| Summary : A linear cremation cemetery of Early Bronze Age date, located near the Easton Down Neolithic flint mines (SU 23 NW 26). The site was discovered in the early 1930s by JFS Stone wile he was excavating at the flint mines. The site comprised seven small pit-deposits arranged in a slightly curving line over a distance of about 60 feet. This whole area, up to a maximum width of 20 feet, had been covered by a thin layer of flint nodules. There was no surrounding ditch or any other associated features. Prior to excavation, the site had appeared as a low mound, but this was due primarily to variations in the level of the underlying chalk and the fact that the site itself was unploughed. The seven deposits beneath the cairn were as follows: a small pit with collared urn and child cremation plus shale, amber and faience beads and a bone pin; a small pit with the cremated remains of a child plus some burnt flint; the remains of a collared urn laid directly on the original ground surface, with no other artefacts or cremated remains present; a shallow scoop containing a few pieces of burnt bone and burnt flint; a shallow pit with the remains of an inverted collared urn; a shallow scoop with the remains of a collared urn and two pieces of burnt bone; and finally a shallow scoop containing nothing but "mould and flints", according to Stone. The fiance bead may point to trade with the Mediterranean. The cairn was restored by Stone after excavation. |
More information : Winterslow 21 - an elongated cairn of flints (see
plan), not more than one foot high, situated 65 yds north of
the flint mines and 32 yds south of a cart-track on Easton Down.
(SU 2362 3598 - see plan with SU 23 NW 26).
Excavation by Stone in the early 1930's revealed the cairn to
cover seven cremations, four being in Middle Bronze Age
collared urns, one of which also contained beads of amber shale
and faience. Wessex grave 58. Now in Salisbury Museum. (1-2)
The cairn could not be identified. (3)
Stone discovered and excavated a linear cremation cemetery consisting of 7 small pit-deposits arranged in a slightly curving line over a distance of c60ft. The whole area for a max width of 20ft had been covered by a thin layer of flint nodules. There was no surrounding ditch. Prior to excavation the site appeared as a low mound just 3 or 4 inches higher than the surrounding area, though this was primarily due to variations in the level of the underlying chalk and the unploughed nature of the site rather than the height of the so-called flint "cairn".
Of the seven 'deposits', the main features were as follows:
(i) - a small pit containing a collared urn, the cremated remains of a young child, plus 4 shale beads, 3 amber beads, and 1 segmented faience bead, as well as a bone pin or awl.
(ii) - a small pit containing the cremated remains of a child plus some burnt flint. No pottery.
(iii) - no pit; instead, the broken remains of a collared urn lay on the original ground surface beneath the flint layer. There were no cremated remains or artefacts.
(iv) - a shallow pit or scoop containing 3 small pieces of burnt bone and some burnt flint.
(v) - a shallow pit containing the sherds of a collared urn, which appeared to been inverted when originally placed in the pit. It was accompanied only by two pieces of charcoal.
(vi) - a shallow pit or scoop containing the remains of a collared urn plus two fragments of burnt bone.
(vii) - a shallow pit or scoop containing nothing but "mould and flints" according to Stone. (1, 4)
The collared urns have been considered in detail by Longworth (5), the amber by Beck & Shennan (6) and the faience by Beck & Stone (7).
Listed. (8)
The segmented faience bead may be significant in providing evidence for Mediterranean Bronze Age trade. (9)
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