballast at a depth of 17 feet towards the north, inclining to 22 feet towards the south end.

"2. Above this, peat of unequal thickness, varying from 7 to 9 feet.

"3. Modern remains of London earth composed of the accumulated rubbish of the city."

Between the bottom of the peat and the highest spring tide water-mark, as at present existing, there is a margin of 5 feet; but, of course, this might have been different in Roman times.

Regarding the remains of piles in this locality the author makes the following observations:—

"Upon looking over the ground, my attention was at once attracted by a number of piles, the decayed tops of which appeared above the unexcavated portions of the peat, dotted here and there over the whole of the space cleared. I noted down the positions of all that were above ground at the time; and as the excavations continued during the last two months, I have marked from time to time the positions of all the others as they became exposed to view.

"Commencing on the south, a row of them ran north and south on the west side, to the right of these a curved row, as if forming part of a ring. Higher up and running obliquely across the ground was a row of piles, having a plank about an inch and a half thick and a foot broad placed along the south face, as if binding the piles together. To the left of these another row of piles ran east and west; to the north-east again were several circular clusters of piles; these were not in rings but grouped in clusters, and the piles were from eight to sixteen inches apart. To the left of this another row of piles and a plank two inches thick ran north and south. There were two other rows north of this and several detached piles, but no doubt several towards the north end had been removed before I arrived.

"The piles averaged 6 to 8 inches square; others of smaller size measured 4 inches by 3; and one or two were as much as a foot square. They appeared to be roughly cut, as if with an axe, and pointed square; there was no trace of iron-shoeing on any of them, nor was there any appearance of metal fastenings in its planks; they may have been tied to the piles, but if so, the binding material had decayed.[120] The grain of the wood was still visible in some of them, and they appear to be of oak. The planks averaged from one to two inches thick. The points of the piles were inserted from one to two feet in the gravel, and were, for the most part, well preserved, but all the tops had rotted off at about two feet above the gravel, which I conclude must have been the surface of the ground, or of the water, at the time these structures were in existence."

These relics were exclusively found in the peat or middle stratum (which varied from 7 to 9 feet in thickness), and "interspersed at different levels from top to bottom throughout it."

"Amongst the articles of human workmanship found in the peat the vast majority are undoubtedly of the Roman era. Amongst them are quantities of broken red Samian pottery, mostly plain, but some of it depicting men and animals in relief; one specimen is stamped with the name of Macrinus. All this pottery, in the opinion of Mr. Franks, to whom I showed it, is of foreign manufacture. Other samples are of the kind supposed to have been manufactured in the Upchurch Marshes in Kent, and upon the site of St. Paul's Churchyard. Bronze and copper pins, iron knives, iron and bronze stylus, tweezers, iron shears, a piece of polished metal mirror so bright that you may see your face in it (this Dr. Percy has pronounced to be of iron pyrites, white sulphuret of iron without alloy), an iron double-edged hatchet, an iron implement, apparently for dressing leather, a piece of bronze vessel, and other bronze and iron implements, which, thanks to the preserving properties of the peat, are all in excellent preservation. Amongst these were also a quantity of leather soles of shoes or sandals, some apparently much worn, and others, being thickly studded with hob-nails, may be recognised as the caliga of the Roman legions; also a piece of tile with the letters P. PR. BR. stamped upon it. Specimens of these are on the table. The coins found are those of Nerva, Vespasian, Trajan, Adrian, and Antoninus Pius....

"In addition to the Roman relics above mentioned, others of ruder construction remain to be described. They consist of what, in the absence of any evidence respecting their uses, may be called handles and points of bone. The former are composed of the metacarpal bones of the red-deer and Bos longifrons cut through in the middle, and roughly squared at the small end; the others, which are called by the workmen spear-heads, are pointed at one end and hollowed out at the other, as if to receive a shaft. Both Professor Owen and Mr. Blake concur in thinking these implements may possibly have been formed with flint, but I cannot ascertain that they were found at a lower level than the Roman remains, nor have any flint implements, to my knowledge, been found in the place. With them were also found the two bone skates on the table; they are of the metacarpal bone of a small horse or ass, one of which has been much used on the ice. Exactly similar skates also of the metacarpal of the horse or ass have been found in a tumulus of the Stone Period at Oosterend in Friesland; a drawing of them is given in Lindenschmit's Catalogue of the Museum at Mayence, etc. Others have also been found in Zeeland, at Utrecht, and in Guelderland, and there is a specimen in the Museum at Hanover. Professor Lindenschmit attributes all these to the Stone Period, but the specimens on the table are evidently of the Iron Age, the holes in the back having been formed for the insertion of an iron staple. Similar skates have been found in the Thames, but they have not hitherto been considered to date so early in England as in Roman times."

Throughout the peat were several kitchen-middens. One, deposited a foot and a half above the gravel, is thus described:—"A layer of oyster and mussel shells about a foot thick, with a filtration of carbonate of lime permeating through the moss. In this kitchen-midden, Roman pottery and a Roman caliga were found. Close by, the point of a pile, part of which is exhibited, was found upright in the peat; it had been driven in in such a manner that the point descends to the level of the kitchen-midden and no farther. Now, as a pile, in order to obtain a holding, must have been driven at least two feet in the ground, it is evident the peat must have grown at least one foot above the summit of the kitchen-midden before this pile was driven in."

A second kitchen-midden is noted at a height of 3½ feet above the gravel, "composed of oyster, cockle, and mussel shells, and periwinkles, with Roman pottery and bones of the goat and Bos longifrons, etc., split lengthwise as if to extract the marrow, with the skulls broken and the horns cut off. It is about a foot and a half thick in the centre, thinning out towards the ends as a heap of refuse would naturally do, and from 12 to 14 feet long; above this is peat for about a foot or a foot and a half, and above the peat another kitchen-midden of the same kind as the preceding. Lastly, the soles of shoes and Roman pottery of the same kind as that found lower down have been taken out at the very top of the peat."

The distinguished investigator, being anxious to obtain further evidence as to the thickness of the stratum in which the Roman remains were found, states that he determined to watch the workmen for four or five hours together during several successive days, while they dug from top to bottom, commencing with the superficial earth, and passing through the peat to the gravel below. The result was as follows:—"Roman red Samian ware is found as high as 13 feet from the surface, but very rarely, and in small quantities. At 15 feet it is frequently found, and from that depth it increases in quantity till the gravel is reached at 18 to 21 feet. The chief region of Roman remains is within two or three feet of the gravel."

Amongst the animal remains were, according to Professor Owen, those "of the horse or ass, the red deer, the wild boar, the wild goat (bouquetin), the dog, the Bos longifrons, and the roebuck. The horns of the roebuck, I afterwards ascertained, were all found at a higher level. These, and also the horse and goat, entered the superficial earth, in which glazed pottery was also found; but the remainder, including the red deer, wild boar, and Bos longifrons, appeared, so far as my observations enabled me to judge, to be confined to the peat."

Subsequently Mr. Carter Blake identified amongst these osseous remains no less than four different kinds of the genus Bos—viz. primigenius, trochoceros, longifrons, and frontosus; as also a specimen of the ibex of the Pyrenees.

Some human skulls were found in the lowest formation of the peat, or immediately over the gravel. Along with these skulls only three other human bones were found; but this, according to the author, might not be the result of an oversight, as both the Celts and the Romans were known to have practised decapitation.

The piles at the south end were identified as elm, the remainder were oak (Quercus robur).

From the above carefully observed and recorded facts it will be observed that in addition to the primary piles which were inserted into the gravel there were others which did not penetrate so deeply, one having been carefully noted which terminated in the peat a foot and a half above the gravel. Facts precisely similar have been observed in almost all pile-dwellings whether on land or in water, showing that the elevations on which the platforms and huts were reared were successively renewed. Another conclusion which we are entitled to draw from the character of the relics and the conditions in which they were found is that in the low-lying districts of London the system of pile-dwellings was known in Britain in post-Roman times. Nor can it be said that this was a solitary instance, for similar remains were found in New Southwark Street, in regard to which the author writes as follows:—

"The piles are of the same scantling, also of oak, but somewhat longer than those of London Wall; the points are driven into the gravel; the peat is three to four feet thick; large beams of the same size as the piles have been laid across them horizontally, and Roman pottery is found at all depths in the peat. Judging from the extent over which these piles have been discovered, there can be little doubt that in digging for the foundations of the many large warehouses and other buildings that are now being built within this district the remains of early habitations are constantly turning up and are destroyed without receiving attention."

As to the relics from these London pile-dwellings let me finally observe, that, to a certain extent, both in character and surrounding conditions they correspond with those from the Terp mounds in Holland and North Germany, from which it is probable the earliest Anglo-Saxon invaders hailed.

CRANNOG IN LLANGORSE LAKE, NEAR BRECON, SOUTH WALES.

Only one lake-dwelling has hitherto been recorded in Wales, viz. that of Llangorse. The partial exploration to which it has been subjected was undertaken by the Rev. Mr. Dumbleton, and the results are recorded by him in the Archæologia Cambrensis for 1870 and 1872. (B. 173.) The following extracts from these reports clearly show that the island was entirely artificial and constructed after the manner of the Scottish and Irish crannogs. Its structural features were well seen in the surrounding stockades and log-floorings, while the heaps of charcoal, remains of food-refuse, and other indications point to a prolonged period of human occupancy. Mr. Dumbleton states that until about seven years ago, when the lake was artificially lowered a foot and a half, this island was not half its present size. He then advances various evidences to show that formerly the level of the water was still lower, when, therefore, the island would have been larger than now. This opinion may be, and probably is, correct; but we must remember that another factor has to be taken into account when discussing the invariable submergence of these islands, viz. their own pressure on a yielding lake sediment, together with the decay of the brushwood and other organic materials which generally formed their under strata. It is to be regretted that no relics were found on this island, and I cannot help thinking that, in the circumstances, a more careful search would have furnished some scraps of the handiwork of its occupiers. From the description it is clear that metal tools were used in manipulating the woodwork, but otherwise, and in the absence of any historical notice, we have no means of determining either the age of this singular lacustrine abode or the social condition of its inhabitants.

"Immediately beneath the southern spurs of the Black Mountains, and in the hollow of the great geological fracture which parts that chain from the Brecknockshire Beacons, is situated a sheet of water now called the Lake of Llangorse. Its name was formerly Llyn Savathan, or the lake of the sunken land. The area of water was once far more extensive than it is now; and it has subsequently been, as I think, considerably less than at present. A circuit of five miles will now enclose it. The margin is flat and swampy, except on the north-east, where the mountain descends upon the shore-line somewhat abruptly. The depth, though by vulgar report vast and fearful, Leland has rather overstated in assigning to it thirteen fathoms."

"Within a bow-shot of the flat meadows on the north side there is an island that would appear but little above the water, were it not for some small trees and brushwood that have fastened upon it.

"Sailing by the island one day in 1867, I observed that the stones which stand out on the south and east sides were strangely new looking, and most unlike the water-worn, rounded fragments that on the main shore have been exposed to the action of the waves; neither did there seem to be any original rock-basis at all. It was, in fact, nothing less than a huge heap of stones thrown into water two or three feet in depth. Was this the key, I thought, to the old tradition of a city in the lake? In the summer of last year, my brother, then living in the neighbourhood, first discovered a row of piles or slabs; some standing a few inches above water, for the lake was very low. We have together made some investigations during the past month, the results of which I will detail.

"The island, as now above water, measures 90 yards in circumference, its form being that of a square with the corners rounded off. The highest part is nearly in the centre, and is 5 feet above the water-level. The sides most exposed to weather, where also the water is deepest, are composed of stones sloping into the water, and extending to the distance of fifteen yards from the edge. Under the water, however, they are not nearly so thickly strewn as above. It is remarkable that on the leeward or northern side, about one quarter of the island is almost destitute of stone protection with which the greater part is covered. There is simply a surface of vegetable mould, inclined towards the water. Neither in the water, which is there very shallow, are there more than a score of stones to be found on that side. I must now speak of the piles. These are of two sorts, the most obvious being either at the margin or within a few feet of it. Like the stones, they are most numerous where the action of the storm would be most felt, and upon the shallow side they disappear entirely. They have been disposed in segments of circles, the stones being heaped inside them, and thus saved from being torn away by the waves. These piles (or rather slabs) are of cleft oak, and have been pointed, as it seems, by cuts from a metal adze. We have counted about sixty. They have been driven tightly into the shell-marl, to the depth of four feet. There are also other piles, which are round, generally of soft wood, and are found outside the present edge of the island. Several are in water two feet deep, and are driven into the marl only twelve or eighteen inches. These would have been quite powerless to confine the stones, and were evidently for another purpose.... Is it not likely that the island itself was central common ground? and that the habitations were projected from its edge towards the water and were supported by these thick round piles? Something like a ring of these is found near the oak slabs before mentioned; and traces of a second set are at the distance of twelve or fifteen yards, in water about two feet deep. Between the two, small wood is found abundantly, a few inches in the marl. At about ten yards from the shore, and in two feet of water, there appear to be the actual remains of a sunken platform. Three trunks of soft wood lie nearly parallel to one another. A 6 feet stem of oak, which I cannot account for, was with them. The top of this we sawed off, as it exhibits the marks of some heavy cutting instrument where, in modern days, a saw would have been used.

"I have to add to this subject the discovery of two much more perfect platforms in a perplexing situation, namely, within the oak slabs. They were composed of eight straight trunks, about six inches in diameter, lying side by side. Their direction is from the centre to the water; their ends, towards the shore, are thrust against the slab piles; others are closed in one case by a transverse oak beam....

The examination of the interior would, of course, unfold the process of the construction. We therefore made several perpendicular openings; and these invariably led us down to the shell-marl, showing first a stratum of large, loose stones, with vegetable mould and sand; next (about eighteen inches above the marl), peat, black and compact; and beneath this, the remains of reeds and small wood. This faggot-like wood presented itself abundantly all round the edges of the island, and in the same relative position, namely, immediately upon the soft marl; the object of it being, of course, to save the stones from sinking.

"On digging through the before-mentioned low portion of the crannog a different order of materials exhibited itself. As I said, the stones are very few; the depth is 3 feet instead of 5; 18 inches of vegetable mould; 6 inches of earth mixed thickly with charcoal; and 1 foot of peat, small wood or reeds. I may here say that this charcoal is found under water, in very frequent small fragments, on this north-eastern side; and is covered, not with marl or stones, but with sand. Bones are found in numbers amongst the stones where the water is quite shallow; every spadeful of marl, in some parts, would, as the water dripped off, show one or more small bone fragments or teeth."

The osseous remains were more or less identified by Professors Owen, Rolleston and Boyd Dawkins as belonging to Bos longifrons, horse (small and large variety), red deer, and wild boar.

LAKE-DWELLINGS IN BERKS, ETC.

In 1878, Professor T. Rupert Jones, F.R.S., communicated to Nature a short notice of "English Lake-Dwellings and Pile-Structures," in which, after drawing attention to the previously published articles of General Lane Fox and Sir Charles Bunbury, he writes as follows:—

"Since writing the above I have been informed that Mr. W. M. Wylie, F.S.A., referred to this fact in Archæologia, vol. xxxviii., in a note to his excellent memoir on lake-dwellings. I can add, however, that remains of Cervus elaphus (red deer), C. dama? (fallow deer), Ovis (sheep), Bos longifrons (small ox), Sus scrofa (hog), and Canis (dog), were found here, according to information given me by the late C. B. Rose, F.G.S., of Swaffham, who also stated in a letter dated August 11th, 1856, that in adjoining meres, or sites of ancient meres, as at Saham, Towey, Carbrook, Old Buckenham, and Hargham, cervine remains have been met with; thus at Saham and Towey, Cervus elaphus (red deer); at Buckenham, Bos (ox) and Cervus capreolus (roebuck); at Hargham, Cervus tarandus (reindeer).

"The occurrence of flint implements and flakes in great numbers on the site of a drained lake between Sandhurst and Frimley, described by Captain C. Cooper King in the Journal of the Anthropological Institute, January, 1873, p. 365, etc., points also in all probability to some kind of lake-dwelling, though timbers were not discovered.

"Lastly, the late Dr. S. Palmer, F.S.A., of Newbury, reported to the Wiltshire Archæological Society in 1869 that oaken piles and planks had been dug out of boggy ground on Cold Ash Common, near Faircross Pond, not far from Hermitage, Berks." (B. 312, p. 424.)

The following is Dr. Palmer's notice of the pile-structures at Cold Ash Common above referred to:—

"Recurring to the antiquities of the peat proper, I would refer to the subject of lake-dwellings. I do not despair of finding them in our neighbourhood, for I believe traces of them have been found near Cold Ash, some such structure having been uncovered in digging bog-earth for horticultural purposes. It was circular, measuring 30 feet across, and the planks were 16 to 18 feet in length, roughly hewn, and with beams crossing from side to side, and resting on the piles. There was also a kind of causeway to it. It was on the borders of a morass, the resort of wild fowl within the memory of man. The general appearance of the valley at this place leads me to surmise that it was not long since covered with water; there is still a pond in the centre. The bog-earth had been carted away before I heard of the discovery, so that I had no chance of examining it for animal or other remains."

The editor of the Transactions of the Newbury District Field Club adds the following note to the above extract:—

"Mr. Walter Money, F.S.A., has gathered some information about this interesting relic of the past. It is situated on a part of what was Cold Ash Common ... and has long been known as 'Wild Duck Pond;' it is now an oval piece of water, not much more than 20 feet across, surrounded by arable land.

"About thirty years ago, before the Common was enclosed, the season being dry, the 'Wild Duck Pond' was cleared by Mr. Whiting, of Longlane Gate, who thought the accumulated soil or mud might be useful on the land. After the removal of the top soil, some rough timber framing was met with, lying across the centre of the pit, forming, it would seem, a rude platform. A space was cleared about ten feet deep, where a heavy log of oak was found lying across from side to side. This was not removed. The work was then abandoned; the soil taken out being found to be of no use to the land. About thirteen years ago, the excavation was repeated by Mr. Lancaster, the then tenant of this part of Col. Loyd-Lindsay's property; but the investigation was not pursued far, and the water having flowed into the digging, 'Wild Duck Pond' was again restored nearly to its former condition." (Trans. of Newbury District Field Club, vol. ii. p. 148.)

Remains suggestive of a pile-structure were also observed by Mr. Dolby in 1870 in one of the ponds at Fence Wood, near Hermitage. Here in digging they found "a sort of pyramidal dwelling beneath the ground, the roof being covered with clay about a foot thick. This roof was supported by a large piece of timber, some twenty-six feet long, which they had got out. There were causeways there also at a depth of fifteen or sixteen feet. The water had long since rushed in and filled up the excavation, so that nothing further is known of this place." (Ibid., vol. i. p. 123.)

LAKE-DWELLINGS IN HOLDERNESS, COUNTY OF YORK.

The discovery of lake-dwellings in Holderness is due to Mr. Thomas Boynton, Bridlington (lately of Ulrome Grange), whose attention was first directed to the subject in the spring of 1880. Previous to the excavation of a great drainage scheme about the beginning of the present century this district appears to have been intersected by a series of sinuous and irregularly shaped lakes, whose surplus waters partly found an outlet, not in the present artificially constructed channels which convey them directly into the German Ocean, but in quite a different direction, along a sluggish watercourse, still extant, which falls into the Humber near Hull. That this latter was in former times the natural drainage course of the entire waters of Holderness is the opinion of Mr. Boynton and other geologists with whom I had the pleasure of discussing the matter. Mr. G. W. Lamplugh believes that the Gypsey Race—a stream which now enters the sea at Bridlington—at some former period continued its course through this chain of lakes and finally debouched by the same route into the Humber. The natural causes which have effected this great change in the hydrographical conditions of Holderness are to be found in the steadily progressing encroachment of the sea on the land, which here goes on at a very rapid rate. When the sea lay many miles farther off, which undoubtedly was the case in former times, it is supposed that the intervening land stood somewhat higher, and that consequently Holderness was a complete water-basin, with its outlet towards the Humber. But as the sea advanced, gradually undermining and washing away the soft glacial deposits which here form its shores, this natural basin became, as it were, tapped in the middle and so allowed the waters of its upper reaches to escape directly into the sea—a process precisely analogous to that by which its final drainage was effected by human agencies.

Nor is this opinion based exclusively on geological considerations, as we have positive historical proofs in the early annals of the country that formerly towns existed whose sites are now far out in the sea. Thus Mr. Poulson ("History of Holderness," p. 467) states that "the writer of the chronicle of the Abbey of Meaux, in lamenting the losses which the abbey had sustained, observes that they received nearly £30 from the town of Hythe, in the parish of Skipsea, chiefly from the tithe of fish; but now, says he, 1396, the place is totally destroyed—a proof that it was gone into the sea before the commencement of the fifteenth century." The lake of Withou, which is recorded as having paid tithe for its fish in 1288 (Ibid., 468), is not only at present completely drained, but more than half of its bed is washed away, and the sea beach, which runs right across it, presents a most instructive section of its sedimentary deposits and subsequent growth of peat.

From these remarks it will be seen that, in estimating the precise physical conditions that prevailed when the lacustrine abodes I am now about to describe were constructed, we have to deal with problems of a somewhat discursive character, and which, consequently, lie beyond the scope of this work. It is clear, however, that, previous to its artificial drainage, the district was overspread with a succession of shallow lakes and marshes, pre-eminently well adapted for the construction of lake-dwellings. The lakes are now gone and instead of them we have artificial drains winding along the lowest portions of their former beds. It is along the steep banks of these sluggish water-channels that Mr. Boynton has detected, in various places, piles and transverse beams, which he justly considers to be the remains of ancient lake-dwellings. Up to the present time indications of five stations have been observed, which for facility of reference the discoverer names as follows—(1) West Furze, (2) Round Hill, (3) Barmston, (4) Gransmoor, and (5) Little Kelk.

These are situated at considerable intervals from each other, varying from half a mile to two or three miles, and as they are deeply buried their investigation entails a considerable amount of labour and expense. It is only the stations at West Furze and Round Hill that have as yet been subjected to anything like a systematic exploration. A few years ago Mr. Boynton at his own expense carried out a series of excavations at the former station by which its character has been satisfactorily determined, and subsequently he has undertaken to examine the second with a grant from the Society of Antiquaries; but these works are not yet completed, and at present they are entirely suspended owing to the volume of water in the drain.

I may state that I have on several occasions visited the locality and so became practically conversant with the general features of these discoveries. Moreover, for the special object of this work, Mr. Boynton has freely placed all the materials in his possession at my disposal and given me permission to add to my notes the accompanying illustrations of a few of the more interesting objects.

West Furze.—This was the first discovered, and the circumstances that led to the discovery are thus described by Mr. Boynton (B. 373, p. 300):—

"In the spring of the year 1880 the Commissioners of Beverley and Barmston Drainage found it necessary to deepen one of these drains (the branch called the Skipsea drain).

"A short time after this was done I was walking in one of my fields adjoining, and picked up some perforated bone implements. I shortly afterwards had the earth, which had been excavated at this place, turned over, and found more implements of the same class. Also two made from the antlers of the red-deer, and a small piece of red ochre, with several stones which bear traces of having been utilised.

"In the month of May, 1881, the water in the drain at that time being very low, and having obtained the services of half a dozen men accustomed to similar work, I had the water dammed, and dug through peat to a bed of gravel, 9 feet 6 inches from the surface.

"We found three more perforated bone implements, all in the side of the drain, and at the depth of 7 feet, also several stakes and piles with remains of brushwood. I then determined, when opportunity offered, to excavate in the field, and proceeded to do so in December last (1881). We commenced by digging a trench parallel with the drain and 60 feet in length. This trench and the drain formed two sides of a square, running north and south."

Subsequently Mr. Boynton cleared out the entire enclosure thus marked out by these primary trenches and found the whole of it to be occupied with an artificial structure of wood like the so-called fascines of Switzerland or the crannogs of Scotland and Ireland. The depth of decayed brushwood was very considerable, and it was pierced here and there with upright piles. At the margin these piles were thicker, and in one place, the south-east corner, he states that they met with great "numbers of stakes, with some brushwood, the earth being a peaty marl." Further progress from this point is thus described:—

"When clear of the slope there is a decided layer of brushwood about two feet thick, also studded with stakes, and along the inner side of the south trench we found a number of piles from 5 to 7 inches in diameter, in a line, and mostly upright. One of these we got out quite perfect. It is of oak wood, 4 feet in length, 6 inches in diameter, and has a forked top which has apparently been intended for carrying a horizontal beam or support. The piles are about 4 feet apart. One had given way and had been replaced.

"As the trench is not exactly in a line with the piles, several are now left standing and partially exposed. In this portion of the digging we found several bones of animals, a peculiar grinding-stone of whinstone or granite, almost semicircular in shape, 12 inches long by 7 broad, a flint core, a stone with the centre hollowed, a hammer-stone, and two fragments of rude pottery.

"Hazel nuts are numerous; several I have picked out appear to have been opened by squirrels."

The drain appears to have intersected the woodwork, and as the excavations were confined to one side, the exact dimensions of the lake-dwelling cannot be stated. Its length was approximately about 70 feet, and its breadth probably one-third less. On my first inspection of the locality after these excavations had been completed I was struck with the narrowness of the lacustrine area in which the structure was reared. From the nature of the adjacent ground it was readily seen that the lake widened very considerably both above and below; but here it was so contracted that the woodwork appeared to occupy the entire breadth of the waterway—a fact which suggested to me the idea of its being a bridge or military stronghold. However, on closer inspection I saw that the accumulation of rain-wash had considerably encroached on the original bed of the lake, and I am satisfied that there would be, in former times, sufficient space for giving to the dwelling a complete insular character.

The following relics, now in the possession of Mr. Boynton, were collected in the course of the investigations:—

Horn and Bone.—The perforated bone implements ([Fig. 176a], Nos. 1 and 2), of which not less than eighteen were collected, are the most remarkable objects. They all consist of the articulate extremities of the long bones of some large bovine animals, with the exception of two, one of which was the thick end of a scapula and the other a cervical vertebra. The latter was not manipulated, and the reason it is here classified as an implement is that a portion of a wooden handle, which had been inserted into the spinal aperture, still remained. In this manner the vertebra became a formidable weapon, which, when used as a club or skull-cracker, could scarcely be matched by any work of art. I am of opinion that all these perforated bone implements were simply warlike weapons. Three handpicks, made from the horns of the red deer—the brow antler forming the pick and the body of the horn, stripped of its antlers, the handle. Also a club, or broken pick, and several portions of worked tines.

Fig. 176a.—Holderness. All ¹⁄₂ real size.

Stone.—Three hammer-stones of natural pebbles; two anvils, one flat and circular and the other having a slight cavity on one side; six polishers, or rubbers; two flint cores, and about 50 substantial-looking flakes. One flake was a good example of a knife, and showed evidence of having been used; three other flakes were secondarily chipped and converted into neat scrapers and a saw (No. 3).

Bronze and Jet.—One bronze spear-head (No. 4), and a fragment of a jet arm-band, like those from the Ayrshire crannogs.

Pottery.—Fragments of a coarse unornamented pottery were found, out of which one vessel has been restored, having the following dimensions:—11 inches wide at mouth; 12 inches in the widest, a little below the mouth; and 7½ at base. Height, 7½ inches.

About thirty yards distant from the lake-dwelling, in a peaty hollow in the field, Mr. Boynton found pottery of a similar character. It was buried about three feet in the peat. The depth of peat over the lake-dwelling was somewhat more, being nowhere less than 4 feet.

Fauna.—No expert has as yet made a report on the osseous remains, but they are believed to represent the following animals:—Bos longifrons and primigenius, horse (a small breed), dog or wolf, beaver, ox, pig, sheep or goat, deer, otter (?), goose, and some small birds.

One well-formed human skull, with portion of an upper jaw.

Round Hill.—So far as the excavation of this station has been prosecuted the woodwork appears to have been precisely similar to the former, but the area occupied is of larger dimensions. Mr. Boynton thinks that the piles here belong to different periods of time, and a curious fact which he pointed out to Canon Greenwell and myself seems to support this view. He showed us the point of one pile which had penetrated and terminated in the stump of another, from which he inferred that before the former had been inserted the latter had already been in a state of decay. The decayed brushwood had also a greater thickness than at West Furze. The station has not, however, yielded many relics, the principal objects being a small stone celt, portion of a perforated stone hammer, and the half of a jet bracelet. The latter appears to be unique. It is of a flattish form, and ornamented on its outer side by five prominent ridges, running circularly. The marginal ridges are separated from the three central ones by a wider interval, in which runs a smaller ridge or bead. These ridges were evidently manipulated without the use of a turning machine, as they are not perfectly uniform, though the artists intention was to make them so.

In regard to the other three stations there are only indications of their being of a similar character, such as piles and transverse woodwork along the bottom and sides of the drain. At Barmston, a stone axe, a perforated bone implement, like those from West Furze, and bits of charcoal were found. At Gransmoor a very large quantity of broken bones lay exposed in the bottom of the drain, amidst a profusion of oak piles and beams, but among them no implements have been found.

IV.—GENERAL REMARKS ON THE LAKE-DWELLINGS OF
GREAT BRITAIN AND IRELAND.

Having placed before you, with a considerable amount of fullness, certain details of the investigations of ancient lake-dwellings that have been made within the British Isles during the last half century, I proceed now to the discussion of some facts bearing on the ultimate question of their origin and development. As my conclusions are of a somewhat argumentative character, involving the consideration of some collateral phenomena as well as a critical analysis of the special materials derived from archæological research, it will be advisable, in order to secure, as far as possible, precision, at least in methods, to concentrate attention on a few definite problems—convenient foci as it were for grouping my observations. I propose accordingly to deal successively with their structural peculiarities; their range in space and time, and how far this range coincides with ethnography; and, finally, their relation to analogous remains in Europe.

Except in a very few instances, which will be afterwards more specially referred to, all the lake-dwellings hitherto examined in Great Britain and Ireland were constructed on artificial islands made generally of wood, but sometimes of stones and such other materials as might be considered suitable. Although no such instructive examples as those at Lochlee, Buston, etc., have been recorded in Ireland, there can be no doubt that those of the latter country were built on the same general principles. Indeed, few of the writers on Irish crannogs have paid much attention to the structure of the islands, and, beyond the mere statement that they were stockaded, palisaded, or surrounded by one or more circles of piles, they have supplied no explanation of the attachments and proper function of the surrounding piles. But though the purpose of the mortised beams does not appear to have been at first well understood in Ireland, it is of importance to observe that their existence has not been entirely overlooked. Dr. Reeves, writing of a crannog in the county of Antrim, says: "These piles were from 17 to 20 feet long, and from 6 to 8 inches thick, driven into the bed of the lough, and projecting above this bed about 5 or 6 feet. They were bound together at the top by horizontal oak-beams, into which they were mortised, and secured in the mortise by stout wooden pegs." (Proc. R. I. A., vol. vii. p. 155.)

Mr. G. H. Kinahan in a paper on the crannogs of Lough Rea thus incidentally alludes to the subject:—"A little north-west of the double row, in the old working, there is a part of a circle of piles; and in another, a row of piles running nearly east and west. Mr. Hemsworth of Danesfort, who spent many of his younger days boating on the lake, and knows every part of it, informs me that on the upper end of some of the upright piles there were the marks of where horizontal beams were mortised on them. These seemed now to have disappeared, as I did not remark them." (Ibid., vol. viii. p. 417.)

These are by no means isolated observations on this point, and when we consider how readily the exposed woodwork of an uninhabited crannog would be destroyed, either by the hand of man or the natural processes of decay, we need not wonder that it is only the stumps of the piles and generally submerged portions of these singular structures that remain to the present day.

The construction of a crannog must have been a gigantic operation in those days, requiring in many cases the services of the whole clan. Having fixed on a suitable locality—the topographical requirements of which seemed to be a small mossy lake, with its margin overgrown with weeds and grasses, and secluded amidst the thick meshes of the primæval forests—the next consideration was the selection of the materials for constructing the island. In a lake containing soft and yielding sediment of decomposed vegetable matter, it is manifest that any heavy substances, such as stones and earth, would be totally inadmissible, owing to their weight, so that solid logs of wood, provided there was an abundant supply at hand, would be the best and cheapest material that could be used.

The general plan adopted was to make an island of stems of trees and brushwood laid transversely, with which stones and earth were mingled. This mass was pinned together, and surrounded by a series of stockades, which were firmly united by intertwining branches, or, in the more artistically constructed crannogs, by horizontal beams with mortised holes to receive the uprights. These horizontal beams were arranged in two ways. One set ran along the circumference and bound together all the uprights in the same circle, while others took a radial direction and connected each circle together. Sometimes the latter were long enough to embrace three circles. The external ends of these radial beams were occasionally observed to be continuous with additional strengthening materials, such as wooden props and large stones, which, in some cases, appeared also to have acted as a breakwater. The mechanical skill displayed in their structure was specially directed to give stability to the island and to prevent superincumbent pressure from causing the general mass to bulge outwards.

South of the Scottish border the remains of lake-dwellings are too much decayed or imperfectly observed to furnish many reliable data bearing on this subject. So far, however, as the evidence goes it would appear that the artificial island in Llangorse and the lacustrine dwellings in Holderness were true fascines; the former, indeed, having all the appurtenances of the typical crannog.

The crannogs were made accessible by various means. Some had moles or stone causeways, the existence of which, in some instances, became known only upon the drainage of the lake. Hence it is conjectured that these approaches might have been always submerged, and so supplied, on emergencies, a secret means of communication with the shore. This idea was suggested by the tortuous direction which many of them assumed, as for example the causeway discovered in the Loch of Sanquhar which had a zig-zag direction and so could only be waded by persons intimately acquainted with its windings. Others were approached by a wooden gangway, the evidence of which now consists only of the stumps of a double row of piles. Others again were completely insulated and accessible only by boats. One feature regarding some of the wooden gangways deserves particular attention. Both at Lochlee and Lochspouts the piles were found to be tightly embraced at their lower extremities by a curiously constructed network of transverse beams. As the surface of these elaborate structures was buried from 3 to 7 feet beneath the lake-bed, my first impression was that they might have been used, like the submerged stone causeways, as a concealed means of communicating with the shore. To test this suggestion I had a special excavation made along the line of a gangway at the Miller's Cairn in Loch Dowalton. (B. 426, p. 102.) After digging through 3 feet of the consolidated and hardened mud, we came upon a stratum of fine blue clay, extremely tenacious, and little liable to displacement. The pointed stakes of the gangway, which penetrated into this clay only a few inches, here met with a firm resistance. It then occurred to me that the ingeniously arranged wooden beams at Lochlee and Lochspouts served merely the same end as the blue clay at the Millers Cairn, and that they were to be found only in localities where there was a great depth of mud incapable of affording a sufficient basis of resistance to the piles. Such difficulties have been encountered by the constructors of pile-dwellings in all countries; and it is curious to note the variety of methods by which they were overcome. The Swiss lake-dwellers sometimes surrounded the piles with heaps of stones which now go under the name of steinbergs; at other times split planks were laid on the soft mud into which the piles were mortised. The former plan was adopted on rocky shores too hard for piles to be driven in, and the latter where there was a great depth of soft mud, as at Wollishofen and other stations adjacent to the town of Zürich. In North Germany, as Persanzig, Aryssee, and other localities, the log-house principle, which greatly economised the materials, was adopted in the construction of the subaqueous foundations. It appears to me that this was the principle adopted in the structure of the great Irish crannog of Lagore, as Sir W. Wilde distinctly states that it was "divided into separate compartments by septa or divisions that intersected one another in different directions." It was in these compartments, which were filled with bones and black mud, that the antiquities were found; so that the crannog-dwellers must have used them as kitchen-middens. Originally they contained only water, but in the course of time they became filled with food refuse and other débris. House-cleaning was thus reduced to a minimum, while the laws of sanitation were not more violated than in the underground cess-pools of many of our modern dwellings. A curious statement by Wilde in regard to the disposal of bones at Lagore is that "the remains of each species of animal were placed in separate divisions, with but little intermixture with any others."

It may be also mentioned that the log-house structures described by Pigorini as lining the inside of the surrounding dyke in the terramara of Castione were perfectly analogous, only in this case the compartments were filled with clay and rubbish, so as to act better as contraforte to the clay wall.

Canoes are so invariably found associated with crannogs that their discovery in lakes and bogs has been considered by Dr. Stuart as an indication of the existence of the latter. This may be true in some cases; but in others, such as Closeburn, Lochwinnoch, and Loch Doon, three of the examples cited by him, it is more probable that the canoes were used by the occupiers of the mediæval castles in the vicinity of which they were found. From these and other instances that have come under my notice I have come to the conclusion that dug-out canoes do not indicate such great antiquity as is commonly attributed to them, nor do they therefore necessarily carry us back to prehistoric times.

There is no peculiarity in the structure or form of these dug-outs which distinguishes their age or nationality. There is a good collection of them in the Museum of the Royal Irish Academy. Some have pointed prows and square-cut sterns; others have both ends pointed; some have cross bands, like ribs, left in the solid oak at regular intervals, as if to strengthen the vessel; while others are uniformly scooped out without any raised ridges. They vary much in size and shape. The largest is thus referred to in the small handbook to the Museum:—"Down the centre of the room extends the largest known canoe, formed of a single tree. The remains measure 42 feet in length, and the canoe was probably 45 feet long, by 4 to 5 feet wide, in its original state. It was recovered from the bottom of Loch Owel, in West Meath, and cut into eight sections for purposes of transport. There is a curious arrangement of apertures in the bottom, apparently to receive the ends of uprights supporting an elevating deck."

One of the canoes found at Lochlee, the remains of which are still preserved in the Burns' Museum at Kilmarnock, measured when disinterred 10 feet long, 2½ broad, and 1¾ deep. There were nine apertures in its bottom, arranged in two rows, four on each side, with the odd one at the apex. These holes were perfectly round, and exactly one inch in diameter; but when the boat was found they were quite unobserved, being all tightly plugged up, and it was only long afterwards that the plugs, upon drying, dropped out and so revealed their existence.

During the summer of 1874 a canoe ([Fig. 177]) was discovered in Loch Arthur, or Lotus Loch, in the stewartry of Kirkcudbright, in the vicinity of a small artificial island, which is thus described by Rev. James Gillespie:—

Fig. 177.—Forward half of the Canoe found in Loch Arthur.

"When fully exposed to view by the trench which was dug around it, the canoe was seen to be of great size, ornately finished, and in a fair state of preservation. It had been hollowed out of the trunk of an oak, which must have been a patriarch of the forest, the extreme length of the canoe bring 45 feet and the breadth at the stern 5 feet. The boat gradually tapers from the stern to the prow, which ends in a remarkable prolongation resembling the outstretched neck and head of an animal. When excavated this portion of the canoe was entire. At the neck of the figurehead there is a circular hole, about 5 inches in diameter, from side to side. At the prow a small flight of steps has been carved in the solid oak from the top to the bottom of the canoe. The stern is square, and formed of a separate piece of wood, inserted in a groove about an inch and a half from the extremity of the canoe.

"Along the starboard side (which when found was in good preservation, except near the stern) there could be traced seven holes about three inches in diameter. The three front holes were nearly perfect, but at the stern the side was so broken that only the lower parts of the holes could be observed. They are about five feet apart, and the front hole is about that distance from the prow—the last being about seven feet from the stern. There are three holes pierced through the bottom at irregular intervals." (Proc. Soc. Antiq. Scot., vol. xi. p. 21.)

A curious feature presented by some of these canoes was that accidental defects had been repaired, and the method adopted in its execution is worth noticing. The canoe found close to the Buston crannog already described ([page 428]), showed this peculiarity in a marked degree. Another from the Loch of Canmor is thus described by the Rev. James Wattie:—

"On the 16th June, 1859, there was fished up from the bottom of the loch, near the north shore, opposite to the Prison Island, a canoe ([Fig. 178]) hollowed out of a single oak-tree, 22½ feet long, 3 feet 2 inches wide over the top at the stern, 2 feet 10 inches in the middle, and 2 feet 9 inches at 6 feet from the bow, which ended nearly in a point. The edges are thin and sharp, the depth irregular—in one place 5 inches, the greatest 9 inches. There are no seats, nor rollocks or places for oars; but there may have been seats along the sides, secured by pins through holes still in the bottom. There are two rents in the bottom, alongside of each other, about eighteen feet long each; to remedy these, five bars across had been mortised into the bottom outside, from 22 to 27 inches long and 3 inches broad, except at the ends, where they were a kind of dovetailed, and 4 inches broad. One of these bars still remains, and is of very neat workmanship, and neatly mortised in. The other bars are lost, but their places are quite distinct. They have been fastened with pins, for which there are five pairs of holes through the bottom of the canoe, at the opposite side, at a distance of from 18 to 20 inches, the bottom being flattish. There are also five pairs of larger holes through the bottom, etc." (B. 94, p. 167.)

Fig. 178.—Canoe found in Loch Canmor.

Exact parallels to all these have been found in the Continental lake-dwellings. Of two found at Vingelz, Lake of Bienne, the largest was 43½ feet long, 4 feet 4 inches wide, and had 4 ribs left in the solid. It had iron cramps also, apparently to strengthen it, and belonged to the pre-Roman Iron Age. One at Cudrefin had also these solid cross ribs. One of the best preserved was found a few years ago at Vingrave (Lake of Bienne) covered with 2½ feet of mud, and is now deposited in the Museum of Neuveville. It is roughly made, having thick sides and a square-cut stern, with a groove for a movable stern-piece. From measurements lately taken by myself I found it to be 30½ feet long, rather less than 3 feet wide, and its greatest depth 1 foot. Its sides had four or five cuts along their margin, apparently for the use of oars. (B. 392, p. 20.)

That the crannogs in Scotland and Ireland lingered on sufficiently long to come within the borderland of history requires no great amplification here. The references to crannogs in the Irish annals are very numerous, extending over a period from the middle of the ninth to the seventeenth century.

In 1870 there was published in the Journal of the Royal Historical and Archæological Association of Ireland (B. 171a) an account of an unsuccessful attack on a crannog near Omagh, in the year 1566, by an English army under the command of Deputy Lord Sydney. This document, which was copied by Dr. Caulfield from despatches in the Public Record Office, London, gives a vivid description of the methods adopted in the attack and defence. A kind of pontoon was constructed on "floating barrels," which conveyed the attacking party to the island; but they found it "so bearded with stakes and other sharp wood, as it was not without extreme difficulty scaleable, and so ramparted as if the hedge had been burned—for doing whereof the fireworks failed—without a long time it was not to be digged down. Yet some scaled to the top, whereof Edward Vaughan was one, who, being pushed with a pike from the same, fell between the hedge and the bridge, and being heavily armed—albeit he could swim perfect well—was drowned, and two others hurt upon the rampart and drowned," etc.

That these island forts, however impregnable they might be considered in previous ages, had ultimately to succumb before the more modern resources of warfare, is shown by the following narrative taken from the Calendar of State Papers of Ireland, vol. 156, p. 374:—

"There was one Dualtagh O'Conner, a notorious traitor, that of all the rest continued longest as an outlaw, of power to do mischief. He had fortified himself very strongly after their manner in an island or crannoge within Lough Lane, standing within the county of Roscommon and on the borders of that country called Costelloghe. A few days ago, as opportunity and time served me, I drew a force on the sudden one night and laid siege to the island before day, and so continued seven days, restraining them from sending any forth or receiving any in, and in the meantime I had caused divers boats from Athlone and a couple of great iron pieces to be brought against the island, and on the seventh day we took the island, without hurt to any on our side, save my brother John, who got a bullet-wound in the back. When our men entered the island there was found within it 26 persons, whereof 7 were Dualtagh's sons and daughters; but himself and 18 others, seeking to save themselves by swimming, and in their cot to recover the wood next the shore, were for the most part drowned. Some report that Dualtagh was drowned, but the truth is not known. It was scarce daylight, and the weather was foggy when they betook themselves to flight. The Irishry held that place as a thing invincible."—Sir R. Bingham to Burghley, Dec. 16th, 1590.

In addition to the historical evidence we have that of the relics found on many of these crannogs, which includes iron pots, guns, leaden bullets, coins, etc. Thus associated with two crannogs in Lough Annagh were an iron cuirass, matchlock guns, pistols, antique keys, spurs, various implements of iron, a bronze ladle, bronze spear-head, etc. (B. 149, p. 156.)

Fig. 179.—Brass Vessel found in Loch Canmor. Height, 10½ inches.

Fig. 180.—Bone Object found
in the Loch of Forfar.
Natural size.

To the literary researches of the late Dr. J. Robertson we are indebted for equally explicit historical notices regarding the Scottish crannogs:—"Among the more remarkable of the Scottish crannogs is that in the Loch of Forfar, which bears the name of St. Margaret, the Queen of King Malcolm Canmore, who died in 1097. It is chiefly natural, but has been strengthened by piles and stones, and the care taken to preserve this artificial barrier is attested by a record of the year 1508. Another crannoge—that of Lochindorb, in Moray—was visited by King Edward I. of England in 1303, about which time it was fortified by a castle of such mark that, in 1336, King Edward III. of England led an army to its relief through the mountain passes of Athol and Badenoch. A third crannoge—that of Loch Cannor or Kinord, in Aberdeenshire—appears in history in 1335, had King James IV. for its guest in 1506, and continued to be a place of strength until 1648, when the Estates of Parliament ordered its fortifications to be destroyed. It has an area of about an acre, and owes little or nothing to art beyond a rampart of stones and a row of piles. In the same lake there is another and much smaller crannoge, which is wholly artificial. Forty years after the dismantling of the crannoge of Loch Cannor, the crannoge of Loch-an-Eilan, in Strathspey, is spoken of as 'useful to the country in times of troubles or wars, for the people put in their goods and children here, and it is easily defended.' Canoes hollowed out of the trunks of oaks have been found, as well beside the Scotch as beside the Irish crannoges. Bronze (brass) vessels, apparently for kitchen purposes ([Fig. 179]), are also of frequent occurrence, but do not seem to be of a very ancient type. Deers' horns, boars' tusks, and the bones of domestic animals, have been discovered; and in one instance a stone-hammer, and in another what seem to be pieces for some such game as draughts or backgammon, have been dug up" ([Fig. 180]).

Fig. 181.—Brass Pots found in Loch of Banchory.

Fig. 182.—Brass Pot (height, 11 inches), and Brass Jug (height, 9 inches), found in the Loch of Banchory.

"Before the recent drainage of the Loch of Leys—or the Loch of Banchory, as it was called of old—the loch covered about 140 acres, but, at some earlier date, had been four or five times as large. It had one small island, long known to be artificial, oval in shape, measuring nearly 200 feet in length by about 100 in breadth, elevated about 10 feet above the bottom of the loch, and distant about 100 yards from the nearest point of the mainland. What was discovered as to the structure of this islet will be best given in the words of the gentleman, of whose estate it is a part, Sir James Horn Burnett, of Crathes. 'Digging at the Loch of Leys renewed. Took out two oak trees laid along the bottom of the lake, one 5 feet in circumference and 9 feet long; the other shorter. It is plain that the foundation of the island has been of oak and birch trees laid alternately, and filled up with earth and stones. The bark was quite fresh on the trees. The island is surrounded by oak piles which now project 2 or 3 feet above ground. They have evidently been driven in to protect the island from the action of water.' Below the surface were found the bones and antlers of a red deer of great size, kitchen vessels of bronze (brass) ([Figs. 181] and [182]), a millstone (taking the place of the quern in the Irish crannogs), a small canoe, and a rude, flat-bottomed boat about 9 feet long, made, as in Ireland and Switzerland, from one piece of oak. The surface of the crannog was occupied by a strong substantial building ([Fig. 183]). This has latterly been known by the name of the Castle of Leys, and tradition, or conjecture, speaks of it as a fortalice, from which the Wauchopes were driven during the Bruces' wars, adding that it was the seat of the Burnetts until the middle of the sixteenth century, when they built the present castle of Crathes. A grant of King Robert I. to the ancestors of the Burnetts includes lacum de Banchory cum insula ejusdem. The island again appears in record in the years 1619 and 1654 and 1664, under the name of 'The Isle of the Loch of Banchory.'"

Fig. 183.—View of Surface of the Isle of the Loch of Banchory, showing foundations of Stone Buildings.

That Scottish lake-dwellings were known by the same name, crannog, as the Irish, Dr. Robertson adduces the following extract from the Register of the Privy Council to show:—

"Instructions to Andro bischop of the Yllis, Andro lord Steuart of Vchiltrie, and James lord of Bewlie, comptroller, etc.... That the haill houssis of defence, strongholdis and cranokis in the Yllis perteining to thame and their foirsaidis sal be delyverit to his Maiestie and sic as his Heynes sall appoint to ressave the same to be vsit at his Maiesty's pleasour, etc., 14 Aprilis, 1608."

While the comparative late occupancy of the crannogs in both countries is, therefore, unquestionable, their early origin is enveloped in the deepest mystery. Was the system an indigenous invention—the result of circumscribed local exigencies—or derived from foreign sources? and when was it founded or introduced? are questions that have elicited responses of different characters. Sir W. R. Wilde, undoubtedly one of the foremost authorities on Irish crannogs, assigns them to the Iron Age. "Certainly," says he, "the evidences derived from the antiquities found in ours, and which are chiefly of iron, refer them to a much later period than the Swiss; while we do not find any flint arrows or stone celts, and but very few bronze weapons, in our crannogs. Moreover, we have positive documentary evidence of the occupation of many of these fortresses in the time of Elizabeth, and some even later." (B. 24, p. 152.) Mr. G. H. Kinahan, on the other hand, thus formulates his opinion in a short article contributed to Keller's book (B. 119, 2nd ed., p. 654):—"Of the time when the crannogs were first built there is no known record, but that they must have been inhabited at an early period is evident, as antiquities belonging to the Stone Age are found in them. Some were in use up to modern times, Crannough Macknavin, county Galway, having been destroyed in A.D. 1610, by the English, while Bally-na-huish Castle was inhabited fifty years ago. Some crannogs seem to have been continuously occupied until they were finally abandoned, while others were deserted for longer or shorter periods. In Shore Island, Lough Rea, County Galway, there is a lacustrine accumulation over 3 feet thick, marking the time that elapsed between two occupations."

That objects supposed to be typical of the Stone and Bronze Ages have been found on many of the Irish crannogs there can be no doubt at all. For example, among the remains described by Mr. Shirley from the crannogs of MacMahon's country are stone celts, arrow-heads of flint and bronze, three looped celts of bronze, etc.; but these were associated with many iron objects of comparatively modern manufacture, such as a gun-barrel, pistol-lock, ploughshares of iron, parts of harps, and spinning-wheels, etc., etc.

"The oldest article," writes Mr. Benn, "from the crannog at Randalstown found, so far as I know, was a stone hatchet, rather of a small size, but not remarkable or uncommon. The most recent, and the only piece of coin I ever heard of, discovered in such a locality, is a base coin of Philip and Mary." (B. 29, p. 88.) In the crannog of Roughan Lake, the last retreat of Sir Phelim O'Neil, some bronze spear-heads were found, along with a highly ornamented quern stone. On the lowering of Lough Gur an island became visible which is said to have been a crannog, and on it were found, among other things, a remarkably fine bronze spear-head,[121] having its socket ornamented with gold, a stone mould for spear-heads ([Fig. 107]), and some bones of the reindeer; but yet it existed as a stronghold till 1599, when it was surrendered by the English to the Earl of Desmond.[122] The sword-blades figured by Wood-Martin (B. 444, pl. xxxvii.) as coming from crannog sites at Toome Bar are undoubtedly characteristic specimens of the Bronze Age weapons; but then the evidence that they are crannog relics at all is so slender that for determinative purposes they may be considered valueless. Moreover they were associated with objects equally typical of all ages—from palæolithic flints to mediæval silver ornaments. "All these flint flakes are of the earliest type," says Mr. Day, who describes this locality, "many closely resembling those found in the 'drift' at Abbeville;" and the relics include flint cores, stone and bronze objects, a "ring brooch, enamelled bead, and a silver armlet." (B. 92, p. 227.) Similar remarks are equally applicable to all the Scottish crannogs on which objects apparently belonging to different ages have been found. A reviewer of my work on "Ancient Scottish Lake-dwellings" (B. 373), in which I gave it as my opinion that the Lochlee crannog must be assigned to post-Roman times, takes exception to this opinion on the grounds that amongst the relics are a polished stone celt of neolithic type, flint scrapers, which, he says, "may be of the Bronze Age, but could hardly be considered as post-Roman," and portions of the antlers of the reindeer, which, according to him, "can hardly have ranged as far south at any period later than the neolithic age." Had my reviewer read the remarks in my book at page 147, regarding this polished greenstone hatchet, he would hardly have selected it to prove that this crannog existed during the neolithic age. My words are: "As many of the relics, if judged independently of the rest and their surroundings, might be taken as good representatives of the three so-called Ages of Stone, Bronze, and Iron, it is but natural for the reader to inquire if superposition has defined them by a corresponding relationship. On this point I offer no dubious opinion. The polished stone celt (that referred to by my reviewer) and an iron knife were found almost in juxtaposition about the level of the lowest fire-place." The iron implements on this crannog included hatchets, chisels, gouges, and a crosscut saw, and the very lowest logs bore unmistakable evidence of having been manipulated with sharp metal tools. The entire absence of cutting instruments of bronze renders it more than probable that such tools were made of iron, and were similar to those found on the crannog. As for the conclusions educed from the presence of the horns of the reindeer (hesitatingly identified by the late Professor Rolleston), it is now actually proved that this animal was not extinct in Scotland before the twelfth century. In the "Orkneyinga Saga"[123] it is stated that "every summer the Earls were wont to go over to Caithness, and up into the forests, to hunt the red deer or the reindeer." The recent discovery of its bones and horns in refuse heaps in Caithness, and in many of the brochs in the north of Scotland, amply proves that the reindeer was hunted and eaten by the Norsemen as late as the above date.

Whatever explanation may be forthcoming as to the prevalence of prehistoric relics on these crannogs, there is no possibility of denying that the vast majority of them were not only inhabited, but constructed during the Iron Age. Mr. Wakeman, in the most carefully investigated of all the crannogs in Fermanagh, viz. that at Drumdarragh, describes three periods of occupation; yet among the relics corresponding to the earliest period were several iron objects, one being "an animal's head in iron," which he considers might be the leg of a pot. Nor am I aware that superposition has defined in any clear instance the heterogeneous mixture of relics that usually turn up on crannogs.

It must also be noticed that few, if any, of them can be classified as exclusively belonging to the earlier ages, like those so numerously recorded in Central Europe. Indeed, there are only two or three which have any claim to such delimitation, viz. those in Coal-bog (Kilnamaddo), in Drumkelin bog, county Donegal, and in Holderness. On the two former sites were found the most perfect examples of log-huts that have yet come to light, and as they were both deeply buried in peat, 17 and 25 feet respectively, they undoubtedly point to some antiquity. But the relics, which include a stone axe and some flint objects, are too few to justify such a sweeping conclusion as that these dwellings were constructed at a period when metal implements were unknown in the country. At any rate, there can be no reasonable doubt that the period of greatest development of the Scottish and Irish lake-dwellings was during the Iron Age, and, at least, as far posterior to Roman civilisation as that of the Swiss Pfahlbauten was anterior to it.

In instituting an inquiry as to how far the geographical distribution of crannogs coincides with that of the various nationalities of the period, we arrive at some striking results. Thus adopting Skene's division of the four kingdoms into which Scotland was ultimately divided by the contending nationalities of Picts, Scots, Angles, and Strathclyde Britons, after the final withdrawal of the Romans, I find that of the fifty or sixty crannogs proper none are located within the territories of the Angles; ten and seven are respectively within the confines of the Picts and Scots; while all the rest are situated in the Scottish portion of the ancient kingdom of Strathclyde. That they have not been found in the south-eastern provinces of Scotland may be due to the rarity of suitable lakes, or the want of proper research on the part of antiquaries; but, as the matter actually stands, their absence suggests the theory that these districts had been occupied by a foreign element before Celtic civilisation gave such a prominence to the lake-dwellings. It will be thus seen that in the early centuries of the Christian era the distribution of crannogs in Scotland and Ireland closely coincides with a well-defined area in which the Celtic language was spoken. For proof that in those days this was the language of the south-west of Scotland, I need only point to the recent work of Sir Herbert Maxwell on the topography of Galloway.

But from an etymological analysis of the earliest topographical nomenclature of Britain, it is inferred that, during still earlier times, a much larger portion of Britain, if not the whole of it, was under the sway of the Celts. Hence it becomes interesting to inquire if, in these localities, from which Celtic influence was expelled, there exist traces of lake-dwellings. In localities where the Celtic races were never supplanted by foreigners, it would be strange indeed, and altogether at variance with archæological experience, if the habit of resorting to isolated and inaccessible islands for safety would be all at once abandoned, whenever the greater security afforded by stone buildings became known. Hence the persistence with which the island forts continued in these Celtic regions. But in this wider Celtic area, on the supposition that the Celts were the introducers or founders of the system, we ought to find some vestiges of these dwellings along the regions traversed by them before they became isolated from their Continental brethren, and cooped up in the western districts of Britain. This is precisely what the general researches into British lake-dwellings have shown in the stray remnants of them that have been found in Llangorse, Holderness, the meres of Norfolk and Suffolk, Cold Ash Common, etc. All these, with perhaps the exception of the pile-structures at London Wall, appear to be older than the majority of the crannogs of Scotland and Ireland.

Taking all these facts into account, together with the distinct statement made by Cæsar that the Britons were in the habit of making use of wooden piles and marshes in their mode of entrenchments, I am inclined to believe that we have here evidence of a widely distributed custom which underlies the subsequent great development which the lake-dwellings assumed in Scotland and Ireland. Moreover, I believe it probable that the early Celts had got this knowledge from contact with the inhabitants of the pile-villages in Central Europe. On this hypothesis it would follow that the Celts had migrated into Britain when these lacustrine abodes were in full vogue in Switzerland, and that they retained their knowledge of the art long after it had fallen into desuetude in Europe. Subsequent immigrants into Britain, such as the Belgæ, Angles, etc., would cultivate new and improved methods of defensive warfare; whilst the first Celtic invaders, still retaining their primary ideas of civilisation, when harassed by enemies and obliged to act on the defensive would have recourse to their inherited system of protection, with such variations and improvements as better implements and the topographical requirements of the country suggested to them. It is as defenders, not as conquerors, that the Celts constructed their lake-dwellings.

This hypothesis, which was first enunciated in my work on "Ancient Scottish Lake-dwellings" as a mere conjecture, has elicited a considerable diversity of opinion on the part of critics. In the Times of October 4th, 1882, it is thus referred to:—"This is pure theory, and is quite unnecessary to account for the facts: as well might one argue a connection between the pile-dwellers of New Guinea and Central Africa and those of the Swiss lakes." Sir John Lubbock (Nature, December 24th, 1882) confesses that he is disposed to doubt that there is any connection between the geographical distribution of the Scottish lake-dwellings at present known and that of the ancient Celts. On the other hand, another reviewer attempts to defend it on the ground that "in the Swiss lake-dwellings of the Iron Age there are indications, especially in the ornamentation of the sword-sheaths and other articles, of a style of art which closely corresponds to the style of decoration prevalent in the crannogs of Scotland and Ireland (Scotsman, November 22nd, 1882).

The indications above alluded to in support of this hypothesis as based on a comparison of the relics, will be more appropriately discussed in my next lecture, when I come to review the lake-dwellings of the Iron Age in Central Europe. There are, however, one or two objections urged on the other side—as, for example, the difference of structure and late occupancy of the crannogs, as compared with the Swiss lake-dwellings—that require now to be shortly considered.

As to the supposed difference in structure, I need only refer to the structural details of various fascine-dwellings, as in the lakes of Fuschl, Schussenried, Niederwyl, Inkwyl, Wauwyl, etc., as a sufficient proof of the resemblance between them and the Scottish and Irish crannogs. It is true that the pile-dwellings were more numerous on the Continent than the fascine structures, while the reverse is the case in Scotland and Ireland—if indeed the former can be said to have existed at all in these countries. That the pile system was, however, known to the crannog-builders, and occasionally acted upon, we are not devoid of some positive evidence. Mr. G. H. Kinahan says that a few of the Irish crannogs were built on piles (B. 119, 2nd ed. p. 654), and instances an example in Loch Cimbe (now Loch Hackett), county Galway, which was so frequently blown down that the occupiers were obliged to convert it into an island, which they did by adding boat-loads of stones to its site. One of the lake-dwellings in Lough Mourne I concluded to have been a pile-dwelling ([see page 386]), and it was connected to the shore by a wooden gangway. Mr. Burns Begg describes remains of a pile-dwelling in Loch Leven as an "oblong wooden platform, raised above the water on piles, twelve feet or upwards in height." (B. 460.)

Subsequently I had an opportunity of visiting the locality, along with Mr. Burns Begg, and I am convinced these remains could not have been an ordinary submerged crannog or artificial island. The lake bottom is not soft and compressible, but, on the contrary, very compact and quite incapable of yielding to any great extent. The structures, even in the present reduced level of the loch, are never less than 1 or 2 feet below the surface; but as formerly there would have been 9 feet more of water over them it is quite improbable that this amount of submergence could be accounted for by the usual subsidence or compression of the submerged materials.

Some of the examples of lake-dwellings recorded in England, such as those described by Sir Charles Bunbury and Dr. Palmer, would appear also to have been pile-structures.

If, therefore, both principles were known among the crannog-builders of the British Isles, why, it may be asked, did they give a preference to the fascine structures? I have already remarked that these structures on the Continent were confined to small mossy lakes, which, owing to the yielding nature of their sediments and peaty deposits, were unsuitable for pile-dwellings. In such conditions, which are generally prevalent in Scotland and Ireland, the wooden island supplied more readily, and perhaps with less labour, the requisite stability for platforms in boggy lakes and marshes intended for huts and other superstructures, especially when these platforms were small and the islands sparsely placed.

The wide chronological interval which separates the crannogs from the lake-dwellings of Central Europe is also supposed to militate against the supposition of there being any causal connection between them. But this gap is more apparent than real, as, when carefully looked into, it will be found to have been bridged over by a closer series of links than was hitherto imagined. Not only were there some lake-dwellings in Switzerland during the Iron Age, but in several instances Roman, Gallo-Roman and even Allemanish remains were found on their sites, as in the lakes of Starnberg, Ueberlingen, Zürich, etc. ([See page 543].) Among the antiquities collected on the site of the dwellings in Lake Paladru were horseshoes, curry combs, and a variety of other antiquities which, in the opinion of M. G. de Mortillet and other archæologists, could not be accounted for as the products of any civilisation prior to Carlovingian times. We have also seen that in North Germany they existed at equally late times, having overlapped considerably into the Slavish period; while the Terp-mounds in Holland and other places were only superseded by the construction of the great sea-dykes. It must also be remembered that the custom of constructing lake-dwellings was not universally adopted in Europe. Their absence in Northern Europe, Spain and Portugal, and other places cannot be accounted for by a deficiency in the topographical and hydrographical requirements for such structures. They appear to have spread from the great central area of their first development in Europe in sporadic fringes, but never extending beyond the limits to which the ordinary waves of human intercourse and civilisation would likely reach.

Taking all these circumstances into consideration, I repeat that, while we are justified in ascribing the remains of lake-dwellings, so far as they are at present known within the British Isles, to a Celtic source, I see no prima facie improbability, as regards their structure and distribution in space and time, against the hypothesis that the Celts derived their knowledge of this custom from the great system of Central Europe, though founded and developed at a much earlier period.

The only exception to the general statement that the Celts were the sole constructors of lake-dwellings in Britain (without taking into account the earlier vestiges of such structures in England from which, owing to the scarcity of industrial remains, there is, as yet, no ethnological evidence either way), is the discovery at London Wall recorded by General Pitt-Rivers. I have already remarked ([page 464]), on the similarity of these remains to those from the Terp-mounds in Friesland. Especially interesting are the two bone skates, made from the metacarpals of the horse, recorded from the former, because such implements are common in the latter. I do not agree with Lindenschmit ([page 462]) in assigning all these so-called skates to the Stone period. On the contrary, they are mostly of post-Roman date. In lake-dwellings they are very rarely met with, and only one is recorded as coming from a station of the Stone Age, viz. Moosseedorf ([page 75]). The other localities from which examples have been recorded are Persanzig ([page 315]), Dabersee ([page 317]), Kownatken ([page 328]), Starnberg (B. 119, 2nd ed., p. 593), and a Terramara in Hungary ([page 167]).

Though the Anglo-Saxons, in coming from the mouth of the Elbe and the low-lying districts between it and the Rhine, must have been familiar with marine pile-structures, they do not appear to have cultivated the system to any great extent after immigrating into Britain. But this may be accounted for by the fact that very soon they became the conquerors of the country. It is only for defence that lake and marsh-dwellings have been resorted to.

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Sixth Lecture.
THE LAKE-DWELLERS OF EUROPE—
THEIR CULTURE AND CIVILISATION.