Page:Archaeological Journal, Volume 6.djvu/222

122 IIEMAINS OF THE ANGLO-EOMAN AGE. lost, and a brick, on which, probably, the head of the corpse rested ('?). These facts cannot, however, be vouched for, as, much to my regret, I missed seeing the coffin. The railroad did not otherwise prove so rich in its results, as might have been expected ; indeed, its direction lay too much south of Weycock for such to be the case. On a spot nearer to the castle, another deposit, to the number of forty skeletons, was found. These seemed to have been thrown into a hole with- out any order ; probably they were the remains of persons killed in some of the numerous skirmishes which took place in the neighbourhood with Prince Rupert and the Cavaliers. They lay about three feet beneath the surface, in the chalk. With regard to the Roman line of wells, might they not have been, in reality, a number of the circular pits or rubbish- holes usually so abundant in the vicinity of Roman dwellings or stations, as at Ewell in Surrey, Chesterford, &c., and which have, of late, afforded much subject for speculation to the curious, in comparing the contents of such places of deposit in different localities. At all events, whatever opinion may be held on the precise date, and minor points relating to Weycock or Castle Acre, sufficient evidence cer- tainly exists that the building erected on that site was of Roman origin, and continued to be occupied by the founders and their successors for many generations. R. C. NEVILLE. In connexion with the curious remains described by Mr. Neville, it is scarcely necessary to remind our readers of the octagonal PIkivos, at Dover, attributed to the Roman period, and the remarkable monument, known as the Tiirris magna, at Nismes, likewise of octagonal form, but placed upon a very massive six-sided basement. Several other octagonal towers exist in France, such as that of Mont- bran, near Montignon, in Brittany. Montfaucon speaks of these Gaulish build- ings as of high antiquity, observing that some were constructed as early as the times of Caligula, and he supposes the octagonal form to have been in accordance with a fashion prevalent in Gaul. (Ant. Expl., tome iv., Supp., pp. 130, 145.) We are not aware that any other multangular detached structure of the Roman period has been noticed in Enghmd. The foundations of an octagonal building were discovered, in 1818, by Sir William Hicks, Bart., at Great Witcombe, plou- cestershire, forming a chamber connected with the adjacent buildings; the dimensions were considerably smaller than those of the foundations excavated by Mr. Neville, the greatest diameter of the octagon being about 26 feet 6 inches, and the thickness of the walls rather more than 2 feet. See a Memoir by S. Lysons, " Archaeologia," vol. xix., p. 178. The Rev. E. Parker. Vicar of Waltham, observes, in a subse(iuent communica- tion regarding Weycock, that the " Castle Acre " appears to include as nearly as possible the portion of land formerly covered by buildings, as indicated by the appearance of the crops, in bad seasons, clearly showing the proximity of founda- tions beneath. The occupiers of the site have at various times torn up foundations.