NOTICES OF OTHER SIMILAR REMAINS IN THE NEIGHBOURHOOD. 39 



worthy of note that a piece of decayed " squared " timber is shown 

 still in place in the shell -marl, with which it is completely surrounded. 

 Just outside the lower dam a land-drain made a few years ago gave 

 a very large accumulation of bones at a depth of 6 to 7 feet. 



In the alluvial deposit left by the artificial overflow, oyster-shells 

 may be frecjuently obtained ; and in a land-drain made in this deposit 

 two human skeletons were found a few years ago. 



About one mile south-east of Pleshey, at the confluence of two 

 small streams a dam is thrown across the valley. It is about 200 

 yards long and of proportionate height and thickness. It is called 

 " Dead Man's Bank," and is now clothed with oak and other trees. 

 No notice appears to have been made of this earth-work. A recent 

 additional breach has been made, and shows its structure to con- 

 sist of clay and gravel in equal layers. I found three oyster-shells here 

 after a hasty search. This dam would hardly have been made su/fse- 

 quent to the military earthworks in Pleshey village, as an important 

 part of its water supply was appropriated for artificial moats there. 



About i^ miles south-west of Shalford village there existj 

 another dam of considerable dimensions, which once held back a 

 lake of some four or five acres. The place is still called " Pond 

 Green," and it does not appear to have been very long ago drained. 

 The dam is here made of gravel and clay in equal layers. The 

 water-line all round the lake's basin is still visible, and all below it 

 is dark alluvial soil. One piece of Roman pottery was yielded by 

 a molehill in that basin. With this single exception all the lakes 

 appear to have been finally drained a very long time ago, as there is 

 a deposit of rainwash in them which obscures all traces of earlier 

 deposits. 



Less than half a mile east of Black Notley village there is a dam 

 very similar to that at Pleshey, and of about the same dimensions. 

 It is also clothed with timber trees. The evidence of age is here 

 very apparent, the fields at each end of the dam being planed down 

 by natural denudation to a depth of at least 4 feet from the top of 

 the dam. It is worthy of remark that in all these cases the dams 

 seem to have suffered but little from natural weathering. I find, 

 however, from various authorities that artificial earthworks inclined 

 at a high angle, generally retain their sharpness and contour through 

 long periods of time. This is particularly characteristic of the 

 earthworks at Pleshey, some of which date at least from the Roman 

 occupation. 



