an ancient Mode of Sepulture, &'c. 229 
undeftroyed, amounting perhaps to feven or eight 
hundred years. 
The triangular fpace E, Fig 4th. appears to have 
been the hearth upon which the dead of the neigh- 
bourbood had been at one period burnt, by the fuel 
being built or heaped around the comburator and 
corpfe in a triangular form, which it appears they 
had been very anxious to afcertain exadly, by 
having a {pace confiderably larger than the combu- 
rator ftood upon, marked out by the ftone pave- 
ment,* fo as to anfwer as a proper direction during 
that part of the ceremony. ‘The corpfe muft either 
have been fufpended by the head and fhoulders, 
by means of the hoops and chains, fo as to be in 
an erect pofture, or muft have been in the horizon- 
tal pofture, as reprefented at Fig. 3d. The chains 
were moft ingenioufly contrived fo as to allow of 
complete flexure in every direction, and to be fhort- 
ened and lengthened at pleafure; fee the Figs. of 
a link in different directions; Fig. 7th. Fig. 8th. 
and Fig. gth. One of them could be with perfect 
eafe added to or fubtracted from the uppermoft end, 
and ftill the laft anfwered asa perfect hook or ring ta 
hang the reft of the chain and the corpfe by, which 
could be done, even at the time of the combutftion, 
by 
* N.B. The ground plan, hearth, &¢. having nat been 
Jaid down geometrically, but only by the eye, fo as to con, 
vey only an idea of the real fituation of the different 
‘parts, the exa& proportion is by no means preferved in 
the drawings, 
