The Roman villa on Lockleys Estate, Welwyn, was discovered accidentally in 1930. On that occasion a small portion of it was uncovered; but it was not until 1937 that, by the permission, and with the very generous co-operation, of the Welwyn Garden City Company, it proved possible to examine the site scientifically. The building was completely cleared; and although it was not sufficiently well preserved to justify the expense of preservation, the Garden City Company have undertaken to keep the site free of building, and the complete plan has been laid out on the surface in turf and brick. Of the many persons who by their help made the excavation possible I can only here record the work of Mr. W. R. Hughes, the secretary of the excavation committee, who bore the whole burden of the preliminary arrangements and gave invaluable help in the actual work of excavation and later in the preparation of this report; of Mr. A. E. Hick, who did nearly all the photography; and of Mr. Clarke, who undertook the whole of the surveying. My debt to Dr. Wheeler at all stages of the work is so apparent as hardly to need statement. To Dr. Davies Pryce also, to Mr. K. P. Oakley, and to Mr. Derek Allen I am deeply indebted for reporting respectively upon the Samian, the foreign stone, and the coins; to Mr. Hawkes for much help and advice, particularly in relation to the Colchester material; to Miss Kenyon for examining the fourth-century pottery; to Miss Scott for her collaboration upon many points of detail; and to all others who have given me their advice.

For over three-quarters of a century the New Forest potteries have had their place in the archaeology of Roman Britain. The first discoveries at Crock Hill were made by the Rev. J. P. Bartlett in 1852, and our Secretary Akerman's paper on these, together with J. R. Wise's work at Islands Thorns and elsewhere, soon made ‘New Forest ware’ as familiar a household word as ‘Castor’ or ‘Upchurch’ in the mouths of Victorian antiquaries. These researches made it clear that the potteries flourished mainly in the latter part of the Roman period: not only do we hear of no associations with ‘Samian’ (Terra Sigillata), but the majority of the coin-finds, rare as they were, were later than the middle of the third century. But to the early explorers ‘the Romans’ remained always alien conquerors, and it was left for Haverfield, who reviewed the material in 1900, to point out that the New Forest wares ‘have no Roman or Italian analogies, and are obviously native’. ‘It is a melancholy pleasure’, he remarked, ‘to find in this secluded corner of Britain a survival, however poor, of native ways.’ And in his Romanization of Roman Britain he duly quoted ‘the New Forest urns with their curious leaf-ornament’ among the ‘little local manufactures’ attesting the ‘sporadic survival’ of native Celtic art under Roman rule. But both there and in Professor Collingwood's Roman Britain it is in the livelier decoration of Castor ware that this was more explicitly recognized; and in the latest expression of his judgement, Professor Collingwood sums the matter up in a more guarded fashion.

Three years ago, when I first had the honour of addressing the Society on this occasion, I referred at some length to our urgent need of larger funds for purposes of research and for publishing the results of research; and in the following year I suggested that even quite small bequests or gifts would, if there were enough of them, go far towards meeting our requirements. I am glad therefore to give the first place in my observations to-night to the mention of the very substantial bequest which the Society has received from our late Fellow Mr. Garraway Rice. This bequest, amounting to over £5,420, the income of which may be devoted to research at the discretion of the Council, will enable us to add some £200 a year to our expenditure in this direction. I cannot claim this bequest as a result of my appeal; it had been embodied in a will made long before that date, and is attributable to the enlightened (I might almost say, inspired) action of one of my predecessors in making the testator a Vice-President. We cannot look for many bequests on such a scale as this, since Fellows have for the most part other claims which must take precedence of archaeology; but some might be able to spare small sums (not necessarily to be hoarded as capital) which they could feel would be devoted to the cause to which, as Fellows of the Society, they had vowed themselves, and which would greatly strengthen the hands of those who would come after them. I have some grounds to hope that this suggestion may bear fruit, though I have no wish to expedite its fructification.

In the spring of 1936 the Expedition cleared a large part of the al Mina site at the mouth of the Orontes and cut trial trenches on the inland tell of Atchana. Having regard to the importance of the results obtained the Trustees of the British Museum made a large grant towards the cost of the Atchana excavation; the Ashmolean Museum continued its support of the previous year, and the generous help given by private supporters in 1936 was again forthcoming; my sincere thanks are due to those who thus made our work possible.

The small metal cruet (pl. LXXI) that is the subject of this communication was acquired by the British Museum as part of the collection of Sir Wollaston Franks, and all that is otherwise known of its history is that it had previously been in the collection of Lord Londesborough and is engraved in Fairholt's Miscellanea Graphica of 1857. It is a cire-perdue bronze casting in one piece, afterwards covered with a wash of copper and a coat of gilding, and it stands 7·2 cm. high without its lid, which is missing. It is a remarkable piece, chiefly because of the most unusual ornament on the body of the vessel which consists of two rows of identical symmetrical decorative units in relief in the form of a pair of birds in a foliate spray. It will be noticed that these birds are, so to speak, ‘locked’ into the foliage by their wings, and it will also be noticed that they are biting upwards at the leaves with a curiously emphatic gesture of the back-thrown head and gaping bill. The units of decoration are quite distinct; but they are set close enough together to give the effect of a rich and crowded surface-ornament; and it will be seen that the spaces between their tapering upper portions are filled by small lion-masks. Over the spout there is a variation in the character of the ornament, for here we have a single downward-biting bird standing on a thin foliate branch; so we see that the designer was able to adapt and modify the stereotyped pattern that so much attracted him; and there is no doubt that he was a craftsman of considerable humour and skill. He has turned the spout itself into a lion's head, not by modelling but by the use of incised lines, and he has cunningly employed spiral curves to suggest the shoulders of the beast. The simple scroll on the foot does not call for comment; but the handle should be noticed. It is in the form of a serpent issuing from an animal-mouth on the hinge of the cruet, and its quaint curly end is a most striking feature that adds considerably to the ragged, lumpy prettiness of this charming little vessel.

In this paper an endeavour is made to elucidate certain aspects of the early phase of the Roman occupation. The period under consideration is that of the governorships of Aulus Plautius and Ostorius Scapula, A.D. 43–52. The evidence that is germane to the question is both historical and archaeological, and some fresh material, more particularly relating to ‘detail-find’, is embodied in the text and appendixes.

The Dean and Chapter of Durham Cathedral very kindly gave me permission to exhibit Flambard's crosier to the Society after it had been cleaned and repaired in the Laboratory of the British Museum during the latter part of 1937, and I am further indebted to them for allowing me to print the notes that I prepared for the evening of its exhibition. I must also record my gratefulness to them for sending Flambard's ring to London in order that the Society might have the pleasure of inspecting both these famous relics of the celebrated bishop.

The excavation of Verulamium in the years 1930–4 originated in a coincidence of archaeological need and local opportunity. The former, at this late date, needs no elaboration; the latter, it may be recalled, lay in the acquisition, by the Borough of St. Albans, of the southern half of the walled site, now known to have taken shape in the second century A.D. A central area within the new Corporation property accordingly remained for three years the main focus of the excavations, supplemented by an intensive examination of the town-defences, including two wall-towers and three gateways, of which two lay on property retained by Lord Verulam.

Archaeologically, the problem confronting the excavators was twofold: to establish (for the first time) the outlines of the economic history of a major Romano-British town deep-set in the 'lowland zone'; and to determine the relationship, topographically and culturally, of the successive Belgic and Roman settlements. It was a familiar fact that Verulamium had held an important royal mint at the beginning of the first century A.D., and, whether the term municipium applied by Tacitus to the town in A.D. 61 be taken at face-value or no, the chance of observing the growth of a first-class Roman city out of a first-class pre-Roman one was unsurpassed on any other site. It was, therefore, essential that the exploration of a part of the Roman city should be accompanied by a systematic search for its predecessor.

One of the outstanding features of ancient craftsmanship in gold and bronze is the decoration of ornaments and weapons with patterns of incised lines, or with dots. Hitherto very few of the actual tools by means of which this decoration was effected have been identified, though their widespread use is proved by the very large number of specimens in our museums upon which they have been employed. Indeed, by their purely conventional use of such terms as ‘awl’ and ‘celt’ archaeologists actually blind themselves to the real nature and significance of such tools, and these notes by a metallurgical worker may accordingly serve a useful purpose in drawing attention to the true character of some of them.

Only about ninety Great Seals of England are known for the period from the Conquest to the present day; and the addition of a new one to the series is a matter of some importance.

In a paper read to the Society not long ago I commented on Wyon's statement that the style of Henry V was changed during the last years of his reign as a result of the treaty of Troyes in 1420. Wyon had cited an order of the King to the Chancellor of the Exchequer for the alteration of a seal in his custody, but had found no impression of a seal so altered. Actually the treaty did not specifically provide that the English King should use the title in question—Heres Regni Francie—but that the French King, his father-in-law, should during his own life refer to Henry in public documents in that way; and the seal in custody of the Chancellor was presumably that of the Exchequer. I was able, however, to show in illustration fragments of two Irish seals bearing, though they came to us from later reigns, the word heres in their legend; which could only date from this period. It seemed unreasonable in these circumstances to suppose that the most important of all the Royal Seals, the Great Seal of England, should not have been similarly modified; and I ventured to hope that an example from the last two years of the reign would presently be discovered and prove my case. That example has now been produced by Mr. Chitty from the Muniment Room at Winchester College (pl.LXXV).

Altar-cruets in early times were known by a variety of names, ama, amula, ampulla, fiala, phiala, potum, urceus, urceolus, vas, and vasculum. These sacred vessels were made in pairs, in order to contain the wine and the water for use in the chalice and for the subsequent ceremonial ablutions, and, since the laity did not receive the chalice, these altar-cruets were in consequence of relatively small size.

Among the many treasures of art preserved by Sir William Burrell at Hutton Castle, Berwick-on-Tweed, is a stained-glass window which is likely to arouse the interest of English historians and historians of art. It represents Beatrix of Falkenburg, wife of Richard, Earl of Cornwall, King of the Romans and brother of King Henry III; and it is a very valuable example of English art of the thirteenth century.

Among the many brooches which have been found at Corstopitum, six specimens are recorded of the S-shaped or dragonesque type, which in its fully developed form has been well described as one of the finest examples of Romano-Celtic art. The type occurs predominantly in the military districts of Roman Britain (cf. distribution map, fig. i). Over 75 per cent. of the known examples have been found north of a line joining the Severn and the Humber, but even in this area only one site, Traprain Law, has yielded so many examples as Corstopitum, and of the six found at Traprain only two were complete, and one was a mere fragment. The Corstopitum brooches, while having in common the S-shaped or dragonesque outline, differ so much in other details as to invite the consideration of their mutual relationship and their respective places in the development of the type.

Of late the Levallois industries of the Thames valley have attracted notice, and an endeavour has been made to show analogies with artifacts of this culture from northern France. In describing implements recovered from the deposits north of and slightly above the 100-ft. contour near Iver the present author drew particular attention to Levallois relics found in the red and grey brickearth overlying solifluxion gravel, with stratified gravel below. The difference between palaeoliths from the last named and those from the brickearth at Iver was commented on, and at the same time parallels were drawn with the specimens found near Yiewsley.

The Romano-Celtic temples of Britain, unlike those of Gaul, rarely provide evidence of their dedications and the nature of the cults practised within them. At Silchester (Insula XXXV) and also at Worth, Kent, fragments of statuary found within the temple cella have been suggestive, although not conclusive. The remaining examples yet excavated in Britain (some eighteen in all) have been far less communicative: not one has yielded an inscription or votive object which would leave no doubt as to the identity of the god whose worshippers frequented it.

Since our knowledge of the local cults popular in the civilian areas of Roman Britain is so limited, an object which, though found ninety years ago at Farley Heath in Surrey, has hitherto escaped publication deserves belated recognition not only for its own sake, because it displays very curious features, but also for the light that it may throw on the subject.

Of the five swords to be described four, of iron, come from the Middle Thames basin. The fifth is sculptured on stone and comes from the North Riding of Yorkshire. It is especially interesting as a commentary on one of the iron swords.

Under each sword description there has been added a brief note on types and possible affinities.

I have to thank Mrs. Brakspear, the vicar of Ebberston, the Thames Conservancy Board, and Reading Museum for allowing me to publish the swords; and Messrs. W. A. Smallcombe, W. Seaby, C. Scott, R. Patterson, D. E. Redfearn, J. D. Cowen, and T. D. Kendrick for much help given.

In view of the stimulating discoveries made by Messrs. Schwantes and Rust in the districts of Hamburg and Kiel, I am prompted to write a preliminary note on two Mesolithic ‘floors’ recently discovered in the Ebbsfleet Valley, west of Northfleet, on the right bank of the Lower Thames. The horizons in question are located in a stoneless calcareous silt containing shells of both land and freshwater types. Subsequent erosion phases have considerably denuded the silt, which, at the present time, is overlain by some 6 ft. of alluvial deposits. The marked differences between the implements of the lower and upper ‘floors’ are best summarized as under:

1. The artifacts from the lower ‘floor’ are invariably patinated blue or white, whilst those from the upper ‘floor’ are always in an unaltered condition.

2. The blades from the lower ‘floor’ are much longer and broader than are those from the upper ‘floor’; some of the former attain 7½ in. in length (figs. 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5).

3. Core-scrapers are not present in the lower ‘floor’ though of common occurrence in the upper ‘floor’.

4. The gravers from the lower ‘floor’ (figs. 6 and 7) approximate more closely to those of Upper Palaeolithic times than do the examples from the upper ‘floor’ (fig. 8).

5. Though none has so far been recovered from the lower ‘floor’, the upper ‘floor’ has yielded shouldered points (figs. 9 and 10), a characteristic form in the Hamburg culture.

On ne s'est guère occupé jusqu'ici des albâtres anglais conservés en Belgique. Ils sont pourtant nombreux et le plus souvent pleins d'intérêt.

Nous n'avons plus de retables complets comme ceux que le Comte Biver a signalés dès 1910, dans l'Archaeological Journal. Ils ont été vraisemblablement démembrés par les Iconoclastes qui ont fait, dans les anciens Pays-Bas, des ravages peut-être moins systématiques que ceux des Puritains anglais, mais hélas aggravés par les invasions et les guerres.

It is now some years since I first drew attention to the discovery of certain very perfect leaf-shaped blades, of Early Solutré type, at Ipswich. These specimens were found during the putting in of deep foundations for a chimney-shaft at the Ipswich Corporation's Power Station in Constantine Road. The blades, which are unabraded, came from below a considerable thickness of gravel, where, it may be supposed, there at one time existed a land surface inhabited by Early Solutré man. This land surface is now buried beneath the Flood Plain terrace of the River Gipping, and is well below the water-table of the locality. It is clear, therefore, that since Early Solutré man lived in the Gipping Valley, a marked sinking of the East Anglian area has taken place. Following the appearance of my paper upon the blades found at Constantine Road, Ipswich, other specimens which, by their forms and manner of flaking, are also referable to Early Solutré times have been recovered. These examples have come to light about a mile farther up the valley. The site is situated on the south-west of the Bramford Road where the Flood Plain gravel is being exploited by Messrs. Warren Livingstone, Ltd. The gravel is raised by means of a powerful suction-pump, and, from my observations at Bramford Road, I entertain little doubt that, as at Constantine Road, the Flood Plain Early Solutré land-surface is present there below the Flood Plain gravel.

Bleasdale Circle was discovered in 1898 by Messrs. Thomas Kelsall and Shadrach Jackson and excavated by them in the period 1898–1900, their work being reported upon by Professor Sir William Boyd Dawkins in the Transactions of the Lancashire and Cheshire Antiquarian Society of 1900. Upon the conclusion of these excavations the site was planted with conifers and rhododendrons, and the posts of the inner ring (pl. XLVI) were raised to the surface of the ground adjacent to their original holes (pl. XLIII, 1). In 1925, when the site was scheduled as an Ancient Monument, these oak posts had almost completely rotted and the site had become covered with dense undergrowth. Since it was suspected that the published plans were not strictly accurate, and as it was known that the whole of the site had not been excavated, it was decided to combine re-excavation with an attempt at preservation of what was left of the circle. A ‘Bleasdale Preservation Committee’ was formed, and with funds raised by public subscription the work of re-excavation was carried out under the direction of the author in the Easters of 1933–5, by kind permission of the owner, Mr. W. J. Sharp, the tenant, Mr. Edward Kelsall (son of the original discoverer), and H.M. Office of Works.