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Durham E-Theses A re-assessment of pagan Anglo-Saxon burials and burial rites in Wiltshire: Not available Porter, J. A. F How to cite: Porter, J. A. F (1977) A re-assessment of pagan Anglo-Saxon burials and burial rites in Wiltshire: Not available, Durham theses, Durham University. Available at Durham E-Theses Online: http://etheses.dur.ac.uk/9741/ Use policy The full-text may be used and/or reproduced, and given to third parties in any format or medium, without prior permission or charge, for personal research or study, educational, or not-for-prot purposes provided that: • a full bibliographic reference is made to the original source • a link is made to the metadata record in Durham E-Theses • the full-text is not changed in any way The full-text must not be sold in any format or medium without the formal permission of the copyright holders. Please consult the full Durham E-Theses policy for further details. Academic Support Oce, Durham University, University Oce, Old Elvet, Durham DH1 3HP e-mail: [email protected] Tel: +44 0191 334 6107 http://etheses.dur.ac.uk 2 A RE-ASSESSMENT OP PAGAN ANQLO-SAXOB BURIALS AND BURIAL RITES BT WILTSHIRS Thesis submitted in candidacy for the Degree of Master of Philosophy Completed June, 197.7/ Submitted October, 1977 Judy Ann Frledlander Porter The Graduate Society Durham University- TO 1Y MOTHER and IH MEMORY OF MY FATHER TABLE of CONTENTS Acknowledgements Introduction PAGE CHAPTER I Historical Background 1 CHAPTER II General Outline of the Geography 16 of Wiltshire and its Effects upon the Placement of Pagan Anglo-Saxon Burial Sites A. The relationship between 21 burials and native sites and placenames mentioned in early Charters B. Parish Boundaries 23 CHAPTER III s Cemeteries Introduction 29 A. Blackpatch 33 B. Broadchalke 51 c. Harnham Hill 66 D. Petersfinger 76 E. The Barrow/Cemetery Complex 98 at Roche Court Down *\ Winkelbury Hill 113 G. Winterbourne Gunner 126 H. Gazetteer of small cemeteries 136 I. Short notes on badly excavated 145 or poorly recorded sites J. Single burials 149 CHAPTER IV Primary and Secondary Barrow Burials Introduction 165 A. Primary barrow Burials 172 B. Secondary burials in barrows 199 of all types CHAPTER V Burial Rites 233 CONCLUSION 258 APPENDICES 279 Abbreviations Bibliography ILLUSTRATIONS TABLE of ILLUSTRATIONS CHAPTER I 1. Placenames containing Celtic elements (B.P.N.S. 1939) 2. The Romano-British Period (V.C.H. Vol. I, Pt. I) CHAPTER II 3. Geological Map of Wiltshire (V.q.B^ Vol. I, Pt. I) 4» Nineteenth Century Parish Map (Antiq.J.. 1919) CHAPTER III 55. Number of Burials in Cemeteries 6. She Old Sarum Group (WiAm. 1964) ?• Sit® Plan » Blackpatch (Devizes Museum) S» Artefacts from Blackpatch (Devizes Museum) 9* Artefacts from Blackpatch (Devizes Museum) 10. Artefacts from Blackpatoh (Devizes Museum) 11• Artefacts from Blackpatch (Devizes Museum) 12. Site Plan - Broadchalke (WiAm. 1927) 13. Artefacts from Harnham Hill (Arch. 1855) 14. Site Plan - Petersfinger (Leeds, de Shortt, 1953) 15* Grave Shapes (inset) 16. Development Plan - Petersfinger 17. Artefacts from Petersfinger Grave 21 (Leeds, de Shortt, 1953) 18. Artefacts from Petersfinger (Ibid) 19» Artefacts from Petersfinger (Ibid)~ 20. Site Plan - Roche Court Down I (WiAm. 1932) 21. Site Plan - Roche Court Down II (Ibid) 22# Site Plan - Winkelbury Hill (Pitt-Rivers II, 1888) 23. Coffin Fittings - Winkelbury Hill - (Ibid) 24. Site Plan - Wlnterbourae Gunner (Antiq.J.. 1964) 25* Artefacta from Winterbourne Gunner (ibid) 26. Artefacts from Baasett Down (WiAm, 1896) 27. Artefacts from Single Burials Mildanhall (Cunnington, 1934) Perham Down C Antiq.J.. 1963) Bbbesbourne (Ibid) Easton Royal ( Cunnington, 1934) 28. Girdle Hangers CHAPTER IV 29. Diameters of Purpose Built and Re-used Barrows 30. Distribution Map - Primary Barrow Burials 31• Artefacts from CoombeBissat and Rodmead Down CSwanton, Corpus, 1974, Antiq. J.. 1963) 32. Artefacts from Primary Barrow Burials Coombe Bisset (Swanton, Corpus, 1974) Alvediston (Antiqj.J.. 1963) lest Knoyle (Ibid); - - , Roundway Down II (WiAm. 1860); TABLE of ILLUSTRATIONS CHAPTER IV Coon'd.) 33# Artefacts from the Barrow at Ford (Swanton,Corpus,1974) 34• Gold and Garnet Jewellery- (Akerraan, 1855, Baldwin- Brown IV, 1919) 35, Distribution Map - Secondary Barrow Burials 36, Sherrington Long Barrow Burials (reconstruction) CONCLUSION 37* Breakdown of Orientation in Cemeteries (by age and sex) 38* Population Distribution 39* Ages of Mortality APPENDICES 40* Pottery (A) . (Leeds, de Short*, 1953) (B) . (Ibid) (C) . (WiAm. 1942) (D) . (Cunnington, 1934) (E) . (Devizes Museum) 41. Chronological Map of Burial Sites ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I would like to thank the following individuals for their imestimatible help and co-operation: D. Austin (Lampeter U.), P. Austin (Durham U.), E. and J. Bamett (Devizes Museum), P.J. Casey. (Durham U.), H. Cayton (Durham U.), P.A.G. Clack (Durham U.) Dr. V. Evison (London U.J, W. POrd (Trowbridge), B. Gill (Durham U.), C. Ginzell (Devizes Museum), N. Griffiths (Devizes Museum), WC* Main (Durham U.), C. Morris (Durham U.J, J. Musty (D*o •£'•), D. 0'Sullivan (Durham U«), P. Robinson (Devizes Museum), Staff of the Conservation Laboratory (Trowbridge), Staff of the Salisbury Museum, L. Webster (British Museum), and R. Young (Durham U.)* My special thanks to Hilary Haigh (Durham U.), who drew several of the illustrations in the text and helped to arrange them, for the vast amount of time and patience she gave to their preparation and presentation, Mr* F.K. Annable, Curator of the Society's Huseum-Devizea, was of very great help to me and I am especially grateful to him for allowing me to use unpublished material from his excavations at Blackpatch and for permitting me access to the Museum's extensive collections* I am deeply indebted to Professor R.J. Cramp for her valuable and valued guidance and encouragment, the gift of her time and knowledge: and for the opportunity to study under her supervision at Durham University. Lastly, I would like to thank my mother, Mrs. C.H. Priedlander, and my husband, C.H. Porter, for their patience, co-operation and support throughout: the writing of this thesis. ABSTRACT Much valuable work has been done in the past in the field of pagan Anglo-Saxon burials in the county of Wiltshire. However, new material is constantly being added to the corpus and many of the earlier publications and theories are now in need of re-assessment in the light of new discoveries both in the county and elsewhere. The material contained in this thesis includes sites found as of Spring, 1976, including the unpublished sites at Blackpatch and Swallowcliffe Down. Unfortunately, there was no readily available information for the most recent sites, such as Collingboume Duels, and these are touched upon without being studied in detail. Fast work in the field of cemetery and burial analysis has laid much of its emphasis upon the study of grave goods, their derivations, affinities, and chronology, often to the neglect of thee burials themselves. This thesis attempts to place the grave goods in a role of secondary importance and to analyse the burials, themselves, and the information they may contain as to the life styles, community organisation and religious practises of the pagan Anglo- Saxons of Wiltshire, as its primary function. Some sixty-three sites of varying historical and archaeological value, were studied: cemeteries, single burials, primary and secondary barrow burials, and chance finds. Many of these were very poorly excavated and published and several have been noted as being of dubious date. However, each burial and burial place was investigated using fairly strict methods. Burials were catagorized by age, sex, orientation, position, location within groups and and cemeteries, physical abnormalities, type of grave, and wealth* The. sites were analysed as to overall orientaion (s), position (s), sex and ag® ratios, position, layout, geological and geographical position, grave, shapes and types, and comparative wealth* This method allowed for convenient comparative study of any two ( or more ) sites in the group* It was discovered that several other fields of interest might also benefit from this work, most notably, settlement, affinity, and migration studies. Burial sites appear to relate directly to the geology and geography of their areas. Although these studies fall outside the chief goals of this thesis, it does include some work on possible migration routes, land usage., settlement ( as concerns burial sites), possible tribal affinities within the group, and the development of land divisions (parishes)* The study of pagan Anglo-Saxon burial rites is, to a large extent, a neglected one, possible due to a lack of verifiable information and comparative material. Whilst any conclusions reached must remain hypothetical, there is much information concerning them to be gleaned through intensive examination off burials, burial modes and abnormalities and, in some cases, grave, goods. Abnormalities such as burnt grain found in childrens* graves and purposely broken weapons may shed light upon the religious beliefs of these peoples and upon their attitudes towards death and the dead* The internal organisation of burial places may serve to in• dicate social and community structure* Several of the larger -3- cemeteries point towards a strong emphasis upon the family (headed by the male), each of which may have, had its own burial plot within a larger communal cemetery* This is evident in the way in which the cemetery has been laid out and allowed to develop* Appendix III contains sites which may be eliminated from the corpus as being of inconclusive date, whilst Appendix IV is a> new rough chronology/ for the Wiltshire sites* These may be of some value to others wishing to pursue the subject. In summation, the material found within this thesis has been organised and analysed with most of the emphasis placed upon the burials and burial rites themselves and how they may be used! to compile information pertaining to the religious and sociological structures of pagan Anglo-Saxon communities, their tribal affinities, migration routes, settlement, patterns, and, even, their physiognomies.