A HISTORY OF BERKSHIRE
A HISTORY OF BERKSHIRE BRONZE KNIFE OR RAZOR FROM COTHILL. Examples of this type are in the Reading Museum from Cholsey and Wallingford ; and a flat palstave from Pamber forest is also in this Museum. Socketed celts have been found at Wallingford. Palstaves are recorded from Newbury, Sun- ningwell, Want- age, Beenham, and Reading (Kennet). Sock- eted spear- heads have been found at Ashdown, Fyfield, Hagbourne Hill, Speen, Mouls- ford, Windsor, Mortimer, Reading (2), and Cookham. Among objects of peculiar form and rare occurrence may be mentioned a loop of jet, probably intended as a slider for a belt or for fastening some part of the dress, found at Newbury, the knife or razor with elongated perforation found at Cothill, near Abingdon, and the bronze sickles found in the Thames at Reading, Windsor and Bray. The last-named objects belong to a rare type of implement ; the Bray example, moreover, is somewhat peculiar in form, the socket dying into the blade. Many isolated examples of the Bronze Age have been recovered from the bed of the Thames in the process of dredging ; and a few years ago a considerable number of objects were found together in or near the Thames at Cookham. Among them were twenty spear- heads of the same general type, a sword and part of another, a bronze fillet or armlet, parts of a bracelet, and the ferrule or butt-end of a spear. Some of the above are in the possession of Mr. L. Treacher of Twyford, who has presented two spear-heads to the Reading Museum. Among the bronze antiquities of this county there are two hoards the contents of which have been described by Sir John Evans. That at Yattendon, 2 a village some 8 or 9 miles to the north-east of Newbury, was discovered in the spring of 1878 in digging for the foundation of a new house. The objects were found lying about 1 8 inches below the surface of the ground, in a mass of gravel that had been turned red, purple and black by the action of fire. The bronze ob- jects were not en- closed in any kind of vessel, but lay in con- tact with the earth, to which they had imparted a greenish colour. Close by were found two balks of oak, which were probably connected with a beacon formerly 1 Evans, Bronze Imp. (1881), 167, 169. a Pnc. Sac. 4ntiq. (ser. 2), vii. 480-1. 182 BRONZE SICKLE FROM THE THAMES AT WINDSOR.
