EARLY MAN 



at Windsor is in the British Museum. 1 Another elegant form, in the 

 Reading Museum, from Mortimer West End, is here shown. The edges 

 of this are still very sharp. 3 A formidable weapon of large 

 size (i 2 inches long), from Moulsford, is in the same Museum 

 and somewhat resembles the barbed spear-head from Speen 

 figured by Sir John Evans 3 (see plate). 



Pointed knives or knife-daggers have been found at 

 Blewbury and Rowcroft, Yattendon, the latter being j\ inches 

 in length. The former is in the Ashmolean Museum. At 

 Sutton Courtenay was found a tanged knife or dagger 10 

 inches long, and at Newbury was found a tanged dagger of 

 Arreton Down type, j\ inches long, now preserved in the 

 collection of Canon Greenwell. * A bronze 

 dagger 7 inches in length with ogival outline was 

 found in the bed of the river Thames near Maiden- 

 head. 



An interesting little rapier-shaped blade about 

 6| inches long was found in the Kennet and Avon 

 Canal between Theale and Thatcham, and is now 

 in Sir John Evans's collection. It has two peculiar 

 small notches just above the rivet-holes. 



Bronze knife-blades are occasionally found in 

 interments, as in a barrow at Stancombe, and in one 

 of the ' Seven barrows,' Lambourn. 



A good example of a rapier-blade 1 1^ inches 

 long, with one of the rivets attached, was obtained 

 from the Kennet, near Reading, and was presented 

 to the Museum by Mr. F. W. Albury. It re- 

 sembles in type the example from Coveney. 5 



A leaf-shaped sword from the Kennet is also BRONZE*BI.ADE 

 in the Reading Museum. It is somewhat like Sir FROM 

 John Evans's fig. 343 of a sword from Barrow. 

 Another, from the Thames near Reading, is in Canon Green- 

 well's collection. 



The long bronze sword is a formidable and at the same 

 time an elegant weapon. It is equally effective for cutting or 

 thrusting, and may be considered one of the latest products of 

 the Bronze Age. A fine example found near the Thames 

 opposite Henley is in the Reading Museum. It is of the 

 same type as the sword from Newcastle figured by Sir John 



BRONZE SWORD 



FROM THE 



Evans, 6 and has been described by Dr. Stevens. 7 



THAMES OPPO- The celt or axe is well distributed over the county, 



SITE HENLEY. a i t h ou gh tne flat and probably early type is not very abundant. 



1 A similar example is in the Reading Museum, also from the Thames (14^ inches long). 

 5 A somewhat larger specimen was obtained from the Thames near Reading. 

 a See Evans, Bronze Imp. 337. Also Journ. Brit. Arch. Ass. (1860), 322. 



* See Evans, Bronze Imp. 259. Also Journ. Brit. Arch. Ass. (1860), 322. 



Evans, Bronze Imp. fig. 313. Ibid. fig. 344. 1 Journ. Brit. Arch. Assoc. (1882), p. 275. 



181 



