70 
Table 1. Land snail and magnetic susceptibility data from the buried soil (note: ¢ 
examined for pollen) 
Cw 
122-125 
72 
Context 
Depth (cm) 
Wt (g) 
MOLLUSCA 
Pomatias elegans (Miller) 1 
Carychium tridentatum (Risso) 1 
Cochlicopa spp. . 
Vertigo pusilla Miller - 
Vertigo pygmaea (Draparnaud) - 
Vertigo spp. - 
Pupilla muscorum (Linnaeus) - 
Vallonia costata (Miller) 1 
Vallonia excentrica Sterki - 
Vallonia spp. - 
Acanthinula aculeata (Miller) - 
Ena montana (Draparnaud) - 
Discus rotundatus (Miller) 
Vitrea contracta (Westerlund) - 
Aegopinella nitidula (Draparnaud) - 
Oxychilus cellarius (Miller) - 
Limacidae - 
Euconulus fulvus (Miller) - 
Clausilia bidentata (Strom) 1 
Helicella itala (Linnaeus) - 
Trichia hispida (Linnaeus) - 
Cepaea/Arianta spp. - 
Taxa 3 
TOTAL per kg 55 
TOTAL 
Magnetic susceptibility (SI 10° SI/Kg) 14 
THE WILTSHIRE ARCHAEOLOGICAL AND NATURAL HISTORY MAGAZINE 
sample 
A/B A/B Ah mound 
110-122 93-110 86-93 80- 85 
317 401 248 327 
+ 2 + 2 
3 is 
Z 1 3 
l : hs 2 
- 1 3 1 
3 - 2 - 
1 2 6 pp 
4 2 3 - 
= - 4 3 
1 - 4 - 
2 - - Z, 
1 1 - - 
~ 2 + - 
3 - 1 - 
6 2 4 - 
3 - 3 - 
1 - 1 
l - s 
3 + - IF 
- 3 6 5 
3 1 3 1 
. : + + 
14 9 11 7 
120 37 173 49 
38 15 43 16 
24 32 58 47 
barrows in Wiltshire (Horslip, West Kennet and 
South Street, see Evans 1972, 261-4) the main 
horizon of the buried soil at Corton showed a 
marked change from assemblages dominated by 
shade-loving species (Table 1), including some 
relict ancient woodland species, to open country 
species (nearly 70%). This is, however, similar to 
that represented by the snail fauna (Rouse and 
Evans in Whittle et al. 1993, 211-217) in the 
shallow (8cm) humic rendzina (Macphail in 
Whittle et al. 1993, 218-219) at Easton Down, 
Wilts. The high percentages of shade-loving 
species (50-61%) in the lower part of the soil at 
Corton, and the presence of V pusilla and Ena 
montana indicate a former ancient, albeit open, 
woodland (Figure 4). Like many _ other 
assemblages of this type (cf. Evans 1972, 248-74), 
most of the shells in this portion of the soil were 
more heavily weathered and pitted indicating that 
they had been in the soil much longer than those in 
the assemblages above 93cm. In the upper mull 
humus and possible turfline (93-80cm) the 
assemblages are markedly different; although some 
shade-loving species persist, the assemblage has a 
