Chapter IV: Earthworks, Mounds, Barrows, &c

There are still remaining, in many parts of the country, curious mounds and stones. We can say very little about them here; for, though learned men have discovered much, there is still a good deal to be explained concerning them. Old-world stories put most of these strange objects down to the work of witches, fairies, or giants; some ascribe them to the Romans, or to Oliver Cromwell, others even to the devil. But most of them really belong to this period of which we are speaking--the very early part of our history, of which there is no written record.

Earthworks are of many kinds, but the very earliest are usually found on hill-tops. There are some which enclose considerable spaces of ground, bounded by an earthen rampart, with a ditch outside. Sometimes there are two such ramparts. Frequently they are spoken of as British Towns or British Camps. They appear to have been enclosures into which the cattle were driven in time of danger, and in which a whole tribe could take refuge and hold out against their enemies.

Then there are big mounds or heaps, called Barrows. All over the world, not only in Europe, but in northern Asia, in India, and in America, burial-mounds of various sizes have been met with. Some of these are oval in shape, and are called Long Barrows; others are round, and are called Round Barrows. The Long Barrows are thought to be the older kind, and were apparently the burial-places of great leaders. The Round Barrows were also burial-places, but those who raised them burned their dead. The great pyramids of Egypt are barrows, only they are made of stone, not of earth.

At Silbury, in Wilts, there is a huge mound, covering about five acres of ground and some one hundred and thirty feet in height.

Many interesting things have been brought to light when these many varieties of barrows have been properly and scientifically explored by men who have the knowledge and intelligence to "see" what there is to see, and who do not attack these old earthworks with the idea of coming upon some long-hidden hoard of gold or silver. Indeed, much damage has been done by folk who, from time to time, have rifled these mysterious old earthworks with that one, sordid idea. There is much yet to be done in the way of scientific exploration, and much to be learned.

The circles of stones at Stonehenge and Avebury seem to have been connected with the worship of these early people.

A writer, who has given much attention and study to the subject, gives us some idea as to how these huge stones were got into position at Stonehenge. He thinks that they must have been dragged thither by enormous numbers of men from the Marlborough Downs. "Trunks of trees ... pierced with holes for levers would furnish rollers to propel the stones to very near their destination. Then it is necessary to suppose the site of Stonehenge occupied by a mound, artificial or natural, the ascent being by an easy incline from the quarter whence these stones were brought. On the top of the mound we must suppose as many holes dug as there were upright stones to be placed. On the arrival of each stone it would be dropped into its hole; and, when all were thus placed, there would only remain the more easy task of laying on the imposts, each end of which has evidently been mortised on to the perpendiculars. The earth would then be dug away, leaving the structure complete."[4]

[4] W. Long, in the _Wilts Arch. Mag._, p. 121.

[See page 12]]

In 1918 Stonehenge was given to the nation, and we may hope that what is left of it will be carefully preserved in the time to come.

Avebury appears to have been made up of a vast circle of unhewn stones enclosing two other separate double circles. They are in ruins now, and more than six hundred and fifty of these huge stones have been destroyed. There are now standing upright only fifteen; sixteen have been overthrown, and eighteen are known to be buried. It seems that folk, who did not understand or care about these very ancient stones, broke them up and carried the pieces away to make boundary walls or to mend roads, and for any other purpose as they thought fit.

The remains at Avebury are believed to be much older than those at Stonehenge, dating back a thousand years or so before Christ. Those at Stonehenge, which covers a very much smaller area, seem to belong to the Iron Age, some two hundred years before Christ.

There are many single stones, especially in Cornwall and Wales, which also seem to have been connected with religious rites, but of this we know nothing for certain. Some are Dolmens--flat stones, each on four uprights. In later times they have served as boundary marks.

In various parts of England there are deep lanes or cuttings, which have received curious local names. There are no less than twenty-two such cuttings in different parts of England all known as Grim's Ditch. These, no doubt, formed boundaries, separating various tribes.

The White Horse, cut out of the slope of Uffington Hill, and several similar objects in Wiltshire, as well as the crosses--also cut in the turf--at Whiteleaf and Bledlow, may also belong to this period. Some learned men, however, have thought that they are of a later date.

From these early men, then, the Ancient Britons appear to have descended, and they were settled here a good many centuries before the coming of the Romans. Many of the wild tales and legends still told in country villages, about giants and fairies, have come down to us from these early times.