134 REPORTS ON THE STATE OF SCIENCE. 



Mercian regions far beyond the present chalk escarpment to the basin 

 of the Thames. 



The Committee ask to be reappointed. A grant of 51. is asked for 

 to supplement the local fund, for the purpose of continuing the work 

 of excavation above the pond, and (with the proprietor's permission) 

 extending the operations into the adjoining land. 



Note. — This year (1911) extensive excavations connected with 

 public works have been made in the peaty alluvium and the underlying 

 glacial shingle of the Stort Valley. Most valuable ' finds ' have come 

 to hand from these, including pleistocene mammalian remains, as well 

 as bones of Equus and Bos longifrons, the former tallying remarkably 

 with the bones of the Maple Avenue skeleton. But as these excava- 

 tions do not fall under the purview of your Committee, they are dealt 

 with in a separate paper communicated to Section H. 



The Lake Villages in the Neighbourhood of Glastonbury. — Report of the 

 Committee, consisting of Dr. R. Munro (Chairman), Professor W. 

 Boyd Dawkins (Secretary), Professor W. Ridgeway, Sir Arthur 

 J. Evans, Dr. C. H. Read, Mr. H. Balfour, and Mr. A. Bulleid, 

 appointed to investigate the Lake Villages in the Neighbourhood of 

 Glastonbury in connection with a Committee of the Somersetshire 

 Archaeological and Natural History Society. (Drawn up by Messrs. 

 Arthur Bulleid and H. St. George Gray, the Directors of the 

 Excavations.) 



The second season's exploration of the Meare Lake Village by the 

 Somersetshire Archaeological and Natural History Society began on 

 June 5, and was continued for three weeks under the joint supervision 

 of Messrs. A. Bulleid and H. St. George Gray. The ground excavated 

 was situated in the same part of the village and was directly continuous 

 with last year's work. 



The digging included the examination of the remaining portion of 

 Dwelling-mound VII., the whole of Mound VIII., and portions of 

 Mounds IX., X., and XL 



With reference to the construction of the above mounds, two, i.e., 

 Mounds VIII. and IX., had special points of interest and call for 

 mention here. Taken as a whole, however, this part of the work has 

 been up to the present time somewhat disappointing, as little additional 

 information has been gained regarding the structure generally apart 

 from that already acquired at the Glastonbury Lake Village. 



Mound VIII. was of medium size, consisting of five floors and situ- 

 ated N.E. of Mound VII. No hearth was discovered associated with 

 the two uppermost floors, which were separated with much difficulty 

 throughout. An interesting series of eight superimposed baked clay 

 hearths was, however, found belonging to Floors iii., iv., and v., sur- 

 rounded by thick layers of fire-ash. The hearths varied from 2 feet 

 6 inches to 5 feet 3 inches in diameter. 



