THE CELTIC TUMULI OF DORSET. 71 



colonists of Spain and France, and by them exported to Britain, 

 chiefly in all probability by overland carriage. There existed at 

 this time an exchange of commodities ; Britain supplying corn, 

 cattle, gold, silver, iron, slaves, and dogs for the chace. (Lib. iv. 

 c., 5). This bit of primaeval history relating to Britain is most 

 valuable, as proceeding from an ancient author held in deserved 

 estimation. 



10. GOLD. Of this precious metal a very few instances of its 

 use are afforded. I have already adverted to the gilding apparent 

 on two or three dagger-blades ; and have noticed the small and thin 

 plate of gold between the beads in the Culliford Tree Barrow 

 (No. 47, S.) In the exploration of the Stoborough King Barrow 

 (S.) there was found a supposed fragment of gold lace within the 

 cup that accompanied the skeleton. In one of Woodyates Tumuli 

 (which is a disc barrow close to the Roman road, No. 28 Plan ; 

 PL 2, Anc. Wilts) Sir R C. Hoare found a beautiful small 

 ornament of gold, and with it two beads of blue glass, the one 

 having a wire hoop of gold and the other an elegant gold chain 

 attached, which were probably the earrings of the British female 

 whose body was there interred. Gold and silver were of the 

 exports of British produce. The gold was principally obtained 

 from the Irish mines. " In Ireland," as Sir W. Wilde informs us, 

 "it is supposed that native gold was the metal with which the 

 primitive inhabitants were first acquainted, and a greater number 

 and variety of objects of gold have there been found than in any 

 country in North- West Europe. . . Even the name of the 

 artificer by whom gold was first smelted in the woods of Wicklow, 

 three centuries before the Christian sera is mentioned in Irish 

 Annals."* 



11. 12. SHELL ; HORN. The solitary specimen of the former is 

 a Cowrie that had probably been picked up on the sands of 

 Weymouth Bay, and preserved as a curious relic. With a few 

 other beads of common material it had formed the necklace of a 



* (Journal of the British Archival. Asson., Vol. xxiv. Paper by Albert 

 Way, Esq., F.S.A.) 



