Ancient British, or Celtic, Period—General characteristics of the Barrows—Modes of construction—Interments by inhumation and by cremation—Positions of the body—Hitter Hill Barrow—Elliptical Barrow at Swinscoe—Burial in contracted position—In sitting and kneeling positions—Double interments.

The barrows of the Celtic, or ancient British, period vary in their form and size as much as they do in their modes of construction, and in their contents. Sometimes they are simply mounds of earth raised over the interment; sometimes heaps of stones piled up over the body; and sometimes again a combination of cist and earth and stone. Generally speaking the mounds are circular, rising gradually and gently from the level of the ground towards the centre, but in some instances the rise is somewhat acute. Now and then they are oval in form. Where elliptical barrows occur (generally known as “long barrows”), they are, I have reason to believe, not matters of original design, but of accident, through additional interments; and I much doubt the propriety of archÆologists at the present day continuing the very questionable nomenclature adopted by Sir R. C. Hoare and others. In some cases, however, as in the instances of chambered or walled tumuli, the elliptical form of the barrow can be easily understood. An examination of a very large number of barrows leads me to the opinion that the original form of all was circular, and that no deviation from that form, and no difference in section, can be taken as indicative of period or of race.

The other appellation occasionally used, of “twin barrows,” is further evidence of this—two interments having been made within a short distance of each other, and the mounds raised over them running into and joining each other. It may, however, for purposes of description, and for this alone, be well to retain the names, while discarding much of the theory and of the system which has been attempted to be established regarding them.

The mounds of earth alluded to, present occasionally highly interesting and curious features, and show that, like those of a different construction, they have frequently been used for successive interments. The section of one of these is shown on the next page. It is one of a group of six barrows on Lord’s Down, in the parish of Dewlish, in Dorsetshire. It was eighty-two feet in diameter, and fourteen feet in height in the centre. The primary interment, an urn, was placed in a cist cut in the chalk sub-soil. Over the urn was raised a small cairn of flints, and the cist was then filled in, and raised a little above the surface with chalk rubble. Over this was a layer of earth, upon which an interment had taken place, and in its turn covered with a thick layer of chalk rubble, in the centre of which, in a cist, another interment had again been made. Above this rose another layer of earth, another of chalk, and then a final one of earth, on each of which interments had at different periods been made. Thus the tumulus, which was formed of alternate layers of chalk and earth, exhibited no less than six successive sepulchral deposits.2 The interments were both by inhumation and cremation.

Another example of a barrow of this period is shown in section on the fig. 3. There had originally been four small mounds, or barrows, formed in a group, on the natural surface of the ground (see the two dotted lines in the engraving). They were composed of tempered earth, approaching in tenacity almost to clay, and on these the general mound was raised to a height of about eighteen feet, and was composed of earth, intermixed with loose rubbly limestones. Nearly at the top, in the centre, a stone cist, enclosing an interment, was discovered. It was in form a perfect, though miniature, example of what are commonly called cromlechs.

It is not an unfrequent occurrence in barrows to find that interments have been made at different periods and by different races, as will be hereafter shown.

The two examples of mounds of earth already given will show the successive layers which have occurred in their formation. The simpler, and intact, mounds of earth, which are very common, require no illustration. They are simply immense circular heaps of earth raised over the interment, whether in cist or not.

Barrows, or mounds, of stone are of frequent occurrence. They are of very simple construction. The interment, whether by cremation or otherwise, having been made in a natural or artificial cist, or simply laid upon the natural surface of the ground, rough stones were placed in a large circle around it, and an immense quantity of stones were then piled up to a height of several feet. Some of these cairns are of very great size, and cover a large area of ground. Sections of two tumuli of this description are given in figs. 4 and 5. The cairn of stone was, as will be seen, covered to some depth with earth; perhaps in some instances this might be a part of the original design, but in most cases the soil which now covers these stone barrows may be traced to the ordinary process of decay of vegetation in successive ages.

Barrows were not unfrequently surrounded by a circle of stones, set upright in the ground. These circles, in many instances, remain to the present day in different parts of the kingdom, and, the barrow itself having disappeared, are commonly called by the general appellation of “Druidical circles.” But of these, later on. The construction of the stone circles varied considerably. In some instances the upright stones were pretty close together; in others, wide apart; and in others, again, the spaces between the uprights were filled in with a rude loose rubble masonry, which thus formed a continuous wall.

Some tumuli contained stone chambers and passages, formed of massive upright slabs, and covered with immense blocks of stone. Over these chambers, etc., the mounds of earth, or of stone, or of both combined, were raised, as will be hereafter shown.

Interments in the Celtic grave-mounds were both by inhumation and cremation, and the modes of interment, in both these divisions, was very varied.

Where inhumation obtained, the body was sometimes laid on its side, in a contracted position; at others, extended full length on its back or side; and in other instances, again, was placed in an upright sitting or kneeling posture. Occasionally, too, where more than one body has been buried at the same time, they have been laid face to face, with their arms encircling each other; at other times an infant has been placed in its mother’s arms.

When cremation has been practised, the remains have either been gathered together in a small heap on the surface of the ground—sometimes enclosed in a small cist, at others left uncovered, and at others covered with a small slab of stone—or wrapped in a cloth or skin (the bone or bronze pin which has fastened the napkin being occasionally found), or enclosed in cinerary urns, inverted or otherwise. In some instances, even when placed in urns, they were first enclosed in a cloth.

These are the general characteristics of the interments of the Celtic period, and they will be best understood by the following examples.

When the body has been buried in a contracted position, it is found lying on its side; the left side being the most usual. The head generally inclines a little forward; the knees are drawn up near to the chest, and the heels to the thighs; the elbows are brought near to the knees,—frequently, indeed, one of them will be found beneath, and the other on, the knees, which have thus been held between them; and the hands are frequently brought up to the front of the face. This position, which is after all, perhaps, the most easy and natural one to choose, will be best understood by the following engraving (fig. 6), which shows an interment found in a barrow on Smerril Moor, opened by my much lamented friend the late Mr. Thomas Bateman. In this case the body had been laid on its left side in an irregularly formed cavity on the surface of the natural rock, on a bed of clay, over which, as usual, the mound was formed of loose stones and mould. Behind the skeleton, as will be seen in the engraving, was found a remarkably fine “drinking cup,” along with a bone meshing rule or modelling tool, twelve inches long, made from the rib of a horse or cow; a flint dagger; an arrow-head; and some other implements, also of flint, all of which had been burned. The femur of this skeleton measured nineteen and a half inches, and the tibia sixteen inches.

The next example (fig. 7), from Tissington, will be seen to have been laid in very much the same position. It lies on its left side, the knees drawn up, and the feet, elbows, and hands in the position I have already described. This barrow possessed considerable interest, from the fact that a later interment—of the Anglo-Saxon period—had been made immediately above the figure here subjoined. To this I shall refer under the head of Anglo-Saxon. In the same barrow, shown at A on the engraving, was a deposit of burnt bones. Fig. 8, again, shows an interment in the contracted position, the head, in this instance, resting upon the left hand. The skeleton lay in an oblong oval cist, five feet long by two and a half feet wide, smoothly hollowed out of the chalk, and over this the mound was raised. Along with it were found a bronze dagger, a barbed arrow-head of flint, a beautiful drinking cup and other objects. This example is from Roundway Hill, in North Wiltshire.3 Another excellent example, from Hitter Hill, Derbyshire, is given in the next engraving (fig. 9), which shows successive interments, each being on the left side, in the usual contracted position.

Of this barrow, the opening of which presented peculiarly interesting features, a tolerably detailed account will be advisable. It was opened by myself and Mr. Lucas in 1862. The mound, which was about twenty-two feet in diameter, was composed of rough stone and earth intermixed. It was only about three feet in height, its centre being somewhat sunk. The first opening was made at the part marked A on the accompanying ground-plan (fig. 10), where, from the outside, we cut a trench, four feet in width, in a north-easterly direction, towards the centre of the barrow, and soon came upon an interment of burnt and unburnt human bones. Along with these were an immense quantity of rats’ bones4 and snail-shells. After proceeding to a distance of seven feet, we came upon the side, or what may almost be called the entrance, of a cist formed partly of the natural rock, and partly of stones set up edgewise. The dimensions of this cist were about forty inches by twenty-six inches, and it was two feet in depth, the floor being three feet six inches below the surface. The cist was formed between two portions of natural rock, and protected at its entrance by a large flat stone set up edgwise, and other stones filled up the interstices at the sides. It was also covered with a large flat stone. On clearing away the surrounding earth, after removing the covering stone, we were rewarded by finding that the cist contained the fragmentary remains of a young person, which had lain on its right side, in the usual position, with the knees drawn up. The accompanying engraving (fig. 11) will show the opened cist, with the stone across its entrance, and the interment in situ. In front of the skeleton, and close to its hands, was a remarkably good and perfect food vessel, which was richly ornamented with the diagonal and herring-bone lines, formed by twisted thongs impressed into the soft clay.

The next morning we dug a trench four feet wide, on the west side towards the centre, as shown at B on the plan (fig. 10), and the day’s labours had an equally satisfactory result. At about the same distance as on the previous day we came to the side of a cist, immediately in front of which, at F on the plan, lay a heap of burnt bones, and a few flakes of burnt flint. Having cleared away the surrounding stones and earth, and removed the large flat covering stones, which showed above the surface of the mound, we found the cist to be composed on one side by the natural rock, and on the other by flat stones set up on edge. Its dimensions were about one foot ten inches by four feet, and it contained a large quantity of rats’ bones and snails’ shells. In this cist was an interment of an adult, much crushed by one of the large covering stones having fallen upon it. Thanks to this circumstance, however, a food vessel, which we discovered, owed its preservation. The body lay in the usual contracted position, on its right side, as shown on the ground-plan at B, and in front and close to the hands was the food vessel, which, like the other, was taken out entire. It is five and a quarter inches in height, and six and a quarter inches in diameter at the top, and is richly ornamented.

Continuing the excavations to the south, we found that another cist C adjoined the one just described, and was, like it, formed of flat stones set up edgewise; in fact, it was like one long cist divided across the middle. In this second cist, besides the usual accompaniment of rats’ bones, was the remains of an interment, sufficiently in situ to show that the skeleton had, like the others, been deposited in a contracted position. A small fragment of pottery was also found, but owing to the cist being so near the surface the stones had been partially crushed in, and thus both the deposit and the urn had become destroyed. A portion of a stone hammer was also found.

The two cists are here shown (fig. 12), which also shows the central interment at a higher level, to be hereafter described.

On the following Monday we resumed our operations by making an opening on the north-west side, as shown at D on the plan. Here, again, at a few feet from the outer edge, we came upon an interment H, without a cist, accompanied by an unusual quantity of rats’ bones. Continuing the excavation, we were again rewarded by the discovery of a fine cist, but at a greater depth than those before described. Above this cist we found some large bones of the ox, and on the covering stone was a deposit of burnt bones and ashes, with innumerable quantities of rats’ bones.

The cist, which was covered with one extremely large flat stone, we found to be formed partly of the natural rock, and partly—like the others—of flat stones set up edgewise; and it was, without exception, the most compact and neatly formed of any which have come under our observation. Its form will be seen on the plan at D, and its appearance, when the interior soil was removed, is shown on fig. 9. The dimensions of the cist were as follows:—Width at the foot, twenty-four inches; extreme length, forty inches; general depth, twenty inches. The floor was composed of the natural surface of the rock, with some small flat stones laid to make it level, and at the narrow end a raised edge of stone, rudely hollowed in the centre, formed a pillow on which the head rested. The sides of the cist were square on the one side to the length of twenty-eight, and on the other of twenty-one, inches, and it then gradually became narrower until at the head its width was only ten inches. When the cist was cleared of its accumulation of soil and rats’ bones—of which scores of jaw-bones were present, thus showing the large number of these ravaging animals which had taken up their abode there—it presented one of the most beautiful and interesting examples of primeval architecture ever exhumed. It contained the skeleton of an adult, laid on his left side, in the usual contracted position, but without any pottery or flint. The skull, of which an outline engraving is given on fig. 13, is a most interesting and characteristic example of the cranium of an ancient Coritanian Briton. It is brachy-cephalic, and is the subject of deformity from nursing on the cradle-board in infancy.5 It is the skull of a middle-aged man, and is remarkably well formed. The bones, with the exception of some of the small ones, were all remaining, and formed a skeleton of considerable ethnological interest. The small bones were gnawed away by the rats, and it is curious to see to what distances, in some interments, these active little animals have dragged even large bones from their original resting-places. It may not be without interest to note, that within the skull of this skeleton the bones of a rat, head and all, were found imbedded in the soil, along with some small stones, which he doubtless had dragged in with him on his last excursion. We continued our excavations in a north-easterly direction, as shown at G on the plan, and found another interment, but without a cist or any other notable remains; and next day we commenced opening that portion of the centre of the barrow between the cists already described, and soon came upon an interment of an adult person, as shown on the plan at E. The bones were very much disturbed, but sufficient remained to show that the deceased had been placed on his left side, in the same contracted position as the others in this mound. The body was not more than twelve inches below the surface, and was much disturbed, but it is more than probable the top of the barrow had at some distant time been taken off, most likely for the sake of the stone. The position of this interment will be seen on reference to the plan, and it is also shown on figs. 9, 11, and 12.

In addition to these illustrations, it will be sufficient to give the annexed engraving (fig. 14), which shows the position of a number of interments uncovered by Mr. Bateman in the centre of an elliptical barrow6 at Swinscoe. The interments were as follows:—1. A young adult, lying in a contracted position, on its right side, in a shallow grave cut about six inches deep in the chert rock, with a stone placed on edge at the head, and another at the feet. 2. A young adult, lying on its right side, an upright stone at its head. 3. A middle-aged person, lying with the face upwards, and guarded by a large stone at its side. 4. The bones of a young hog, enclosed in a stone cist. 5. Remains of a cinerary urn and burnt bones. 6. Skeleton of an aged man, lying in a contracted position, on its left side, upon a thin layer of charred wood. 7. A deposit of burnt bones. 8. Skeleton, very fragmentary. 9. A double interment, consisting of two skeletons, with a flat stone on edge by their side. These were an adult, and a child of a few months old only. 10. Skeleton of an aged man, lying in the usual position, on his left side, enclosed in a circle of stones. Behind him lay a handsome drinking-cup. 12. Portions of a skeleton in a pentagonal cist. 13. Skeleton of a young person, placed close up to an upright flat stone. 14. Skull and portions of a skeleton. Several flints and other remains were found with these various interments.

Interments where the body has lain extended are of much rarer occurrence, in this period, than those just described. Some few instances have been brought to light in Derbyshire, and in other counties, but they are indeed “few and far between,” and are the very rare exceptions to a general rule. One of the most interesting of these instances is the one called “Shuttlestone Low,” opened a few years ago by Mr. Bateman, and thus described by him: “It consisted of a compact mass of tempered earth down to the natural surface of the land, below which point, in the centre of the barrow, there appeared a large collection of immense limestones, the two uppermost being placed on edge, and all below being laid flat, though without any other order or design than was sufficient to prevent the lowest course resting upon the floor of the grave inside which they were piled up, and which was cut out to the depth of at least eight feet below the natural surface; thus rendering the total depth, from the top of the mound to the floor of the grave, not less than twelve feet. Underneath the large stones lay the skeleton of a man, in the prime of life, and of fine proportions, apparently the sole occupant of the mound; who had been interred while enveloped in a skin of dark-red colour, the hairy surface of which had left many traces both upon the surrounding earth and upon the verdigris, or patina, coating; a bronze axe-shaped celt and dagger deposited with the skeleton. On the former weapon there are also beautifully distinct impressions of fern leaves, handfuls of which, in a compressed and half-decayed state, surrounded the bones from head to foot. From these leaves being discernible on one side of the celt only, whilst the other side presents traces of leather alone, it is certain that the leaves were placed first as a couch for the reception of the corpse, with its accompaniments, and after these had been deposited, were then further added in quantity sufficient to protect the body from the earth. The position of the weapons with respect to the body is well ascertained, and is further evidenced by the bronze having imparted a vivid tinge of green to the bones where in contact with them. Close to the head were one small black bead of jet and a circular flint; in contact with the left upper arm lay a bronze dagger with a very sharp edge, having two rivets for the attachment of the handle, which was of horn, the impression of the grain of that substance being quite distinct around the studs. About the middle of the left thigh-bone was placed the bronze celt which is of the plainest axe-shaped type. The cutting edge was turned towards the upper part of the person, and the instrument itself has been inserted vertically into a wooden handle, by being driven in for about two inches at the narrow end—at least the grain of the wood runs in the same direction as the longest dimension of the celt,—a fact not unworthy of the notice of any inclined to explain the precise manner of mounting these curious implements. The skull—which is decayed on the left side, from the body having lain with that side down—is of the platy-cephalic form, with prominent parietal tubers—the femur measures 18½ inches.”

Another good instance is from Yorkshire, where two skeletons were found side by side, extended, with their heads respectively east and west, lying in a bed of charcoal.

Occasionally, as has been stated on a previous page, interments have been made in an upright sitting position. Instances of this kind are rare and very curious. Our engraving (fig. 15) shows an interment of this kind, which occurred in a barrow at Parcelly Hay. The body had been placed in a sitting posture, leaning back against the side of the cist, which was only three feet in height, and not more than that in its greatest width. The cist was roughly covered in with large slabs of limestone. The skull, which was a remarkably fine one, has been engraved in “Crania Britannica.”7 On the covering-stones lay another skeleton, among the loose stones of which the barrow itself was composed. This secondary interment was accompanied by a fine axe-head of stone and a bronze dagger. Of course the seated skeleton must have been of an earlier date still.

Another remarkable instance of this kind of interment—but this time in a kneeling position—was discovered in the Cromlech De Tus, or De Hus, in Guernsey, by Mr. F. C. Lukis.8 This interesting relic is situated near Paradis, in the parish of Vale, and is a chambered tumulus of simple but excellent construction. The mound is surrounded by a circle of stones, about twenty yards in diameter. In the centre is the principal chamber, covered with large flat stones, and from it to the extremity of the mound, on the east, was a passage formed by upright stones, and covered here and there with cap-stones dividing it into chambers. On the north side of this passage was a chamber formed by upright stones, on which rested the large flat covering stone; and close to this was another similar but smaller chamber. In the first were discovered “vases, bone instruments, celts, and human remains.” In the latter, on removing the soil at the top, “the upper part of two human skulls were exposed to view. One was facing the north, and the other the south, but both disposed in a line from east to west,”—in other words, side by side, and shoulder to shoulder, but facing opposite ways. They were skeletons of adult males, and, on clearing away the soil, they were found to have been buried at the same time. “The perfect regular position of a person kneeling on the floor, in an upright posture, with the arms following the direction of the column, pelvis, and thigh-bones, and gradually surrounded by the earth, in like manner as may be conceived would be done were the persons buried alive, will give an exact representation of this singular discovery.”

Another excellent example of this very unusual mode of interment—this time in a sitting posture—was discovered by some tufa-getters, and examined by Mr. Bateman, in Monsal Dale, and is shown on the accompanying engraving, fig. 16, which exhibits a section of the rock, etc.; and shows the position of the skeleton, and the manner in which the cavity containing the body had been filled up with the river sand. The body in this case, as in the last, had been placed in the cavity, in a sitting position, and must have been so placed from an opening in front. The cavity was ten or twelve feet above the bed of the river Wye, and above it were some five feet in thickness of solid tufa rock, while, from the face of the rock, the cavity was about twelve feet. The body may therefore be said to have been entombed in the middle of the solid rock. The roof of the cavity when found was beautifully covered with stalactites. The skeleton was that of a young person, and near it were found a flint and some other matters. The cavity was filled to part way up the skull with sand.

Another example of interment in a sitting posture was discovered some years ago, at Kells in Ireland. These will be sufficient to show the curious character of this mode of interment.

Several examples of double interments, besides those described above, have been discovered in different localities. One of the most curious is the one in the largest cist, in fig. 17. In this cist, which is composed of four upright slabs of stone,9 were the skeletons of a man and woman, and the remains of two children; the family having probably been immolated at the death of its head, and all buried together. A small urn was found in the same cist; and in the same barrow, in other portions which were excavated, as shown in the plan, were other interments, both by cremation and by inhumation.

In No. 9, on fig. 14, an interment of a mother and her child together is shown. Another instance is shown on the next engraving, fig. 18. In this instance the woman was laid in the usual contracted position, on her left side, with her head to the east. Close in front of the breast, lying in the arms in the same contracted position, lay the infant. Some flints and a fragment of pottery were found along with this touching interment.