Introduction [Introduction, Second AGM & Quarterly Councils]

THE introductory pages of this, our second Volume, are purposely compressed into as small a compass as the necessary Report of our proceedings since our last publication will allow.

Narratives of periodical gatherings and festivities are more suited to the columns of a newspaper than to a Work devoted to Archaeological records and antiquarian research. For these we require all the space which our pages can afford.

If, therefore, our acknowledgments of the hearty welcome with which our Society was received at Rochester, by the Cathedral Chapter, the Corporation, and inhabitants of that ancient city, be brief, they are not the less gratefully offered; nor shall we be accused of insufficiently appreciating the munificent hospitalities of Cobham, and Cowling, and the Deanery, if we confine ourselves to a simple expression of cordial thanks. With these acknowledgments, then, pass we at once to a brief record of this the principal event that has occurred since our last publication, viz. the Second Annual General Meeting of the Society, held at Rochester, on the 3rd of August, 1859.

It was attended by

J - The Marquess Camden, K.G., President;

The Earl and Countess Stanhope; The Earl and Countess Amherst; The Earl and Countess of Darnley; The Earl of Brecknock; Lady Frances Pratt; Lady Caroline Pratt; A. J. B. Beresford-Hope, Esq., and Lady Mildred Hope; Lady Caroline Nevill; Lady Augusta Mostyn; Lady Isabel Bligh; The Hon. Ralph Nevill; The Hon. T. Lloyd Mostyn; The Hon. James Byng; The Hon. Mrs. Byng; Sir Percival Hart Dyke, Bart.; Lady Dyke; Lieutenant-Colonel Bingham; Sir Walter James, Bart.; Sir Walter Stirling, Bart.; Sir Charles Locock, Bart., and party; Sir Brook Bridges, Bart.; Admiral Jones Marsham and party; The Rev. The Provost of Oriel and Mrs. Hawkins; The Rev. Canon Robertson and party; The Mayor of Rochester (William Manclark, Esq.); The Recorder of Rochester (J. Espinasse, Esq.); James Whatman, Esq., Mrs. Whatman, and party; G. W. Norman, Esq., and party; C. Wykeham Martin, Esq.; J. Savage, Esq., Mrs. Savage, and party; J. Crosby, Esq., F.S.A., and Miss Crosby; Lancaster Lucas, Esq., and party; J. G. Talbot, Esq.; Rev. J. Riddell; Rev. C. Hawley; Rev. T. Hugo; Rev. Joshua Stratton; Rev. H. Stevens and party; Rev. Jacob Marsham; Rev. C. Randolph; Rev. Beale Poste and party; Rev. J. F. Cobb; Rev. W. A. Keith; Rev. R. P. Coates; Rev. J. P. Russell; Rev. E. Trollope; Rev. J. Woodruffe; Rev. W. Horne and party; G. B. Acworth, Esq., and party; W. Brown, Esq., and party; J. Thurston, Esq.; Dr. Plomley and party; W. W. Hayward, Esq., Mrs. Hayward, and party; Major Luard, Mrs. Luard, and party; M. Bell, Esq.; Captain Cator; Peter Cator, Esq., and party; W. Norwood, Esq.; Major Munn; S. Steele, Esq., and party; H. Farrar, Esq.; Colonel Stanton, Mrs. Stanton, and party; Captain and Mrs. Cheere; R. Thomas, Esq., and party; T. H. Day, Esq., and party; Jesse Thomas, Esq., and party; Humphrey Wickham, Esq., and party; G. R. Corner, Esq.; C. Roach Smith, Esq.; F. Fry, Esq.; W. H. Bensted, Esq.; H. Wickham, Esq.; E. Pretty, Esq., F.S.A.; Arthur Ashpitel, Esq., F.S.A.; Richard Hussey, Esq., F.S.A.; H. B. Mackeson, Esq.; W. Clayton, Esq., and party; A. J. Dunkin, Esq., and party; Rev. L. B. Larking; and above three hundred others, whose names we could not obtain.

The MARQUESS CAMDEN, K.G., President of the Society, took the Chair, in the Corn Exchange, at twelve o'clock, and commenced the business of the day by calling on the Honorary Secretary to read-

THE REPORT.

"The Report of the state and progress of our Society which I have this day the pleasure of presenting, is one on which we may well congratulate ourselves.

"On the morning of our Meeting at Canterbury, last year, our Society numbered 561 members. Since then, 89 candidates have been elected, and I shall this day have the honour of submitting to you the names of 46 more. Should you elect them, the total number of those who have joined the Society since its institution in September, 1857, not yet two years ago, will be 696; a significant reply to the question somewhat tauntingly mooted at the time, 'Is Kent able to institute an Archaeological Society?'

"But the most gratifying part of this day's Report, and one which immeasurably adds to the force of our reply, is the announcement of the publication of our first Volume. It is, we hope, already in the hands of all our members, and we trust has given them satisfaction. It has met with much commendation from literary men of eminence, and we shall be much disappointed if the general opinion be not in its favour.

"At our Bankers' we have a balance of £161. We have also funded £233 in Three-per-cent. Stock. A sum of nearly £200 is due to us from our members. Our available assets for current expenses should be £865. From these assets a competent sum for the expenses of this day must be deducted. Nearly half a year's salary is due to our Assistant Secretary. A very few small sums are due to other parties. On payment of all these demands, the balance will be entirely absorbed in discharging the costs of printing our first Volume.

"It is to the question of this £200 arrears, that we wish specially to call the attention of our members. We cannot for one moment doubt their ultimate payment; but it will be palpably impossible to carry on the ordinary business of the Society, much less to publish a Volume, with anything like regularity, if the promised payments be not duly and regularly made. We would urge our Local Secretaries to give their special attention to this point. If members would have the kindness to furnish their bankers with a general order for the annual payment of their subscription, all further trouble would be removed. It is the smallness of the sum, 10s., that causes it to escape the memory and makes it difficult of transmission. The best remedy is a general order upon a banker. But, whatever mode of payment be adopted, we press it most earnestly upon our members to make their remittances regularly; otherwise, disappointment in the operations of the Society must be the result.

"We would also draw the attention of the wealthier members of the Society, who have not yet contributed to the Illustration Fund, to the great service they will render by giving their aid in that department to the regular production of a fully and richly illustrated Volume.

"If all join, heart and hand, in the work, there is no doubt that our Society will be established on a permanent basis, and will continue to carry on its labours as energetically and successfully as it hitherto has done, during the short period of its existence."

The Society then proceeded to the election of officers, members, etc.; when-

James 'Espinasse, Esq., Recorder of Rochester, was elected a Vice-President.

Our rules requiring that six members of the Council retire by annual rotation, it was resolved that those who had attended the fewest meetings of the Council, during the last year, should be selected for retirement. Two vacancies having occurred, by the lamented death of Canon Chesshyre and the appointment of the Recorder of Rochester to the office of Vice-President, the number of actually necessary retirements was reduced to four, viz. E. Hussey, Esq.; T. Wightwick, Esq.; J. Rogers, Esq.; and G. Wickham, Esq. The following were the six elected to supply the vacancies:

E. Hussey, Esq., re-elected; J. Rogers, Esq., re-elected; Major Luard; Thomas Godfrey Faussett, Esq.; The Rev. R. Drake; Sir Walter Stirling, Bart.

Forty-six candidates were then admitted as members of the Society.

In pursuance of notice of the intended alteration of Rule 9, it was resolved that for "the 19th of September in each year," as it stands in the said Rule, the following words be substituted: "The 1st of January in each year." The result of this alteration will be that the subscriptions for the third year will not become due till the 1st of January, 1860; and, thenceforward, will be payable on the 1st of January in every succeeding year.

The thanks of the Society were then voted -

To the Mayor and Corporation of Rochester, and to J. Lewis, Esq., the Town Clerk, for the facilities afforded to the Society in the inspection of the archives of the city; in allowing the use of the Corn Exchange; and for the welcome given to the Society;

To the Dean of Rochester, for the hospitality kindly tendered to the Society and their friends at the Deanery, and for allowing the formation of a temporary museum there;

To the Dean and Chapter, for their kindness in throwing open the Cathedral and the adjoining monastic remains to the free inspection of the Society, and to G. Essell, Esq., the Chapter Clerk, for the kind facilities rendered to them in their survey, and in the inspection of ancient Records;

To E. Hayward, Esq., for his courtesy in giving free access to the Castle, and in allowing the dinner-tent to be erected in his garden;

To the Directors and Managers of the South-eastern Railway, for the liberal accommodation rendered to the Society in conveying the members to and from the meeting.

After voting the thanks of the meeting to their noble Chairman, the party adjourned to the Cathedral, where Richard Hussey, Esq., explained the peculiarities of the structure, and pointed out the periods at which its different portions were erected.

Mr. Beresford-Hope then delivered a most luminous lecture on the Rise and Progress and Peculiarities of Ecclesiastical Architecture, in its different periods.

The Rev. the Provost of Oriel conducted the members over the remains of the conventual buildings, giving descriptions of their various uses as he passed along.

The company then divided,

A. Ashpitel, Esq., gratifying one party with a most interesting lecture on the Castle and its various chambers, and on the origin, rise, and uses of Norman castles in general;

The Rev. Beale Poste and S. Steele, Esq., leading other parties round the ancient walls, and delivering learned dissertations on the remains thereof.

Soon after three o'clock, afternoon service was performed in the Cathedral, which was thronged throughout; and the choir, assisted by members of the choirs of Windsor and the Temple, under the superintendence of the Rev. R. Sorsbie, the Precentor, furnished an exquisite choral service, selected from Kentish composers.

At five o'clock, dinner was served, in a marquee in the Castle garden, to a party of about two hundred and fifty; the Marquess Camden occupying the chair.

After dinner, the party adjourned to the Deanery, where they were hospitably entertained by the Rev. H. Stevens and his sisters; the Dean himself, to the regret of all, being compelled by his infirmities to absent himself.

He had kindly permitted the Society the use of one of the apartments on the ground-floor of the Deanery for the reception of exhibitions, and the Rev. R. P. Coates very obligingly acted on the occasion as Curator. The result of his exertions, and the good feeling of several members and their friends, was a large collection, chiefly consisting of local antiquities, which completely filled the room. The attendance here at the appointed hour, eight o'clock, was very numerous.

THE EXHIBITION OF ANTIQUITIES AT THE DEANERY

Mr. Roach Smith undertook the explanation of the various collections, which were arranged in groups as exhibited by the several proprietors. He commenced an extemporaneous address by a review of the general state of Kent under the Romans; its towns, roads, military stations, and those great establishments situated between the chief towns, which served as resting-places for the troops, and as inns for merchants and travellers,—places, the names of some of which are recorded, and their distances from well-known towns; but their remains had wholly disappeared, and respecting the very sites of some there had consequently been much discussion. These subordinate stations, termed mansiones and mutationes, formed unbroken lines from all parts of the Roman empire, and converged at Rome. The almost total absence, in Kent, of monumental inscriptions, such as are found so frequently in the north of England, and are so justly prized by the historian, though it deprives the county of an interesting source of archaeological inquiry, affords strong negative evidence of its tranquillity under the Roman rule. Lapidary inscriptions usually spring from long military occupation, to which Cantium was never subjected; but, on the contrary, its situation and the character of its population fitted it for that superior civilization under which commerce and the industrial arts flourish, contributing in peace and quietude to the comfort and prosperity of the tillers of the fields and the artisans and traders of the towns and villages. The silence of the historian, whose pen was seldom employed but to chronicle invasion and conquest; and the character of those remains which yet abound, and which were represented upon the tables in the Society's temporary museum, significantly reflected the flourishing condition of the county; and this although a high state of cultivation is necessarily unfavourable to the preservation of the fragile and perishable works of art.

The vestiges of splendid villas, such as are met with here and there in more remote parts of this country, are not at the present day to be traced in Kent; but neither the vicissitudes of time, nor the constant operations of the spade and the plough, have effaced the foundations of numerous buildings,—the habitations of the agriculturist, of the artisan, and of the general body of the industrious classes. Almost daily, the cemeteries of the Romano-British population are met with, not only near the towns and villages, but in retired spots; and it is not unusual to discover that land now uncultivated must have been tilled by the Romans. This is proved when we find villas and extensive burial-places in the midst of woods and copses.

The exhibition of the antiquities discovered at Hartlip by Mr. Bland, afforded a good example of the miscellaneous contents of a Roman villa of such considerable size that Mr. Roach Smith said it was not improbable it might have been one of the mansiones between Durovernum and Durobrivis. Its existence had long been known; but until Mr. Bland undertook its exhumation, it had never been explored. The foundations of the building were very extensive, including one large semi-detached apartment supported by buttresses, which was sufficiently capacious for the reception of a considerable body of troops. Baths of two kinds, admirably constructed and in excellent preservation, heated, as well as some of the rooms, by a hypocaust, illustrated the domestic manners of the Romano-Britons; and the general contents and fittings of a Roman country building of the better kind were well reflected in the Hartlip villa, and the miscellaneous objects discovered. The latter have now become the property of the Society, and are deposited in the Charles Museum. A selection was made by Mr. Pretty for this occasion.

From the Upchurch marshes the Rev. J. Woodruffe exhibited a large collection of fictile ware, which gave Mr. Roach Smith an opportunity of describing the peculiarities of the workmanship of the various kinds of vessels, and the nature of the locality in which they had been found. It is now marsh land, almost impassable from the encroachments of the sea; but in the time of the Romans it was covered with the works of potters, for several miles at least; and what are now found (such as the vessels exhibited) are the debris and rejected vases. Many of them are of elegant forms, and none positively ugly, like much of the modern pottery. Although comprising hundreds of patterns, they are all marked by certain leading and general features, which, Mr. Roach Smith said, had enabled those who had closely studied them to recognize the chief kinds made on the Medway wherever they may be met with; and it appears that the potters there established must have carried on an extensive trade with the interior parts of Britain. No evidence of the red, shining pottery, called 'Samian,' having been made there occurs; but, on the contrary, it is now well understood that it was imported from Gaul and Germany. The clay of the Upchurch marshes is particularly fine, and is capable of making very superior pottery, equal, as regards quality, to the Roman. Mr. Humphrey Wickham, who owns a considerable tract of this land, has had the clay tested by one of the chief Staffordshire potters. It is pronounced of the best description, showing the good judgment of the Romans in selecting the site for a manufactory.

Mr. Humphrey Wickham exhibited his collection of Roman and Saxon remains discovered on the Temple estate, adjoining Strood, some years since. It consists of sepulchral vessels, personal ornaments, coins, and weapons, the last being Saxon. The whole of these were brought to light by excavations for brick earth, which laid open a very extensive Roman and Saxon cemetery, for it appears the Saxons had interred their dead alongside of their predecessors. Among the ornaments exhibited were some armillae, in what is called Kimmeridge shale, an inferior kind of jet; and a bulla, in pure jet, bearing a well-executed representation of Medusa's head. Upwards of six hundred coins were found.

Mr. Wickham also exhibited a gold British coin, a new variety of the Com.F type, found in excavating the new railway between Chatham and Rainham; and some Saxon remains very recently dug up midway between the Temple Farm and Cuxton. They included an example of the angon, which the lecturer said was the first ever discovered in a grave in this country, this weapon being peculiarly Frankish, and not Saxon. It is described rather minutely by the historian Agathias. This formidable weapon, when entire with its shaft, was probably six or seven feet in length. Its point was quadrilateral, below which were barbs turning inwards. If a thrust from the angon failed to inflict a mortal wound instantaneously, it usually was propelled with force sufficient to penetrate the enemy's shield. The barbs hindered its being withdrawn; and the Frankish soldier, treading his foot upon the shaft, bore down his adversary's shield, and despatched him with another weapon. With it was a spear, a knife, and an earthen vessel resembling those discovered near Canterbury by the Rev. Bryan Faussett, and figured in his 'Inventorium Sepulchrale.'

The Roman remains exhibited derived additional interest from the collections, forwarded by Mr. Biggs and Major Luard, from the neighbourhood of Ightham. They contained examples of the 'Samian' ware, and other varieties of fictile vessels differing in mode of manufacture and in ornamentation from those made on the banks of the Medway. Major Luard's collections comprised also a very remarkable example of a Roman flue-tile, covered with a stamp, reading CABRIABANTI[vs], and a bronze statuette of Pallas, of exquisite workmanship, found at Plaxtol, an engraving of which is given in this Volume.

Mr. Rolfe, of Sandwich, exhibited two leaden seals of the Emperor Constantine, recently found at Richborough. They bear on one side the head, name, and titles of Constantine, as they appear upon his coins, but in somewhat higher relief. The reverse is plain and slightly convex. They had evidently been attached by means of a string to documents or to other objects sent from Rome to Rutupiae. Mr. Roach Smith observed that the only other examples of Roman leaden seals he had known to be found in England were discovered at Felixstow, in Suffolk, and at Broughton Stanmore, in Westmoreland; but none of these were marked with an Imperial impress.

The department of Kentish Saxon antiquities received an unexpected accession in additional discoveries made in the King's Field, at Faversham, which on this occasion were first made known to the Society by Mr. Gibbs, whose former acquisitions from the same site are already made known to the Society. The fibulae, pendants, and buckles, are mostly in the precious metals, and comprise novel varieties. One of the graves contained a quantity of the teeth of horses ground down as if to adapt them to be used in some game.

Lord Amherst exhibited his splendid gold Saxon brooch, found at Sarr, in Thanet, in 1843. The face of this jewel, upwards of two inches in diameter, is divided into four compartments by concentric circles, which are subdivided into cells of triangular and other forms. Some of these are filled with a triple range of ornaments, formed of gold wire twisted like cord or laid on in little circles. Other cells contain garnets, turquoises, and a white cretaceous substance, apparently mother-of-pearl decomposed. The reverse is plain, except at the head of the acus which fastened it, where a single square garnet is inserted. Lord Amherst having accidentally dropped this fibula, the jar of the fall displaced the hinder part, when it was discovered that the interior was filled with a substance resembling, if not identical with, plaster of Paris.

Mr. Clayton contributed some bronze enamelled ornaments, found near Dover. They may be assigned to the British epoch under the Roman rule; and are similar in character to some found in a barrow in Derbyshire, and engraved in Mr. Bateman's 'Vestiges of the Antiquities of Derbyshire,' p. 25. Others, chiefly found in the northern and central counties, are preserved in the British Museum.

At the conclusion of his address and description of the foregoing antiquities (which occupied two hours), a vote of thanks, proposed by Mr. Steele and seconded by Mr. Dunkin, was given to Mr. Roach Smith.

There were also exhibited:

• Collections from Utica, Carthage, Athens, and Nola. By Mr. Flenley.
• Early carved ivories and paintings. Rev. J. Russell.
• A beautiful Saxon processional cross, in bronze, from West Farleigh; and a pair of gloves, said to have belonged to James I. The Dean of Rochester.
• Ancient deeds, and impressions of seals, including that of the Earl of Warwick, the King-maker. J. J. Hayward, Esq., F.S.A., and E. Gibbs, Esq., of Gravesend.
• A large collection of the seals of Rochester and the Cinque Ports. Mr. King.
• Rubbings from monumental brasses in Kent. The Recorder of Rochester and Mr. Kadwell.
• The Recognizances of Kent, temp. James I.; and a large collection of various documents relating to the county. Mr. Dunkin.
• Pedigrees of Kentish families. Mr. Mackrell.
• Powder-horns of the fifteenth century. The Rev. G. Faussett.
• Drawings of churches and mansions in Kent. Mr. G. R. Corner.
• Monumental brasses; Irish Celts; seals. The Recorder.
• Wood carving from a house near the Cathedral gateway. Mr. G. P. Acworth.
• Stained glass window, with armorial bearings, of the sixteenth century. Mr. H. Wickham.
• Greek picture, with chased silver frame, sixteenth century. Rev. D. Ash.
• A processional spur. Mr. Skinner.
• Bronze cock of a fountain (?), in the form of an animal's head, fifteenth century. Mr. E. L. Betts.
• A rapier and long processional sword. The Recorder.
• Circular bronze fibula, of the fifteenth century, inscribed "Ave Regina C[oe]lorum. Ave Do[min]a [?]." Major Luard.

A most enjoyable day was concluded by a full choral service in the Cathedral, at ten o'clock, P.M.

4TH AUGUST, 1859

At ten o'clock, A.M., a large party assembled in the Corn Exchange, where the Marquess CAMDEN again presided. Very interesting and learned papers were read by:

Rev. Thomas Hugo, - On Bishops Gundulph and Ernulph, and their works in the Cathedral and Castle.

Rev. E. Trollope, - On the passages of John, King of France, through Kent, as one of the prisoners of Poictiers.

Major Luard, - On Roman Remains found at Plaxtol.

A paper on the siege of Rochester Castle, by King John, kindly prepared by G. R. Corner, Esq., was deferred for want of time; the excursions to Cowling Cliff, Cobham, etc., requiring an early departure.

The thanks of the Society having been duly voted to the contributors of papers and the noble Chairman, the party started on their excursion.

The Honorary Secretary apologized for his inability, from great fatigue, to accompany the excursion, stating that he held in his hand some very curious documents from the collection at Surrenden, being the builders' and workmen's receipts for the erection of Cowling Castle, early in the reign of Richard II. He would not detain the company by reading them; but handed over to the Rev. R. P. Coates transcripts thereof, made by himself, for the use and amusement of the company when they should arrive at Cowling.

Thither large numbers proceeded, where they were most hospitably entertained by the occupier, J. Morton, Esq.; S. Steele, Esq., kindly explaining all the peculiarities of the building.

Thence they proceeded to inspect Cliffe Church, where its curiosities, including a very early paten, were exhibited and elucidated by the Curate, the Rev. E. H. Lee, and a cordial welcome given by the parishioners.

From thence they passed to Cobham Hall, where again a cordial and hospitable reception awaited them from the Earl and Countess of Darnley. After partaking of a cold collation, the noble Earl, aided by Earl Stanhope and Mr. Beresford Hope, took the company in successive parties round the house and gardens, most courteously exhibiting and explaining all the objects of interest in the picture gallery and other parts of this noble and ancient mansion.

The business of the Meeting was concluded by a visit to Cobham Church, to inspect the numerous ancient brasses and monuments, where a most lucid and interesting lecture was given by Mr. Beresford Hope.

Thus ended the second and last day of our Second Annual Meeting, which may well be pronounced to have been most gratifying and satisfactory.

At the Quarterly Council, held at Maidstone, 8th September, 1859, twenty-five new members were elected, and the following Honorary Local Secretaries appointed:

John Brent, jun., Esq., Canterbury, vice T. Wightwick, Esq.

F. F. Geraud, Esq., Faversham, vice Major Munn.

W. Murton, Esq., Tunstall, for Sittingbourne district.

Mr. Smallfield, 10, Little Queen Street, Lincoln's Inn Fields, for London and places out of Kent.

At the Quarterly Council, held at Canterbury, 86 new members were elected, making the total number admitted since the foundation of the Society in 1857, 759.

The Rev. Professor Willis, and C. Roach Smith, Esq., were elected Honorary Members.

G. Carnell, Esq., of Sevenoaks, and Stacey Grimaldi, Esq., of Greenwich, were appointed Honorary Local Secretaries.

The limits of our Volume preclude the possibility of our printing at one time all the learned and interesting papers which were read at Rochester, yet our readers must not be deprived of the gratification of seeing them on record. We therefore purpose, with the kind consent of the writers, to print them consecutively in our future Volumes, commencing this year with that of Mr. Beale Poste on the Walls of Rochester.

With the Report of the Council we close the narrative of our year's proceedings, which we are fully justified in designating as one of continued and successful progress.