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THE EXCAVATION" OF A EOMAN WELL NEAB 

 SILBTJEY HILL, OCTOBER, 1908. 



By J. W. Beooke, F.S.A. (Scot.), F.B.N.S. 



During ploughing operations on West Kennet Farm, one of 

 Mr. William Arnold's horses trod on soft and yielding ground, 

 causing the surface to gradually sink and to form a declivity. In 

 time the subsidence assumed a circular shape, so, in the hope of 

 ■discovering an obsolete well, Mr. Arnold kindly allowed an ex- 

 ploration. 



The site of the well is immediately opposite Silbury Hill, about 

 •one hundred and five yards from the hedge on the south side of 

 the Bath Road, and about seventy yards west of the Bourne or 

 Kennet and the row of trees. 



On referring to " Smith's British and Roman Antiquities of 

 .North Wilts" (page 163) and the map showing the wells near 

 ■Silbury in the Wilts Arch. Mag. (vol. xxix., p. 166) there seemed 

 iittle doubt that this was the site of the well which Messrs. W. & 

 H. Cunnington commenced to excavate in 1882, and of which the 

 Eev. A. C. Smith writes " the examination is not yet completed." 



The season of 1908 having been dry, and upon report that the 



springs were even lower than usual for the time of year, we decided 



to attack the work directly Mr. Arnold had gathered in his crop 



| of clover. The work was commenced on Wednesday, October 7th, 



1908, in moderately fine weather. 



Three able men were requisitioned, one of them being William 

 Coleman, of Avebury, who had similarly assisted Mr. B. Howard 

 Cunnington and myself in excavating a Roman well in 1896, which 

 upon numismatic evidence we proved to date as having been filled 

 in circa 450 A.D. {Wilts Arch. Mag., vol. xxix., p. 171). 



On removing the top soil we found that the excavation had a 

 diameter of some 12ft., and after removing a depth of 3ft. of soil, 

 in which we found nothing of any archaeological interest, we 



