Jet or Lignite.—Several bits showing workmanship; a polished ring 1¼ inch in diameter ([Fig. 156]), and portions of two larger ones, probably bracelets; and a remarkable pendant in the form of an encircled cross ([Fig. 156]). The arms of the cross as well as the surrounding circle are adorned with a succession of incised circles alternating with short lines which are supposed to have been intended for the reception of some kind of enamel.
BUSTON.
About half-way between Stewarton and Kilmaurs there is a shallow basin of meadow-land which formerly, according to Blaeu's Atlas, was the bed of a lake of considerable size called Loch Buston. Within the recollection of the present generation this area was a mossy bog in summer and a sheet of water in winter; and about fifty years ago, when the present tenant, Mr. Robert Hay, came to reside on the farm, there was a small mound situated about its centre known as the Swan Knowe, on account of the number of wild swans that formerly used to frequent it. When subsequently engaged in reclaiming the bog, Mr. Hay states that as many as thirteen cart-loads of timber were removed from the "Knowe," and he distinctly remembers that, in consequence of the difficulty of detaching some of the mortised beams, his father made the remark, "there maun hae been dwellers here at ae time." He also states that until the land was thoroughly redrained, a few years ago, there was still a considerable mound to be seen; but at the beginning of December, 1880, when I first visited the locality, there was hardly any elevation to distinguish it from the surrounding field.
Notwithstanding the havoc committed on the woodwork of the crannog by a long exposure to atmospheric agencies before it finally sank under the protective influence of the muddy water, and subsequently, by the ruthless hands of the agriculturist, there still remained sufficient materials to give one not only a general, but particular and instructive notion of the mechanical principles on which the island and its superincumbent structures were constructed. The general results of the investigation may be categorically summed up as follows:—
1. The island was composed of a succession of layers of the trunks and branches of trees, intermingled in some places with stones, turf, etc.; and the whole mass was firmly knit together by means of upright piles and horizontal beams arranged in three, and in one part four, concentric circles.
2. The outer circle was intended more for protection than for giving stability to the island, and in some parts, as at the east side of the refuse-heap, the piles were closely set with their tops fixed into a transverse beam after the manner of a stair-railing; while those of the inner ones not only penetrated deeply and gave stability to the island, but also were used as part of the wall of the central building.
3. The area enclosed by the stockades was slightly oval in shape, measuring 61 feet by 56, and rudely paved with wooden beams, many of which were firmly fixed to the lower woodwork by stout wooden pegs as well as to the encircling stockades, thus affording here and there, as it were, points d'appui.
4. While there was one general hearth situated near the centre, evidence of one or two fire-places elsewhere was quite conclusive. One of these appeared to have been a smelting-furnace, as it contained flat stones much stained with fire-marks and several masses of heavy slag.
