April 2008 (issue 114) - The Sussex Archaeological Society

NUMBER 114 AP RIL 2008 

Barbican House 

Centenary 

Barcombe 

Roman Villa 

Lewes Properties 

Development 

www.romansinsussex.co.uk Sussex Past & Present April 2008 1

Membership Matters 

MEMBERSHIP 

OPENING LINES 

Opening Lines 

Lorna’s Notebook 

A round-up of all that’s new in the membership department 

Welcome to the April edition of 

Sussex Past and Present. 

Autumn Conference 2008 

The theme of this year’s conference, 

taking place on September 13, is 

People and Place: Landscape and 

Identity Through Time, and it will 

be a fascinating event with some 

very prestigious speakers. Full 

details are in the enclosed leaflet, 

but I should draw your attention to 

some differences from our usual 

format. Please note that the venue 

for this year’s conference is at the 

University of Chichester, Bishop 

Otter campus, to the north of 

Chichester. The Society’s conferences 

have frequently taken place 

at the Chichester Lecture Theatre 

at the University of Sussex near 

Brighton, so I hope this does not 

cause confusion! 

The lack of lunch facilities in previous 

years has been an issue for 

some who attend our conference 

each autumn, so I am pleased to 

confirm that it will be possible for 

you to buy lunch on site. We are 

required to guarantee a minimum 

number of lunches sold in order 

to make this available, so I very 

much hope that you will pre-book 

a lunch (details on the enclosed 

leaflet). Provided there are sufficient 

advance bookings it should 

be possible for some to buy lunch 

on the day without having booked, 

although there will be an additional 

£1 charge for this. There will be no 

other refreshment facilities on site, 

and the campus is not centrally 

located, so I would urge all those 

planning to attend to book a lunch 

at the same time as booking a place 

for the conference. 

On the day after the conference, 

we are offering delegates the 

chance to attend one of a choice 

of associated fieldtrips, a new departure 

and one which I hope will 

prove popular. There is no charge 

for these visits, but group numbers 

have to be restricted, so we do ask 

that if you are interested in attending, 

you book as soon as possible. 

Only those who have pre-booked 

will be able to take part. Also new 

this year is the option of attending 

a conference dinner in Chichester 

on the evening of the conference. 

There is a charge for this, but numbers 

will be limited by the size of the 

venue and places must be booked 

in advance. This will be an excellent 

opportunity to meet some of 

the speakers and other conference 

delegates. 

Society AGM 

This year’s Annual General Meeting 

takes place at Michelham Priory on 

the morning of Saturday May 17. 

Lunch will be available at a very 

reasonable price if you wish and 

you may like to wander around the 

property in the afternoon, or attend 

either of the two events that we 

have planned. Although it is not 

required to book to attend the AGM, 

you do need to book in advance for 

the events and for lunch – further 

information and the booking form 

is in the Noticeboard in the centre 

of the newsletter. 

The AGM papers are enclosed with 

this newsletter. Last year’s full accounts 

will be available through our 

website, www.sussexpast.co.uk, 

but if anyone would like a paper 

copy of these and has not already 

requested this, please let me know 

and I will send them to you. If you 

have already filled out a form, you 

will automatically receive a hard 

copy as soon as they are available. 

Visiting our Properties 

As the season for going out and 

about comes round again, please 

remember that if you plan to visit 

any of our properties you must have 

a valid membership card to show at 

the admissions desk in order to gain 

free entry. If you don’t you will be 

asked to pay the normal admission 

price, and this cannot subsequently 

be refunded. Please do not get 

cross with our admissions staff if 

you have forgotten to check that 

you have a current card with you 

before setting off! 

Back copies of SAC 

If you are missing some of the 

Sussex Archaeological Collections 

(SAC), or have recently joined the 

Society and would like to collect 

some from previous years, you may 

like to know that I have some spares 

going back at least nine years (and 

in some cases earlier). These are 

not second-hand but remainders 

from the print runs of the time, and 

prices are very reasonable – usually 

around £12 for paperback and £15 

for hardback. Do give me a call if 

you would like to check on what is 

available. 

Lorna Gartside 

Membership Secretary 

For all membership enquiries 

and to apply, please contact: 

MEMBERSHIP 

DEPARTMENT 

Barbican House, 

169 High Street 

Lewes, Sussex BN7 1YE 

Tues-Fri 10.00am-3.00pm 

Answering machine facility 

outside these hours 

01273 405737 

Email: 

members@sussexpast.co.uk 

SUSSEX 

Past & 

Present 

The Sussex Archaeological 

Society Newsletter 

NUMBER 114 

APRIL 2008 

Contents 

2 Membership matters 

3 Opening lines 

4 Barbican House Centenary 

6 Tithe Maps Project 

7 SDNP & Ouse Valley 

8 Fishbourne News 

9 Lewes Properties 

10 Archaeology Round-up 

11 Library and History 

12 Barcombe Roman Villa 

15 Book reviews 

16 Snippets 

Published three times a year 

by the Sussex Archaeological 

Society, Bull House, Lewes, 

East Sussex, BN7 1XH 

Tel: 01273 486260 

Fax: 01273 486990 

Email: admin@sussexpast.co.uk 

Editor: Sarah Hanna 

Email: spp@sussexpast.co.uk 

Technical Editors: 

John Manley, Luke Barber 

Technical Support: 

Penelope Parker 

ISSN 1357-7417 

Cover: Scaffolding surrounds Bull House in 

Lewes. 

Photo: J Manley 

Preserving the Past 

Time to enjoy Properties and Events 

Spring days invite us all out to visit gardens and interesting places: 

Fishbourne Roman Palace’s Celtic Spring Festival is a good event to 

open the season with learning opportunities for all the family. It is rivalled 

only by Michelham Priory’s Garden Fair in April or Celtic Weekend in May. 

With new beginnings in the air, may I on your behalf extend a warm welcome 

to Christine Medlock, taking up the post of Director of Fishbourne Roman 

Palace. I hope Christine will enjoy working for Sussex Archaeological 

Society and leading the Fishbourne team with enthusiasm. 

The Membership of the Sussex Archaeological Society is the backbone 

of our continuity and support. You, the members, are the heart of 

the Society and your diverse interests in aspects of the archaeology and 

history of Sussex drive our care of documents and artefacts and ancient 

buildings. Those of you who go the extra mile by volunteering to help 

with the care of these, and explaining them to our public visitors, deserve 

extra thanks and appreciation. Lorna Gartside, Membership Secretary, 

has drawn up another programme full of interesting events, walks and 

conferences for members and guests. 

With the new season I hope we put behind us the lamentable episode 

of theft at Fishbourne Roman Palace, where a number of items were 

found to be missing in 2007 from the new Collections Discovery Centre. 

Whoever was guilty of this dishonest act at least placed some items outside 

Tesco’s at Chichester when the theft received publicity. The items 

were spotted and returned. It is present and future generations who suffer 

from such a theft. Every act of preservation by the Sussex Archaeological 

Society is aimed at public benefit – to enable future generations and you 

today to learn about the past. We also have to generate the funds to enable 

this preservation and encourage new visitors to become interested, 

but the underlying mission is public benefit. 

Archaeologists too are determined to make their discoveries available 

to the public. The Portable Antiquities Scheme has gone a long way to 

redress the old “finders-keepers” mentality of metal detectorists, many of 

whom now correctly work with the permission of landowners rather than 

trespassing, and by notifying finds to the Finds Liaison Officers around 

the UK. When I looked through a hand lens at a Gallo-Belgic E stater I 

knew it was a most beautiful Iron Age gold coin with its find spot precisely 

known. How sad to find a similar one for sale on Ebay in February, doubtless 

stolen from its field (said to be in West Sussex), and sold for personal 

gain, with the potential information that it represents about 1st century 

BC activity now lost for ever. 

To end on a happier note: we celebrate this year the centenary of the 

Priest House, West Hoathly, being open as a museum, and congratulate 

Antony Smith for his record, being the longest serving custodian of that 

museum as well! 

Caroline Wells 

Chair 

2 Sussex Past & Present April 2008 

www.sussexpast.co.uk www.romansinsussex.co.uk Sussex Past & Present April 2008 3

Feature 

BARBICAN HOUSE MUSEUM 

BARBICAN HOUSE MUSEUM 

Feature 

100 Years at Barbican House 

John Farrant explains how SAS purchased a new headquarters 

Rumours were circulating in 

September 1903 that the 

Society’s rented home since 1885, 

Castle Lodge overlooking the 

Gun Garden, was to be sold. The 

Council drew comfort from earlier 

indications that the owner, widow 

of a former Honorary Curator and 

Chairman, would give the Society 

first refusal to buy. Comfort turned 

to consternation in December, at the 

news of sale to Charles Dawson, a 

prominent member. Whether the 

future ‘discoverer’ of Piltdown Man 

was underhand in purchasing his 

new home is unresolved, but the 

fact was he gave notice to quit. 

The Honorary Secretary found 

temporary storage for the library 

at 35 High Street, Lewes. He tried 

to buy land to the north of Castle 

Lodge for a purpose-built library, 

museum and caretaker’s accommodation. 

But the Lords of the 

Manor laid claim to the path to the 

Barbican, by which paying visitors 

would reach the Lewes Castle 

– perhaps because the agent of 

the Marquess of Abergavenny (at 

the time President of SAS), wanted 

to buy the land for the garden of 

Castle Precincts house, which His 

Grace owned. 

Building in the Gun Garden 

The next proposition was to build 

in the Gun Garden. At considerable 

expense terms were agreed with the 

Lords, and Ernest Runtz and Ford, 

Lewes architects, hired to prepare 

a design. When this came to the 

Council in May 1906, a motion that 

it was inexpedient for the Society 

to build a library and museum in the 

Gun Garden or anywhere else was 

lost by four to five on the chairman’s 

casting vote, with five members abstaining. 

The motion was proposed 

by Philip M Johnston, an architect, 

and the Revd Walter Marshall, 

Vicar of St Patrick’s, Hove. The 

design went to a special meeting 

of the Society a week later. Charles 

E Clayton, a Brighton architect, led 

the attack: ‘to erect a building in 

the Gun Garden would be an act 

of vandalism of a monstrous and 

extraordinary nature.’ He was supported 

by Frank Bentham Stevens, 

a young Brighton solicitor. When 

the motion was put, not a single 

hand was raised, and all but a very 

few voted against. The Council was 

instructed to think again. 

Johnston and Marshall were 

bound by the Council’s majority decision. 

Whether at this stage Clayton 

and Stevens acted in collusion 

with them or with Harold Sands, a 

longstanding critic of the Council, 

we do not know. Despite the apparently 

negative tone of their actions, 

they were the progressives. 

The Gun Garden fiasco showed 

that most Council members were 

out of touch with the membership, 

and in their intended vandalism 

they were unsuited to educating 

public opinion in the protection of 

historic buildings. Some ‘Malcontents’, 

as Sands labelled them, may 

have been concerned that SAS’s 

standing would be eroded by the 

newly-formed Brighton and Hove 

Archaeological Club. The Council 

deemed a scheme in September to 

affiliate it as ‘hardly ripe for further 

action’. 

The Council Reformed 

The first front for attack was the 

Council’s composition, nominally 

of nearly 60 members: all the vicepresidents 

(the county’s nobility 

and other dignitaries), the local 

secretaries, four honorary officers 

and at least 12 others. All were 

elected each year at the AGM, but 

only the honorary officers were defined 

in number, and in practice the 

Council determined the size and 

membership. In July Johnston and 

Marshall secured a sub-committee 

to review the Society’s constitution. 

A new one was passed at the 1907 

AGM: the Council was to comprise 

five honorary officers elected annually 

and 24 members to serve for 

three years, one third retiring each 

year. This composition served until 

1996. 

At the same AGM, the Sites Committee 

reported that it had rejected 

Anne of Cleves House and considered 

St Swithun’s House (now 

Lloyds TSB) too expensive. Clayton, 

Stevens and Sands got themselves 

added to the committee, to 

negotiate for the latter. Within a few 

weeks Barbican House came onto 

the market. At a special meeting of 

members in May, the motion to purchase 

it was carried unanimously. 

Barbican House Purchased 

There was now a lot to play for: how 

was Barbican House to be used, 

when the Society took possession 

in June the following year The 

Malcontents held minuted meetings 

to draw up a slate of candidates for 

Council and to canvass for them. 

The election at the 1908 AGM 

must be the most contested in the 

Society’s history, with 34 members 

chasing the 24 seats. Seventeen 

of 20 elected in 1907 and standing 

again were joined by seven newcomers, 

including Clayton, Stevens 

and Charles Thomas-Stanford. ‘I 

fear,’ Sands wrote to Stevens, ‘you 

will find it a very thankless and 

unpleasant task to combat the pigheaded 

stupidity of those members 

of the late Council who are still with 

you … The Society’s affairs are a 

perfect Augean stable.’ 

The autonomy of the Honorary 

Curator and Librarian had to be 

curbed. LF Salzman proposed, and 

Barbican House, June 1907. 

Johnston seconded, a Museum and 

Library Committee, and accepted 

an amendment that it include up to 

six members not on the Council. 

‘There had been’, Clayton said, ‘a 

feeling in the past that a limited 

number of members “ran the 

show” and that any suggestion 

from outside the council was not so 

cordially welcomed as perhaps it 

should have been (hear, hear).’ HS 

Toms, Curator of Brighton Museum, 

and JE Ray, much involved with 

Hastings Museum, joined the 

committee under Clayton. 

The Curater Ousted 

The committee arranged a formal 

opening by the Duke of Norfolk 

on June 17, with Barbican House 

decked out with borrowed furniture 

and plants and 116 lunching in the 

Town Hall. They proposed how 

the rooms should be used, the alterations 

and furnishings required, 

and set up the museum displays. 

The opportunity to get rid of the 

Curator, JHA Jenner, came in June 

1909: Clayton complained about a 

Photo: JC Stenning 

reported exchange of books with 

a Mr Stevens of Newhaven, an investigation 

was set up and Jenner 

resigned. In 1910 a rule for affiliating 

local societies was approved 

and the Brighton club was the 

first. This group was to dominate 

the Society’s affairs for the next 20 

years and beyond. 

Meanwhile, how was the purchase 

and fitting out, at some £2500, to 

be paid for, when the Society’s 

liquid assets amounted to £400 

Members’ donations met a half, 

sale of investments a fifth and the 

rest came from annual surpluses 

over the next four years. May those 

members’ generosity be an example 

to the present generation! 

This article is based on the Society’s 

archive now deposited in East Sussex 

Record Office, in particular the 

minute books (SAS/2/1/6 and 7) and 

correspondence files in ACC 9048. I 

am grateful to John Bleach and John 

Houghton for the benefit of their 

unpublished research. 

Bull House 

Refurbishment 

Many thanks to the members 

who kindly responded to our 

SOS for last-minute funds for the 

refurbishment of Bull House (the 

Society’s present headquarters 

in Lewes). Your generosity has 

now guaranteed that the works 

— repair and repainting the 

exterior, and redecoration of the 

interior – can go ahead. Tangible 

proof has arrived too — as I type 

(February 2008) the building is 

ensconced in scaffolding — and 

as a result my window views 

of the glorious winter sunshine 

are partitioned by metallic 

horizontals and verticals (see 

cover photograph). 

Of course, the whole point of 

the exercise is not so much that 

the building will look smarter (it 

will) but that for the first time the 

public will be allowed limited, 

pre-booked access (weekend 

only). What they will make of the 

interior remains to be seen. My 

own office will take a step back 

in time – not quite to the late 18th 

century of Tom Paine – but telltale 

signs of modernity, like the 

filing cabinet, will disappear. 

My personal theory is that Bull 

House inveigles the onlooker from 

the outside, but will disappoint 

them once they gain entry 

– but I might be wrong. What 

dear old Tom Paine would have 

made of this is anyone’s guess. 

But we will be ready for the bicentenary 

of his death (2009). 

And the soon-to-be-restored-toits-former-glory 

Bull House will 

provide him with just the right 

sort of commemoration! 

John Manley 

Chief Executive 



Feature 

WEST SUSSEX RECORD OFFICE 

RESEARCH PROJECT 

Research 

Tithe Map Project 

West Sussex Record Office 

The West Sussex Record Office 

tithe map digitisation and preservation 

project is now under way 

thanks to a Heritage Lottery Fund 

Grant, together with extra funding 

from West Sussex Archives Society 

and The Golden Trust. 

The aims of the project are, first, 

to preserve the maps to prevent 

further degradation caused by continual 

use; secondly, to make the 

maps more widely accessible by 

digitising them and making them 

available on CD; and thirdly, to involve 

local communities through 

the use of volunteer groups to transcribe 

the apportionments onto a 

database. The maps, which are a 

unique resource, only become a really 

useful research tool when the 

information from the apportionments 

is available to use in conjunction 

with them. 

All the larger maps were cleaned 

and preserved by supporting the 

damaged and weak areas before 

copying took place. Preservation 

of the remaining maps began after 

digitisation finished and will continue 

for some time. Final packaging 

and storage has also been improved. 

The maps have all been scanned 

by Icam Archive Systems and the 

tithe map viewing station is installed 

in the Searchroom. A number of 

other estate and enclosure maps 

have also been scanned and are 

available to view electronically. The 

display software allows data from a 

spreadsheet to be viewed alongside 

the image. We are building on links 

already established with groups 

involved in the West Sussex Parish 

Maps Project as well as through 

local history societies to transcribe 

the apportionments. However, 

we are also involving others from 

the community who are new to 

archives or local history. It is an 

Rolled up tithe maps. 

Photo: WSRO 

opportunity to learn new skills in IT 

and palaeography. We have many 

apportionments transcribed so 

far and Gillian Edom, our project 

assistant, is organising this part of 

the work. If you wish to be involved 

please contact Gillian at West 

Sussex Record Office, Chichester. 

The maps (without the written information 

contained in the apportionments) 

are now available for sale 

at £15 and there is a list of the CDs 

on our website (www.westsussex. 

gov.uk/ro/). The Tithe Map web 

pages will keep people informed 

of the progress of the project. We 

hope that the second edition of the 

maps, with the apportionment information 

added, will be available 

by the end of the year. 

Susan Millard, 

Searchroom Archivist 

Simon Hopkins, 

Senior Conservator 

Susan, Simon and Gillian can be contacted 

by email at records.office@ 

westsussex.gov.uk 

South Downs 

National Park 

Inquiry 

The long running saga of the South 

Downs National Park (SDNP) is 

nearing resolution. The re-opened 

Public Inquiry (at the Chatsworth 

Hotel, Worthing) is now hearing 

evidence about a few outstanding 

problems and objections, till late 

April 2008. Then the Inspector will 

make a supplementary report, and 

the matter will be in the hands of 

the Secretary of State (Hilary Benn). 

It’s probably too late to have your 

voice heard if you’re not already on 

the programme – but the Inspector 

is willing to consider any written 

submissions received before the 

Inquiry ends. 

From the point of view of 

archaeologists and historians the 

situation has changed considerably 

since the provisional boundaries 

of the SDNP were discussed and 

hammered out in the first leg of the 

Public Inquiry. The so-called NERC 

Act (2006) now specifies that not 

only ‘natural beauty’, but an area’s 

‘wild-life and cultural heritage’ 

may be taken into account when 

a National Park is designated. 

Whether this will lead, for example, 

to a reconsideration of the decision 

to leave Boxgrove Common and 

Priory, not to mention historic towns 

such as Lewes, just outside the 

boundary, remains to be seen – but 

we intend to remind the Inspector 

of the opportunity. 

The biggest fight is over the 

exclusion of the ‘Western Weald’ 

Historic town of Lewes. 

(north of a Petersfield – Pulborough 

line); though not on chalk, the area 

has multiple visual and historic 

links with the Downland, a rich 

cultural heritage and great natural 

beauty. Its landscape now enjoys 

the protection of being within 

an Area of Outstanding Natural 

Beauty (AONB); the question arises 

as to what protection would be 

offered to it and to smaller AONB 

fragments left out of the SDNP (eg 

the University of Sussex campus), 

when the AONB is superseded by 

the National Park. 

Meanwhile the South Downs Advisory 

Forum, a spin-off from the 

South Downs Joint Committee that 

runs the present AONBs, is developing 

a series of initiatives that 

among other things, aims to identify 

and record the historic and archaeological 

sites of the area. We shall 

have to wait and see what emerges 

from this ambitious endeavour. 

Lewes nestled in the Downs 

Photo: S White 

Robin Miner-Gulland 

Photo: P Parker 

Lower Ouse Valley 

New Research Project 

This project has come about partially due to a powerful piece of 

EU legislation called the Water Framework Directive, introduced in 

December 2000. It requires all inland and coastal waters to be restored to 

a state of “good ecological standing” by 2015. Currently the responsibility 

for taking action regarding the water framework directive in England 

and Wales has fallen to the Environment Agency. (DEFRA: www.defra. 

gov.uk/environment/water/wfd/index.htm) 

The aim of the project is to assess the restoration potential of the 

river Ouse, East Sussex and its surrounding catchment. The river was 

heavily modified during the late 18th and early 19th century for navigation 

and drainage purposes, which permanently altered its dynamics. It 

was straightened to permit barges (and even small sea going vessels as 

far as Lewes) to pass successfully, making “cuts” to bypass the natural 

meanders of the river which would otherwise reduce the flow rate. By 

cutting them out the overall river flow rate is increased. 

The widening and deepening of the river increased the capacity of the 

river channel which, combined with the greater rate of flow increased the 

overall discharge. In the past it was accepted that increased discharge 

is beneficial, to allow larger volumes of water to pass through the river 

channel at a greater rate, improving drainage and reducing flooding. 

Recently however, there has been a shift within the scientific community 

away from attempts to “hard engineer” rivers in this way (the LIFE 

project in the New Forest is a recent example of successful restoration), 

and this is reflected in policy such as the Water Framework Directive. By 

engineering the river to flow faster, downstream flooding can actually be 

worsened while upstream regions may remain relatively flood free. 

A restoration project for the Ouse would attempt to take the river along 

its original course (or as close as reasonable) by reconnecting meanders. 

This would in theory slow the river and promote flooding upstream 

on natural floodplains, and by doing so reduce flooding downstream in 

towns such as Lewes and Uckfield. Various flora and fauna tolerate different 

environments, but a fast flowing straight river minimises the range 

of habitats within the channel. There are efforts already being taken to 

improve and protect existing habitats along the river, for example by the 

Sussex River Ouse Conservation Society (www.sussex-ouse.org.uk/). 

Utilising GIS I will contrast and compare pre- and post- modification 

maps of the river, and highlight the areas which significantly deviate from 

its early course. I will correlate these findings with available records to 

confirm the purpose and date of the modification. Finally I will conduct a 

site assessment of the heavily engineered areas to assess the suitability 

of these areas for restoration work, as obviously it’s important that any 

modification and subsequent disturbance does not prove more damaging 

than beneficial for the existing ecosystems and river regime. 

If anyone would like to contact me, please email Simon Rupniak 

sr1205@soton.ac.uk or simon.rupniak@btopenworld.com. 

Simon Rupniak 

A review of Margaret Thorburn’s book The Lower Ouse Valley: Lewes 

— Newhaven, is on p15. 



Research 

FISHBOURNE ROMAN PALACE 

LEWES PROPERTIES 

Development 

Animals as status symbols 

Pigs and cattle in Iron Age/Roman West Sussex 

The role of animals in archaeology 

has traditionally been 

thought of from an economic perspective, 

with animal bone reports 

highlighting ‘calories consumed’ or 

‘yields produced’. More recently, 

the social importance of animals, 

as in ritual practices, ethnic values 

or symbolically in art, have been 

emphasised. 

So what does this mean for our 

understanding of Iron Age/Romano- 

British rural identities Over the 

transitional period, pig remains 

constitute high levels at higherstatus 

sites such as Fishbourne 

Roman Palace and the Romano- 

Celtic temple on Hayling Island. 

The links between these two sites 

are well known, as are their cultural 

connections with the continent. 

Contrastingly, lower-status 

farmsteads were mainly herding 

cattle and sheep at this point, possibly 

linked to the production of 

secondary commodities vital to a 

subsistence lifestyle. Into the later 

Roman period, the political geography 

seems to have shifted from 

the royal core at Fishbourne, which 

declined and was eventually abandoned, 

to a new, decentralised 

rural elite based across the South 

Downs. At all these wealthy villas 

cattle seem to have been the key to 

economic success, as exemplified 

by the villa at Bignor, West Sussex 

which contained nearly 80% cattle 

remains in its bone assemblage. 

The role of Chichester as a regional 

commercial catalyst is significant 

and, at first glance, these changes 

look economic in design. But we 

must remember that this is only an 

abstract observation by ourselves, 

modern enthusiasts, looking back 

into the past! What were the experiences 

of people living at that time 

How did they understand the world 

around them Is it possible that different 

animals were imbued with 

different meaning In the earlier 

period the evidence suggests the 

activities of procuring, killing and 

consuming pigs could have been 

an identifier of elitism, prescribing 

a representation of social position. 

Though, over time, it seems that 

cattle became symbolic indicators 

of wealth on villas. So a change in 

perception of animals in relation 

to the people who interacted with 

them could give us ideas as to how 

the living world in the late Iron Age 

and Roman period was symbolic 

and representational. 

These are only early indications 

and broader issues still need to 

be addressed, but I hope that this 

discussion is beginning to highlight 

the importance of animal remains 

in local archaeology. The Sussex 

data certainly shows that they were 

primary to local and regional economies. 

Though maybe we should 

also view animals as being part of 

wider, more complex, cultural perceptions 

…. 

Martyn Allen 

PhD Research Student 

Martyn will be talking about Zooarchaeology 

and Romanisation at 

Fishbourne Roman Palace on April 

26 (see Noticeboard for details). 

Palaeolithic site at Beedings 

Flintwork from Beedings. 

Photo: C Wells 

H 

ow old is this flintworking 

Summer 2007 saw trial 

trench excavations by Matt Pope 

and a volunteer team in the field 

to the east of Beedings Castle, 

Nutbourne, near Pulborough, West 

Sussex. This revealed flintworking 

in a fissure in the greensand (Hythe 

Beds) bedrock, in fine sediments 

perhaps consisting of loess (periglacial 

wind-blown sand). The key 

question is whether some of the 

flint working is Upper Palaeolithic 

or some is perhaps even Late 

Middle Palaeolithic, and if so these 

assemblages may cover the period 

when the last Neanderthal hunters 

of the British Isles were replaced by 

early “modern” peoples. 

Further excavations planned for 

the summer of 2008 will, we hope, 

throw more light on this site. It will 

also form the basis of an English 

Heritage funded review of potential 

for similar sites fringing the Weald, 

to be carried out by the Boxgrove 

Project in the coming year. More 

news in the summer newsletter. 

Matt Pope 

UCL 


Chair of Council 

Developments in Lewes 

Sally White reports on Anne of Cleves and Castle Appeals 

The plans for Lewes Castle and 

Barbican House are gathering 

momentum, though not unexpectedly 

there are some setbacks as 

well as successes along the way. 

I am stunned by and very grateful 

for the response many of you 

made to the appeal for books to 

put in our book sale for the Castle 

Appeal. The sale took place in February 

and was a great success. We 

had so many books that the sale 

was extended to three days and we 

took over £1200. This total will rise 

as there are lots of books left and 

John Bleach will be finding homes 

for many of them. Hopefully this will 

pay for three new steps. 

In December 2007 we heard that 

we have been given Planning Permission, 

Scheduled Monument 

Consent and Listed Building Consent 

for all of the structural works 

in the project, subject to a few conditions. 

I was hugely relieved, and 

the Lewes District Councillors were 

unanimous in their warm support 

of our plans. A second application, 

covering new signs on the outside 

of Barbican House and the display 

boards in the Castle will be considered 

shortly. The Heritage Lottery 

Fund (HLF) insisted on the commissioning 

of a Conservation Management 

Plan, which is being prepared 

by a team of consultants and we 

will get the first draft shortly. It will 

be a fascinating and useful document 

summarising the history and 

importance of the properties and 

setting out a 10-year maintenance 

plan. 

I am trying to identify an individual 

or group who can help with the 

refurbishment of the Lewes Town 

Model. I have started discussions 

with a local model railway society 

but would be grateful for any suggestions 

of people who might be 

able to help with this. The Model 

needs thorough and careful cleaning, 

repairs to buildings and streets, 

replacing parts of the railway and 

re-flocking of the trees. 

The next important date is in 

March (we do not know the exact 

date) when the HLF will consider 

our Stage 2 Submission. Once they 

give the project the final go ahead, 

we hope to start work on site in 

October 2008, and the Castle will 

probably close for six months while 

all the outdoor work is completed. 

Fundraising 

Shortly before Christmas the 

Appeal got a serious boost when 

we heard that grant applications 

to the Wolfson Foundation and 

the Garfield Weston Trust had 

been successful. We are waiting 

for responses from several other 

grant-giving organisations. Largely 

because English Heritage has introduced 

new conditions, such as lead 

roofs for the Education Resource 

Centre and Interpretation Pavilion, 

the costs of the project have gone 

up. Our new fund raising target is 

£177,000 – double what we originally 

thought. On the bright side 

we have now raised over £50,000. 

A heartening number of donations 

has been coming in from members, 

and some smaller donations will be 

combined so that some of the steps 

can be credited to ‘Members of the 

Sussex Archaeological Society’ on 

the engraved bricks. 

Anne of Cleves House 

The HLF project has not distracted 

us from the clamant needs of Anne 

of Cleves. We are very aware that 

urgent repairs are needed to the 

rainwater goods, roof, timbers and 

windows. Trustee Richard Akhurst 

prepared a schedule of works that 

has gone out to local builders and 

we are considering tenders from 

two firms. 

Gutters, Anne of Cleves House. 

Jane Vokins, Chairman of the 

Friends of Anne of Cleves, has put 

in a huge amount of effort to source 

grants to help fund these essential 

works. Leaving no stone unturned, 

she discovered that the climax of 

the annual National Maintenance 

Week in November is National 

Guttering Day (I’m sure you are 

all rushing to put the date in your 

diaries). Fortuitously the organisers 

are looking for a building with 

suitably decrepit gutters to pose 

a celebrity against as part of their 

publicity campaign. Not to miss an 

opportunity, Jane has offered them 

Anne of Cleves House. It certainly 

has an abundance of decayed 

guttering (see photo above). 

We are trying to raise money to 

help to pay for these repairs and to 

minimise the amount the Society 

has to dip into its reserves. Although 

I have been encouraging you all to 

help with the Castle Appeal, I would 

also ask anyone who cares about 

the future of this really important 

Wealden House, or who may have 

personal memories of it, to make 

any contribution they can. 


www.sussexpast.co.uk www.romansinsussex.co.uk Sussex Past & Present April 2008 9 

Photo: S White

Excavations 

ARCHAEOLOGY ROUND-UP 

HISTORY & LIBRARY NEWS 

Library 

What’s going on in Sussex 

Round-up of archaeological work September to December 2007 

THE following gives brief details 

of the more interesting sites and 

discoveries. Summaries of all archaeological 

work that I am aware of, even 

if nothing was found, has been placed 

on www.sussexpast.co.uk/research. 

Fieldwork opportunities are also 

highlighted (*) where known. For information 

on particular sites contact the 

responsible body (abbreviated at the 

end of each report), whose details are 

given on the webpages with the key to 

abbreviations. Contact me on 01273 

405733 if without web access, or research@sussexpast.co.uk 

Luke Barber 

Research Officer 

East Sussex 

*Arlington: Roman ‘Small Town’ 

Continuing excavation at this roadside 

settlement revealed a masonry 

building. Further work planned in 

2008. (ESCC with BHAS/ENHAS/ 

MSFAT). Contact Greg Chuter 

(Gregory.Chuter@eastsussex. 

gov.uk). 

Ashburnham Leat A survey of surviving 

portions of this early C18th-water 

channel was undertaken. (WIRG). 

*Barcombe, Pond Field/Culver Mead, 

Culver Farm Further excavations 

are planned for summer 2008 on this 

Roman roadside settlement. (Rob 

Wallace/Uni of Sussex). 

*Barcombe Roman Villa The 2008 

season in July/August hopes to examine 

the possible bath house in Church 

Field. Training courses and volunteer 

positions available. (CCE/MSFAT). 

*Bishopstone Tidemills The coal 

yard, stables and original creek bank 

have been surveyed and work shifted 

to the Stationmaster’s cottage and associated 

yard, which are being cleared 

of vegetation with targeted excavation 

in places. The primary function of the 

building was clearly as gate-lodge into 

the village. It was extended and be- 

Tidemills stationmaster’s cottage. Photo: L Barber 

came a Stationmaster’s cottage after 

the land was taken over by the railway 

later in the 19th century. Fieldwork 

resumes in May 2008. Volunteers are 

still welcome, contact Luke Barber on 

research@sussexpast.co.uk (SAS). 

*Fletching, Sheffield Forest 

Fieldwalking located three undated 

bloomery sites as well as 25 charcoal 

platforms, saw pit and pond bay. 

Further walkover surveys planned for 

Ann Wood in 2008, part of the Ouse 

Valley Project. (WIRG/Univ of Sussex). 

*Peacehaven Barrow The 2007 excavations 

revealed layers of flintwork 

within the structure but have yet to 

locate a surrounding ditch or other features. 

Two WW2 slit trenches present 

on the barrow were also excavated. 

Work continues in 2008. (S. Birks/Uni 

of Sussex with MSFAT & BHAS). 

Ringmer: Clay Hill Reservoir A 39 

trench evaluation has revealed Roman 

pits and medieval features. (ASE). 

West Sussex 

Aldingbourne: Lidsey Landfill Site 

Extension Excavations, to the east 

of investigations in summer 2007, revealed 

further elements of a Romano- 

British field system, part of a small 

Later Bronze Age enclosure, and a 

Later Bronze Age pit, which cuts very 

truncated gullies, probably from an 

earlier field system. (TVAS). 

Chichester: Bishop’s Garden, 

Canons Lane Geophysical survey and 

trial trenches revealed the substantial 

masonry walls of a large rectangular 

building, thought to be the Bishop’s 

Great Hall, which burnt down in 

the Great Chichester Fire of 1187. 

(Chichester District Council/WSCC/ 

Chichester Cathedral/CDAS). 

Emsworth A project was started to 

record the Emsworth Oyster industry 

– using both historical research and 

fieldwork to record the oyster beds before 

they are destroyed by shifting mud 

in the harbour. (CDAS with Emsworth 

Maritime and Historical Trust (EMHT)). 

Hassocks: Land west of Mackie 

Avenue Excavation now completed. 

Parts of later Bronze Age and Romano- 

British field systems were revealed. 

The remains of a probable Late Bronze 

Age round house were excavated as 

well as a post-built Roman building. 

Within a pit below the sunken floor was 

a complete horse skeleton, the skull 

placed within the rib cage, possibly a 

founding deposit. (OA). 

Littlehampton: Toddington Nurseries, 

Worthing Road In the final excavation, 

part of a Romano-British field system 

was revealed, and most of a probable 

Later Bronze Age round house. (WA & 

CgMS Consulting). 

*Parham House, Parham Park Trial 

fieldwork in summer 2007 did not reveal 

the deserted medieval village, but 

possibly located its position. Further 

fieldwork planned for 2008. (WAS). 

Shoreham: St Mary’s Church A 

watching brief while laying new electricity 

cables in the churchyard located 

remains of south porch and late postmedieval 

brick burial vault. (ASE). 

*Walberton: Blacksmiths Corner 

A Roman bath house was located in 

2007. Work continues in 2008. (WAS). 

Westhampnett Airfield A site inspection 

allowed recording of military 

remains including two unique circular 

pillboxes, a quadrant tower and a 

number of other buildings. (C Butler). 

History Round-up 

The revival of the spring 

historical conference in the 

form of the half day on Tudor 

and Stuart Towns has been well 

received. The next one is planned 

for Brighton in March 2009, and if 

there is enough demand we can 

run a full day and half day on different 

themes. We hope to invite 

speakers who are not normally 

heard locally, but themes need 

to be related to Sussex to fit with 

the SAS charitable remit. Please 

send ideas to Lorna Gartside, our 

membership secretary or to the 

email below. 

The Pevsner Architectural 

Guide to the City of Brighton 

and Hove will be published in 

July by Yale. A related conference 

on the architecture of the 

City will be held on Sat November 

29 2008. Speakers include 

Dr Neil Bingham on Busby, the 

designer of Brunswick Town and 

other projects, and Virginia Hinze 

of English Heritage on the City’s 

Parks and their Buildings. Bookings 

are via the Friends of the 

Royal Pavilion Art Galleries and 

Museums, 4/5 Pavilion Buildings, 

Brighton BN1 1EE. 

At last we know more of Amon 

Henry Wilds (1785-1857), a prolific 

Sussex architect who designed 

urban projects and houses 

in Brighton and Worthing, and 

at least one country house in the 

county. Born in Lewes, son of 

Amon Wilds, he died in Shoreham 

and is buried in the churchyard of 

Old Shoreham Church. Lavender 

Jones has written a feature in The 

Regency Review Issue 20, p4. 

Work has started on the Victoria 

County History Sussex Vol 10 

City of Brighton and Hove. Every 

‘ancient’ parish now within in the 

city is included. The plan and work 

in progress will be put on the web 

site of the VCH where you can 

also access the VCH volumes 

on line, including VCH Sussex 

7 with entries for the parishes in 

the city. Email: Sue Berry on pat. 

sueberry@btopenworld.com. 

Library News 

Easier Access to Library materials 

Now that the decision has been taken that we will not be moving 

to the Keep, I would like to stress that if members have difficulty 

accessing the Library on the second floor of Barbican House as there 

is no lift, the Library volunteers are always happy to bring material 

downstairs for members to use. Please let us know in advance, and 

we will make it as easy as possible for you. 

I would also like to remind members that we keep many runs of journals 

from other County Archaeological Societies, which are not necessarily 

available at other locations in the area. 

I list below some recent additions to the Library (all 2007 unless otherwise 

stated): 

BRODIE, Allan England’s Seaside Resorts. 

GRIFFIN, E. Blood Sport: Hunting in Britain since 1066. 

WILLIAMS, JH, ed Archaeology of Kent to AD 800. 

WILLIAMSON, Tom Rabbits, Warrens & Archaeology. 

WORSLEY, Giles The British Stable. (2005). 

We are grateful to the following for their donations to the Library: 

Archaeology South East; S Bernard; S Berry; J & J Carter; B Chapman; 

G Coldham; M Crabb; P Fox; V Gammon; L Lawson; D Rudling and 

M Williams. 

I should also like to express my gratitude to the late Margaret N 

Blount, who has gifted a large collection of books to the Library (and 

for sale to raise funds). A professional librarian, with a love of Medieval 

history, she wrote several articles for the Oxford Dictionary of National 

Biography. She lived in Lewes for many years, and held several voluntary 

positions at St Anne’s Church, including PCC Secretary and 

Deputy Churchwarden. 

Volunteer Wanted 

I am looking for a volunteer willing to help staff in the Library 

on Fridays (or would consider alternate Fridays), to help with 

enquiries and routine tasks. No qualifications needed, but it 

would be helpful if you have at least a basic knowledge of how to 

use a computer. Travelling expenses paid. 

Esme Evans 

Hon Librarian 



Excavation 

BARCOMBE ROMAN VILLA 

BARCOMBE ROMAN VILLA 

Excavation 

Barcombe Roman Villa 

The elusive well is discovered at last! 

Plan of Barcombe Roman Villa, showing five phases of activity. 

Drawn by J Russell 

Last year was the seventh and 

final season of large scale excavations 

on the site of the Romano- 

British villa complex in Dunstalls 

Field, Barcombe, near Lewes, 

East Sussex. Following preliminary 

survey and trial excavations by the 

Mid Sussex Field Archaeological 

Team (MSFAT) in 1999 and 2000 

(SP&P 93 p7), the main phase of 

villa investigations began in 2001 

as a joint venture of research and 

training excavations by MSFAT and 

the UCL Field Archaeology Unit. In 

2005 UCL ended its involvement 

with the project and was replaced 

by the Centre for Continuing 

Education (CCE) of the University 

of Sussex. (Annual reports on the 

first six seasons of excavations at 

Barcombe may be found in SP&P 

95, p6-7; 98, p10-11; 102, p4-5; 105, 

p6-7; 108, 12-13 and 111, 12-13). 

The main aims of the 2007 

season of excavations were to 

finish the work begun on Building 4 

in 2006, to trace further the western 

courtyard wall and the roughly 

parallel western alignment of the 

earlier enclosure fence-line, and to 

investigate northwards the interior 

of the courtyard (please refer to 

plan opposite). The courtyard 

wall was traced along its original 

orientation until it met the location 

of the southern part of the Bronze 

Age ring ditch, where it changed 

direction westwards for about 

three metres before continuing on 

its original orientation. At the first 

change of orientation of the wall, 

the materials used for the footings 

were, surprisingly, white burnt flint 

rather than chalk, and this deposit 

may represent a later infilling 

between two stretches of wall – 

perhaps originally with an entrance 

between them. 

Well and ritual deposits 

Within the courtyard area, the 

excavations in 2007 revealed 

various Roman- and Saxon-period 

features. Of considerable interest 

was the finding of a circular Roman 

flint-lined well (see photograph). 

Excavating the Roman well. Photo: M Richardson 

The excavation of this feature was 

abandoned (for safety reasons) at 

a depth of about 3.5 metres and 

before reaching any water-logged 

deposits. The discovery of dog 

bones just above this depth probably 

indicates a ‘rite of termination’ 

of a type often found in wells and 

shafts, perhaps associated with a 

Celtic Underworld deity such as 

Sucellos. Previously we had found 

two dog burials in a large pit at the 

eastern end of the winged corridor 

house, and these dogs may also 

have been ritual deposits. The 

carefully made well shaft had been 

built inside a large round construction 

pit. To the east of the well was 

a roughly north-south orientated 

metalled trackway which could be 

traced southwards almost to the 

entrance of the fenced enclosure. 

Later Deposits 

Representing the Saxon and medieval 

periods in 2007 were two concentrations 

of pits and postholes, 

one being located to the south of 

the Roman well; the other inside and 

near to the western courtyard wall. 

Previously the main concentration 

of Saxon pits at Barcombe (and still 

the largest such concentration) was 

outside the courtyard to the east of 

the Roman winged corridor house. 

It is worth noting, however, that the 

only Saxon sunken-featured building 

at Barcombe was also located 

within the former villa courtyard, 

and that three postholes and a pit 

were found close to the west wing 

of the winged corridor house. It is 

disappointing that we were unable 

to achieve our aim to fully expose all 

of the courtyard south of the main 

villa building. It is thus possible that 

other Saxon features are located 

in this area, together with further 

traces of the Bronze Age ring ditch, 

Roundhouse 4, the Roman-period 

metalled trackway and the Saxon 

ditch which begins at the porch of 

the winged corridor house. 

Church Field 

In July and August 2008 it is intended 

to start a new research and 

training project in Church Field, adjacent 

to Dunstalls Field. We have 

already undertaken fieldwalking, 

geophysics and test-pitting on this 

interesting site and we think that it 

is the site of another Roman-period 

building, perhaps one with a hypocaust 

heating system. How did it 

relate to the nearby villa site Was 

it part of the villa, or perhaps an 

unrelated neighbour 

As in previous years we will provide 

both volunteering and training 

opportunities, the latter being 

suitable both for beginners and 

those with some experience. Our 

popular five-day Excavation Training 

Courses introduce participants to 

archaeological methods of survey, 

excavation and recording. More 

specialist and detailed instruction 

will also be available on shorter, 

weekend courses, such as 

Planning and Section Drawing and 

Site Photography (for details see 

the CCE programme on p4 of the 

Noticeboard section of SP&P. 

David Rudling (CCE) 

Chris Butler (MSFAT) 

For further information ring CCE on 

01273 678527 or email si-enquiries@ 

sussex.ac.uk. Website: www.sussex. 

ac.uk/cce/archaeology. 



Books 

BOOK REVIEWS 

BOOK REVIEWS 

Books 

Stanmer and 

the Pelham Family 

THE Pelham family from deepest 

Wealden Warbleton remained rustic 

coroners till the odious Sir John 

(c1355-1429) prospered mightily as 

factotum, jailer and sword-bearer 

to the Usurper Bolingbroke – hence 

the Pelham cage and buckle 

– probably. The Stanmer estate, 

near Brighton, rested in monastic 

hands between c765 and 1545 

when Sir Thomas Palmer bought 

it. Before his execution in 1553, his 

‘nightgown of black taffeta with a 

lace of gold, and furred with black 

coney’, was delivered to him in the 

Tower. 

In 1712 Henry Pelham, with the 

profits of a sinecure, bought the 

pastures and laines underpinning 

Stanmer’s sheep-corn husbandry. 

To design a new mansion, Henry 

and his brother Thomas, an ex- 

Turkey merchant, used Nicholas 

Dubois – a ‘French son of a bitch’ 

according to the Lewes mason 

Arthur Morris. His austere facade 

and interior spaces mostly survive, 

also Robert Burstow’s staircase and 

a horse gin to pump water from the 

chalk. Thomas, son of ‘Turk’, was 

made Earl of Chichester in 1801. 

He married a banking heiress, 

Anne Frankland, descendant of 

Oliver Cromwell, whose bible 

and death-mask became Pelham 

heirlooms. And maybe her dowry 

paid for the sumptuous Baroque- 

Rococco dining room, as well as 

for new plantations, lodges — and 

a menagerie. 

Though Thomas’s sons, when 

young, ‘were made to wear their fig 

leaves rather too tight’, the eldest, 

another Thomas, second Earl 

and Home Secretary in 1801-3, 

fathered a daughter on Sir Godfrey 

Webster’s wife. The macabre coverup 

was celebrated by Byron: 

Have you heard what a lady in 

Italy did When, to spite a cross 

husband, she buried a kid 

Soberer was his Gladstonian 

son Henry Thomas (1804-86). 

First Church Commissioner and 

Lord Lieutenant, he rebuilt Stanmer 

church, gave his tenants clean 

water and proper drains and battled 

through snow to visit the sick. 

Soberer still was his son Francis 

Godolphin, the Parson Earl, exrector 

of Lambeth. Utterly teetotal, 

“God ’elp ’im” ordered every cask 

in the cellars to be smashed open. 

But the family fortune depended 

dangerously on agrarian rents – as 

the recollections of several estate 

workers bear witness. Two Earls, 

moreover, died of influenza in November 

1926; the next in a motor 

crash in 1944. Meanwhile the 

mansion, village and estate were 

brutally requisitioned as battle 

training grounds for the Dieppe 

and Normandy landings. Brighton 

Corporation bought the shellshocked 

remnants in 1947. 

The story of these Whig-Liberal 

oligarchs and their estate is briskly 

narrated, and richly illustrated, in 

this ably designed book. Perhaps 

most haunting is the sight of a 

Saxon skeleton hanging upright in 

the roots of a fallen beech tree. 

Colin Brent 

By June Goodfield and Peter Robinson. 

Published by BN1 Publishing 2007. 

ISBN 978-1 905933 06 8. Paperback, 

112 pp. Price £9.99. 

See a further collection of 

books and gifts available 

to purchase on line at 

www.sussexpastshop.co.uk 

SOME other recent books about 

country houses are reviewed briefly 

below. These and many relevant 

books are available in the Library at 

Barbican House. 

Goodwood 

THE new book on Goodwood 

should encourage visits to this 

fascinating building and its setting. 

Lavishly illustrated and well written 

by Rosemary Baird, the Curator 

of the Goodwood Collection who 

uses her superb knowledge of the 

House, its collections and its setting 

to give a clear account of the 

family’s life, at their home in London 

and at Goodwood. 

By Rosemary Baird. Published by 

Frances Lincoln 2007. ISBN 978-0- 

7112-27659-9. Hardback. Price £35. 

The British Stable 

GOODWOOD is also featured in 

this superbly illustrated study by 

Giles Worsley. He also mentions the 

riding house at Firle Place (not accessible) 

and of course the Dome at 

Brighton. The horses were very well 

housed in these places. One wonders 

at the longevity and stabling 

of the urban work horse, the stage 

coach horse and the pit pony. 

By Giles Worsley. Published by Yale, 

reprinted 2005. ISBN 0-300-10708-0. 

Hardback. Price £45. 

Greater Medieval 

Houses of England and 

Wales 1300-1500 

Vol 3, Southern England 

IF you prefer older buildings this is 

a huge tome that provides a superb 

overview. Anthony Emery discusses 

many well known sites such as 

Bodiam Castle, Brede Place, the 

residences of the Archbishop of 

Canterbury and Herstmonceaux 

Castle. 

By Anthony Emery. Published by 

Cambridge University Press, Cambridge 

2006. Price: Approximately $170. 

Sue Berry 

The Lower Ouse Valley, 

Lewes – Newhaven, A 

history of the Brookland 

PREHISTORIC agriculture may 

have started the silting that turned 

the Lower Ouse Valley from a sea 

inlet to flat grazing land, crisscrossed 

by water channels and enriched 

by seasonal flooding. Flood 

control can be glimpsed first in 

place-names, then in negotiations 

between large medieval landowners. 

Controls encouraged obvious 

industries like milling and saltings, 

but also reckless medieval settlement 

on the floodplain at Cliffe, 

(Lewes) supported by a clever 

system of tidal drainage. 

Maintenance along the river was 

onerous. Too often sluices rotted, 

channels silted and reeds spread 

until the next big flood, and the 

recriminations that followed. From 

Tudor times, when the Commissioners 

for Sewers became the 

enforcers, records are good. There 

were also 18th century agricultural 

improvement and the Lower Ouse 

Navigation Trust, which opened up 

the river to modest shipping. 

Then came heroic 19th and 20th 

century urban sewage schemes. 

But damaging floods kept pace, 

most recently in October 2000. 

This then is a topical book for 

those still hoping to control the 

unruly river. It is valuable for those 

researching rural development, or 

the spread of urban infrastructure 

onto the floodplain. While for the 

general reader it offers an attractive 

and well-illustrated account of an 

artificial landscape that underpins 

the area’s natural beauty. 

Fiona Marsden 

By Margaret Thorburn. Published by 

Whithy Books, Lewes 2007. ISBN 

978-0-955242-0-2. Paperback, 59 pp. 

Price £9.99. Available from Barbican 

House or the author at 43 Cluny Street, 

Lewes, East Sussex BN7 1LN. 

Cottage Economy: 

A Study of Rural Life 

IN 1855, Augusta Ann Pitney, pupil 

teacher of Westbourne, Sussex, 

won a competition organized by 

Revd Henry Newland, for lectures 

on Cottage Economy. This charming 

little volume is the result, with 

preface and notes by the vicar, three 

lectures by Augusta, herself from a 

relatively modest background (her 

father was a sawyer, her mother a 

teacher); plus information relating 

to the author’s family and the Revd 

Newland provided by Denise Pitney, 

Augusta Ann’s great great niece. 

The lectures are informal if a little 

condescending to 21st century 

ears. The first deals with the weekly 

expenditure on rent, food and 

household goods for a labourer’s 

family of four children and two 

adults – a detailed analysis of how 

to provide food and shelter on an 

average income of 15 shillings 

a week, including raising a pig 

and cultivating vegetables. Total 

expenditure comes to 13s 6½d, 

leaving 1s 5½d for clothes. 

How to clothe the family on this 

sum – ‘a good deal of difficulty we 

shall have’ – is the subject of the second 

lecture. The family is presumed 

to pay 9d a week to a Clothing Fund, 

giving a return of £3 18s 9d. Boots 

are the major expense, from 14s for 

the father to 3s for the baby, with 

materials to make clothes, (total £3 

3s 4d per annum for the whole family), 

and a shilling for ‘needles and 

thread’. This lecture ends ‘Come 

what may, you MUST NOT RUN 

INTO DEBT’. 

The final lecture advocates planning 

ahead. Advice includes baking 

bread cheaply using potatoes, 

rice or sago to replace some or all 

of the wheat flour. Two rice pudding 

recipes are given, with discussion 

on preparation of soups and stews. 

One anecdote relates how a former 

parson lived with a cottager’s family 

for six weeks ‘to show them how 

well poor people might live if they 

liked’ – but a fortnight later they 

had slipped back into their old improvident 

ways! The lecture ends 

by admonishing the hearers to always 

do their duty and look after 

their husbands: ‘Economy means 

making the best and most of everything’. 

The book gives a fascinating 

insight into the lives of the poor in 

a mid-19th century Sussex village 

and their struggle to survive, with 

the subtext that by following this 

advice, the family cannot fail to 

thrive! 

Judith Billingham 

By Augusta Ann Pitney and Denise 

Thain. Published by Westbourne Local 

History Group (WLHG), Westbourne 

2007. ISBN 0 9536550 3 2. Paperback, 

58pp. Price £3.50. Available from 

WLHG, 7 Whitley Close, Westbourne, 

West Sussex. 

Erratum 

Review of Steyning Scandals 

(SP&P 113, p15): Janet 

Pennington writes that only one 

protestant martyr was burned 

in Steyning, not three, as she 

makes clear in her text. 



Snippets 

16 

Ave atque vale 

I have pleasure in welcoming 

Christine Medlock to the post of 

Director of Fishbourne Roman 

Palace. Christine, who took up her 

post on March 17, has the experience 

of a successful career in business 

and marketing in the tourism 

sector, combined with a degree 

in archaeology (recently obtained 

in her leisure hours). She is currently 

undertaking an MA course 

in archaeology at the University of 

Sussex, and lives in Chichester. I 

look forward to working with her in 

building on the existing strengths 

at the Palace. 

The Sussex Archaeological Society 

Council, Staff and Members 

were very sad to say goodbye to 

David Rudkin on his retirement at 

the end of March. His contribution 

to Fishbourne Roman Palace for 

28 years has been fundamental in 

creating the whole operation there 

and he will leave a lasting legacy. 

His continual energy and good 

humour have forged a motivated 

team of staff and volunteers at the 

museum. We all wish David every 

happiness in his retirement, hoping 

it brings many opportunities for relaxation 

and time for new and interesting 

pursuits. 


‘Bangers and Cash’ 

THIS was the headline to an 

article in the Sussex Express 

about the Lewes Castle Sausages. 

Launched during Late Night 

Christmas Shopping in Lewes in 

December 2007, the sausages 

are the imaginative brainchild of 

our Marketing Officer, Penelope 

Parker, and Lewes butcher Peter 

Richards. For every pound weight 

of the sausages sold, Peter will 

donate 50p to our appeal fund. The 

delicious sausages have already 

raised over £400! The Brewers 

Sussex Past & Present April 2008 

Arms in Lewes (next to Bull House) 

serves Lewes Castle Sausages in 

their Bangers and Mash. 

Volunteers 

IF you live in the Shoreham area and 

would like to spend a few hours a 

week doing something well worth 

while, why not volunteer to help at 

Marlipins Museum, Shoreham, one 

of the most interesting lay buildings 

in Sussex. Our volunteers each do 

approximately three-hour shifts 

when the museum is open, between 

May and October, Tuesdays to 

Saturdays, 10.30am to 4.30pm. In 

return, you would get to talk to our 

delightful visitors on anything from 

shoes or ships (or even sealing wax), 

with plenty of background material 

to help. You would be based here 

with like-minded people, who have 

a range of skills and interests, so it 

is always a lively place to be. 

Please contact Helen Poole, who 

is lucky enough to be in charge of 

Marlipins, on 01323 441279 or email 

marlipins@sussexpast.co.uk. 

Objects Returned 

LATE last year some objects were 

found to be missing from the new 

Collections Discovery Centre (CDC) 

at Fishbourne Roman Palace, and 

we reluctantly realised they had 

probably been stolen. A press 

release was issued early in 2008, 

asking people to be on the lookout, 

particularly if the objects were offered 

for sale in a shop or on the 

internet. Later in the week a box 

was dropped off in a supermarket 

trolley at Tesco’s Fishbourne store, 

containing some of the stolen items. 

The Security Manager spotted that 

the objects looked ‘archaeological’ 

and contacted the police, who 

alerted the Palace. So thanks to 

Tesco’s staff some of our irreplaceable 

objects have been returned. 

Security at the CDC has been 

tightened, but people can still enjoy 

contact with the objects. 

Information Please 

A request has been received from 

West Sussex Record Office (WSRO), 

for information on medals and 

certificates awarded by the West 

Sussex Agricultural Association. 

Lists of the prizewinners between 

1836 and 1864 are now available 

at WSRO, transcribed from newspaper 

reports by Malcolm Walford. 

This is an invaluable source for the 

history of agricultural labourers, 

who often leave little trace. 

If any members know the 

whereabouts of surviving medals 

and certificates please could they 

contact the Record Office by email 

on records.office@westsussex. 

gov.uk, or telephone 01243 753625. 

Next Issue 

THE next issue of Sussex Past & 

Present will be published in August 

2008. Copy deadline is June 9. 

Letters and ‘snippets’ are 

welcome; other items should be 

no longer than 500 words unless 

prior arrangements are made with 

the editor, Sarah Hanna, at spp@ 

sussexpast.co.uk, or John Manley 

on 01273 486260. Please note 

that we require images with most 

contributions, preferably in high 

quality colour format. To submit 

digitally, please use MS Word for 

text and send images in JPEG or 

TIF formats, at minimum resolution 

of 600dpi. Correspondence and 

details of events should be sent to 

Sarah Hanna, Editor, Sussex Past & 

Present, Bull House, 92 High Street, 

Lewes BN7 1XH, or emailed to the 

above address. 

Rates for insertions into the 

newsletter, which goes out to over 

2500 members, start at £100 (plus 

minimum handling charge of £20). 

Contact Lorna Gartside on 01273 

405737 for details. 

www.sussexpast.co.uk

April 2008 (issue 114) - The Sussex Archaeological Society

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