92
THE ESSEX NATURALIST.
soil posts often early decay, leaving behind no trace. I was
not lucky enough to come across any entrance to the enclosure.
Before I had finished my work the digger started on the site
of the eastern side and, in fact, Mr. Burr most kindly delayed
touching the N.E. corner, where I found the bulk of the pottery,
until I had excavated the whole of the 30 feet length (marked
5 to 6 on the plan) of ditch in existence at that point. Now
that portion of the ditch and practically the whole of the eastern
side have been destroyed.
I also started excavating the ditch at the spots marked 3
and 4 on the plan, but as I found only one La Tene III rim and
base, one or two small fragments of Halstatt, some La Tene III
clay daub, and some La Tene III fragments, I left off after
cutting in some 10 feet in each place.
So far as most of the 14 trenches were concerned they yielded
only a fragment or two of La Tene III and a piece or two of
charcoal, but trenches No. 18, 9 and 20 were more prolific; thus,
in addition to the usual La Tene III fragments, a portion of
a massive rim of a large La Tene III vessel and a tiny bit of
Hallstatt were found in No. 18, a little La Tene III clay daub
and a bit of Hallstatt turned up in No. 9, and No. 20 yielded two
or three small bits of Hallstatt and a little La Tene III. clay daub.
In marked contrast to the above meagre results the excavation
of the ditch at the N.E. corner yielded over 300 pieces of La
Tene III pottery of varying size, also a tiny bit of Hallstatt
ware.
At the spot marked 21 on the eastern face I came across a
hearth consisting of a solid mass of bits of charcoal about two feet
across and ten inches deep.
No Roman pottery was found, so the place was probably
deserted either before or shortly after the Romans arrived in
this country, as they had reached Colchester (only 18 miles N.E.
of Twitty Fee) shortly after their landing in Great Britain in
A.D. 43.
Mr. Hull, the curator of the Colchester Museum, who has
been very ready at all times to help me with his valuable advice,
tells me that, with the exception of some red ware, the pottery
I have dug out is very similar to that found recently by him
at Sheepen Farm, Colchester.
The small amount of Hallstatt ware recovered by me from