Attitudes to Disposal of the Dead - Gazetteer Query Form

Background to the Gazetteer | Table of Contents

Note that there may be a few slight discrepancies between counts given in the text and the returned results in the gazetteer. This is a result of corrections and amendments (not updates) made to the gazetteer since the research was published in BAR. This does not materially affect the picture presented but does add more detail.

Site name Read's Cavern, Churchill

Site number 1299

Burial codes 1002 1008 1021 1023 1026 1028 1030 1035 1036 1042 1047 1051 1065 1075 1084 1098 1104 1108 1110 1111 1127 1128 1143 1151 1182

100bc-AD43 A cave deposit revealed a number of skeletons believed to have been buried beneath a roof fall that blocked the cave entrance. It is thought that the majority of bones fell down into the main cave after occupation had ceased. Associated material from the cave interior included La Tene II and III brooches, iron latch-lifters and slave shackles, worked bone and stone, much animal bone (sheep, pig ox and horse, wild boar, red deer and roe deer), and Iron Age sherds representing c100 vessels including Glastonbury ware. Dating was suggested as c50BC-AD1.

At least four individuals were represented, one a child. There was evidence (as at Wookey Hole) for the deliberate cutting of human bone, for what purpose is not clear.

Remains/Period Y1

County Somerset

Region SW

National grid square ST

X coordinate 468

Y coordinate 584

Bibliographic source Palmer 1919, 1921a/b, Langford 1922, 1923, Tratman 1923, 1924, 1931, Whimster 1981

Query

Site name	Read's Cavern, Churchill
Site number	1299
Burial codes	1002 1008 1021 1023 1026 1028 1030 1035 1036 1042 1047 1051 1065 1075 1084 1098 1104 1108 1110 1111 1127 1128 1143 1151 1182
100bc-AD43	A cave deposit revealed a number of skeletons believed to have been buried beneath a roof fall that blocked the cave entrance. It is thought that the majority of bones fell down into the main cave after occupation had ceased. Associated material from the cave interior included La Tene II and III brooches, iron latch-lifters and slave shackles, worked bone and stone, much animal bone (sheep, pig ox and horse, wild boar, red deer and roe deer), and Iron Age sherds representing c100 vessels including Glastonbury ware. Dating was suggested as c50BC-AD1. At least four individuals were represented, one a child. There was evidence (as at Wookey Hole) for the deliberate cutting of human bone, for what purpose is not clear.
Remains/Period	Y1
County	Somerset
Region	SW
National grid square	ST
X coordinate	468
Y coordinate	584
Bibliographic source	Palmer 1919, 1921a/b, Langford 1922, 1923, Tratman 1923, 1924, 1931, Whimster 1981