104 THE "SALTING MOUNDS" OF ESSEX.
indicate the relative size of the mounds, only their positions, and
there are probably others that have escaped notice.
A brief account of my last pleasant excursion to the mounds may
not be uninteresting.
Through the courtesy of Mr. Stacey Gibson, of Saffron Walden, I
had permission to visit any of the mounds existing upon his property
at Peldon, and on the 7th May, 1879, I started with an experienced
native navvy, well provided with pick, shovel and sieve to make as
thorough research into the facts of the case as time allowed. Arrived
at the Brickhouse farm, occupied by Mr. Fairhead, we walked down to
the marsh under his direction, and just at the sea wall came upon the
first mound. This was nearly level with the wall itself, though a good
deal of it has already been carted away on to the land. Commencing
to dig we first made a hole about four feet in diameter, and at the
depth of five feet came to the bottom of the red earth, which rested
on London clay. In this hole we found about twelve pieces of pot-
tery three or four inches square, and two or three hundred over an
inch square, together with an immense number of smaller pieces.
We also found two bricks, one about three feet down and the other
quite at the bottom—in fact, in the London clay. The whole hill
had been lowered about two feet for a hundred yards. I had intended
cutting a trench through from one side to the other, but as that
would have taken several days I preferred digging in various parts of
it holes similar to that described. The red earth was of the same
depth and character throughout, but I found no more of the wedge-
shaped bricks in this mound. Its entire extent was about ten acres,
equal to 100,000 tons of earth.
We then tried a mound about a quarter of a mile to the north. Its
extent was somewhat indefinite, and though it had been carted from
to a large extent, the red earth was still four feet six inches in depth.
Rabbits showed their appreciation of its porosity by numerous burrows
on the northern face. Here we found a large circular piece of pottery
which must have formed part of a pan at least two feet in diameter.
We next proceeded to Sampson's farm, two miles eastward, near
the Strood. Here I found two more bricks, but no large pieces of
pottery. The greater part of the two mounds which yielded these
has been removed in levelling the field, and the greatest depth of red
earth left is but thirty inches. The fragments of pottery are not only
smaller, but scantier, and there is but little charcoal.