EXPLORATION OF SOME " RED-HILLS " IN ESSEX, I 73 



These thick pieces are apparently portions of large vessels, some 

 at least cylindrical in form, and as much as twenty inches in 

 diameter, with the ware an inch or an inch and a-half in sub- 

 stance. 2 The larger fragments found were very soft and fragile 

 whilst moist, and readily broke up on attempted removal from 

 the matrix. There is an appearance on some pieces of careful 

 smoothing ot the clay on the inner side, but we saw no 

 indications of glazing on the Burnham specimens. 



These coarse pot-shards constituted in some places quite 

 one-fourth of the whole mass of rubble excavated. 



We often found portions of curious objects, which we 

 termed " T-pieces " ; they were largely fragmentary, but one of 

 the most perfect found at Burnham is shown at B, Fig. i. The 

 *• shaft " had apparently been much longer, but had been broken 

 off. 



Wedge-shaped bricks of the same kind of clay also occurred 

 not uncommonly ; two are figured at C and D, Fig. i. 



A small number of fragments of a harder and better kind of 

 pottery were picked out of the mass of debris ; it is of the kind 

 commonly called Romano-British. Specimens from the Bower 

 Hall Farm, Red Hill, East Mersea, are pictured in Fig. 3, post. 

 They formed a very small percentage of the rude pottery 

 fragments. Some of it is apparently wheel-turned. 



Two small fragments of Samian ware occurred at Burnham ; 

 we found no trace of it in any other Red-hill. At the 

 time we considered them accidental, and fancied that they might 

 have been carried down from the surface by the burrowing of 

 rabbits, or by rain-wash. 



Our next experiences of Red-hills explored in any careful 

 way, were during our summer vacations in Mersea. One very 

 considerable "hill" was found on Bower Hall Farm, East 

 Mersea. This mound is situate on the saltings bordering the 

 Pyefleet Channel, outside the sea-wall (it is marked on the 6in. 

 •Ordnance Map, "Sheet 47, N.W. East Meysea,'' very near the 

 B.M., 13-5.). The Red-hill is partly cut through by the Pyefleet, 

 so causing a natural section, which exhibits the characteristic 

 features of such remains excellently — the usual pottery is seen 

 sticking out from the exposed burnt earth. Plate xxix. 



2 I am much indebted to Mr. Henry Whitehead, the Assistant in the Museum, for 

 making measurements and arranging the specimens for exhibition. 



