A First Century Urn-Field at Cheriton, near Folkestone

A FIRST CENTURY URN-FIELD AT CHERITON, NEAR FOLKESTONE By P. J. TESTER and H. F. BING, M.A., F.R.Hist.S. ON the 23rd April, 1948, workmen engaged in digging a trench on the site of a proposed extension to the Folkestone Borough Council Housing Estate, unearthed a large quantity of pottery. The discovery was reported to Mr. D. H. B. Reynolds, M.A., M.Inst.C.E., Secretary and Engineer of the Folkestone Waterworks Company. Thanks to the initiative of this gentleman, most of the disturbed finds were collected from the spoil of the workmen's trench and information of the discovery communicated to the writers. Permission wa..s immediately obtained from the Borough Surveyor to conduct an emergency excavation of the area adjoining the trench. This work proceeded at intervals during the following weeks and resulted in the disclosure of a number of cremation burial groups of a Belgic and early Romano-British character, comprising a small cemetery or urn-field of which the first discoveries had clearly formed a part. Subsequent examination of the sherds recovered from the trench revealed that approximately twenty-five vessels were disturbed in this area. During the ensuing excavation, nine undisturbed burial groups were discovered in situ, the bases of the funerary vessels resting at an average depth of two feet from the surface.1 Much of the pottery was in a broken condition and has needed considerable reconstruction. Five bronze brooches were also recovered, but no coins or glassware were forthcoming from the site. The position of the site may be determined from O.S. 6" Kent Sheet LXXV, N.W., or from O.S. l" Sheet 173, National Grid Reference 193369. The burials were irregularly spaced in an area situated in the rounded angle formed at the junction of two newly constructed roadways. Distances from the nearest thoroughfares, Horn Street and the main Ashford to Folkestone road, are indicated on the accompanying plan. Part of the site will eventually be covered by a paved footway. Until recently the land was a cultivated field and repeated ploughing may account for the damaged condition of some of the vessels. The 􀃤ite lies towards the foot of the dip-slope of the Lower Greensand, close to the 200 ft. contour and about half a mile south of the Gault 1 NoTE ON PLA'l'ES I-ill. The surface level shown in photographs of Groups III, IV, VI and VII does npt indicate the original depth of the vessels from the surface of the ground over the site. In these instances the level had been lowered about a foot preparatory to laying the paved footway. 21 FIRST CENTURY URN-FIELD AT CHERITON NEAR FOLKESTONE outcrop. The deteriorating effects of the Lower Greensand, in which the burials were ma.de, account for the heavily corroded state of the metal objects and the friable condition of much of the pottery. Shadi.ng i.ndi.cates posLtlon of cho.rcob.\ patches 􀁊t depth of 3-4 feet. ROADWAY Horn Street 89 􀁋􀁌ds Seo.le of feet w - .J Plan of the first century Urn.field at Cheriton '-'/ AUP.G:J 1.9T.4 8. The general character of the burial site is that of a Belgio urn-field comparable with the earlier Kentish examples at Aylesford and Swarling. Flint flakes were found with the cremation buria.ls at Aylesford, and these occur also at Cheriton, as noted below. The iron 22 FIRST CENTURY URN-FIELD AT CHERITON, NEAR FOLKESTONE brooches found in the cinerary urns of Group I and Group VII are paralleled by a similar find at Swarling. From the dating of the associated Samian pottery it is certain that some of the Cheriton burials were made in Roman times, as late as the end of the first century, but on the other hand much of the coarse ware, particularly the cordoned vessels, is entirely Belgic in character. It is now commonly recognized that Belgic pottery forms survived into the period after the Ciaudian conquest, so it is not certain that these Belgic vessels are pre-Claudian in date. Nevertheless, the early character of the vessels in some of the groups which are not associated with Samian ware, together with the cylindrical, cordoned vessels recovered from the trench, makes it possible that some of the burials are earlier than A.D. 43. At two points in the excavation, patches of blackened sand with flecks of charcoal were revealed at depths of between three to four feet from the surface. Unfortunately, the conditions under which the excavation was carried out did not permit a thorough examination of the extent and nati.u-e of these patches. The northern patch, which showed itself in the bottom of the workmen's trench, contained ox bones, fragments of coarse pottery, and portions of a much corroded iron knife blade. It is possible that this represents an occupation site considerably earlier than the burials. This theory is supported by the evidence of a neighbouring find, sixty yards north of the site under consideration, consisting of a large hand-made vessel of coarse ware, accompanied by other similar sherds, wood ash and animal bones at a depth of three feet. This and certain other finds in the vicinity are reported upon in a note at the end of this report. The other patch was of a different character, being over ·a foot thick and containing fragments of rusted iron. It might well mark the site of cremation fires, though it would appear that if this were so, the cremations must have been made in a pit or trench to account for the ashes occurring below the level of the vessels in the associated burial groups. DESORil'TION OF THE Fnms In the following account, the nine burial groups are described individually, the Roman numerals indicating theh- respective positions as shown on the plan, and the order in which they were uncovered. The descriptions of individual vessels are numbered in accordance with Figs. 1-5 illustrating the text. All the finds have been placed in the Folkestone Borough Museum. GROUP I. This group was revealed in the south side of the trench. A sharp, unpatinated flake of flint rested on a level with the bases of the vessels and a foot from the cinerary urn. Another similar flake occurred in the soil, level with the top of this vessel. 23 FIRST CENTURY URN-FIELD AT OHERITON, NEAR FOLKESTONE 1. Cinerary urn, ht. 6·6 in., diameter 6·9 in. Gritty, dark-grey ware with traces of black coating on inside of rim. Two low cordons around neck and a third around shoulder. This vessel contained calcined bone fragments with pieces of a heavily corroded iron brooch. A similar find, in association with a pedestal urn, was made at Swarling. 2. Jar, ht. 4·3 in., diam. 3·7 in. Dark, gritty clay with traces of black coating on rim. Decorated with irregular, incised chevron ornament and with graffito on one side. 3. Small jar, ht. 3 ·3 in., diam. 4 in. Gritty, black clay. GROUP II. Urn with no accompanying vessels. Flint flake in soil near top of vessel. 4. Cinerary um, of carinated form, ht. 5·6 in., diam. 5·9 in. Hard grey ware with traces of black coating. Contained small quantity of burnt bones. GROUP III. (PLATE I, a.) 5. Lower portion of cinerary urn of grey ware, diam. 6·7 in. Two cordons about shoulder, separated by bands of incised ornament, and four bands composed of short strokes arotU1d lower part of body. The urn contained a quantity of burnt bone fragments. 6. Flagon of buff clay, ht. approximately 7 ·5 in., diam. 6 in. Two-ribbed handle. 7. Poppy-head beaker, ht. approximately 5 in., diam. 4 ·7 in. Buff-grey ware, surface decorated with panels of black dots. Partly reconstructed from many fragments. 8. Samian patera, Form 18/31, ht. l ·7 in., diam. 6 ·7 in. Illegible potter's stamp at centre of bowl ; glaze badly worn on inside. Probably Domitian-Trajan, A.D. 80-110. 9. Samian cup, Form 27, ht. I· 9 in., diam. 3 · 9 in. Glaze worn. Probably Domitian, circa A.D. 80-90. GROUP IV. (PLATE I, b.) Between the bases of the two vessels comprising this group, there was a small heap of calcined bones, apparently laid directly in the soil or originally enclosed in a bag. Two bronze brooches of Swarling type, described under separate heading, rested on top of these. Neither of the associated vessels contained human remains. 10. Belgic type vessel, ht. 9 in., diam. 6 in. Three low cordons around body ; gritty, dark-grey ware. 11. Belgic type vessel, ht. 5·3 in., diam. 6·5 in. Smooth black surface and pedestal base; incised, wavy lines about body and shallow furrows above base. "Arcaded" ornament around shoulder. 24 FIG, I. INCHES ... .......... .... ,, ........... .. :,\ ·. '.. ' . ' I \ '·. '