ON THE AGE OF STONE CIRCLES. 375 



1*5 foot to 2-3 feet from the surface, a thin layer of bog iron-ore, or ' pan,' 

 occurred, through which it was noticed roots did not penetrate. Imme- 

 diately below this ferruginous deposit the subsoil was reached, consisting 

 of a light-coloured compact sandy material derived from decomposed 

 granite. The excavations were discontinued at this layer. 



During these operations the following flints were discovered : At 

 * 1 ' on plan,^ at a depth of 1 foot, a flint flake, or knife, with prominent 

 bulb of percussiori and conchoidal fractures ; at ' 2 ' another flint flake 

 with secondary chipping, and a well-defined bulb of percussion with an 

 eraillure on it, depth 1'2 foot ; and at ' 3 ' a small piece of calcined flint, 

 depth 0-8 foot. 



In four places in this excavation the hard layer of bog iron-ore was 

 found to be deficient ; digging was therefore continued to a greater depth, 

 and four distinct holes were found as indicated on the plan, one on the 

 S.W. of the stone, and three on the E. and N.E. sides. The first hole, 

 ' W,' was of oval outline, 5'5 by 4 feet at the layer of iron-ore ; the 

 bottom was 3-5 feet below the surface of the turf. Holes 'X,' ' Y ' and 

 ' Z ' were of irregular outline ; ' X ' measured 4'5 by 2*7 feet at the 

 ferruginous layer ; ' Y,' 3-1 by 2-1 feet ; and ' Z,' 4-5 by 3 feet. All were 

 filled with peaty mould and pieces of granite ; no relics were discovered 

 in them, and their purpose is uncertain. 



At the S.S.E. end of this large monolith a hole full of water was dis- 

 covered ; the stone extended a few inches further in a S.S.E. direction than 

 the margin of the hole. The hole was found to be about 5 feet long and 

 2 '8 feet wide. We therefore obtained satisfactory proof that the stone stood 

 erect at one time on what is now its S.S.E. end, at some 14 feet to the 

 S.S.E. of the true centre of the circle ; moreover, that the monolith in its 

 fall in a N.N.W. direction had ' kicked out ' to the extent of about 

 1 "S foot and covered the hole dug for its reception. 



Towards the end of the time devoted to the excavations another plot 

 of ground, 11 by 8*5 feet, was trenched over to the S.E. of the larger 

 central area, but we were unrewarded. The bog iron-ore was found here 

 as a fairly even layer at an average depth of 1 "4 foot from the surface . 



Prostrate Stone No. II. — As there was no depression at the N.W. end 

 of this stone indicating the position in which it might have stood, and as 

 there was a depression at the S.E., a hole was dug round this portion of 

 the stone and partly under it. No hole was found in which the S.E. end 

 of the stone could have stood, and as the other end falls in the line of the 

 true circle there can be no doubt that it has fallen inwards in a S.E. 

 direction. The layers of earth, &c., under the S.E. end of the stone were 

 regular, and not mixed, as they would have been if a hole had been cut 

 for the reception of the base of a monolith. The digging revealed the 

 true thickness of the stone at the S.E. end to be 09 foot. 



Prostrate Stone III. — This stone rested in a rather deep encircling 

 depression ; turf had grown considerably over the N. end ; an excavation 

 was made round the N. point and end of the stone, and the hole in which 

 it originally stood was easily traced ; the bottom in the undisturbed 

 granitic sand was reached at a depth of 35 feet from the general level of 

 the surrounding turf, and 2*4 feet from the surface of the monolith. 

 From the excavation we ascertained that this slab averaged 075 foot in 

 thickness. The point of the base in its fall appears to have kicked out 



' Plans were submitted to the British Associat ion together with this report, and it 

 is hoped that they may be published later. The numbers here refer to one of the plans. 



