Attitudes to Disposal of the Dead - Gazetteer Query Form

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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 Foxley Farm Beaker Cemetery, Eynsham

Site number 1023

Burial codes 4005 4009 4021 4023 4026 4028 4030 4031 4032 4035 4043 4046 4048 4051 4053 4065 4071 4072 4075 4084 4093 4098 4103 4104 4105 4106 4107 4108 4109 4110 4111 4122 4123 4128 4129 \\\\n4141 4153 4159 4161 4168 4181

2500bc-14/1300bc A Beaker cemetery with 18 recorded graves, all broadly oriented NS except for No 4 which was oriented E. The Beakers were all A type barring one B type. The graves apart from No 15 were uniformly rectangular and varied in depth from 0.75m to 1.8m in the gravel. On the floor a layer of grey or sometimes black ash completely surrounded the skeleton (never beneath or on the bones) and extended a little way up the walls. This had the appearance of brushwood burnt after the depositing of the body. Every skeleton lay on a thin layer of soft grey sand, and No 15 alone was very tightly constricted as if bound on deposition. There was no evidence for a mound of any substance, each grave being refilled with its own upcast. There were 4 massive post holes 0.9m in diameter and 0.5-0.75m deep in the vicinity.

Those buried belonged to a uniform and readily recognisable type, tallish, of slender build, coffin-shaped skulls with pronounced brow ridges, and narrow rather retreating foreheads. They appeared to have been healthy in life.

1 A child c2 or less with a handled Beaker in a grave 1.8m in diameter.
2 An adult male c50 without grave goods in a grave c2.1m x 1.5m.
3 An adult male c25-30 facing left and almost face downwards, arms flexed in front of chest, legs flexed in part, with handled Beaker in front of pelvis in a grave 2.4m x 1.5m.
4 An adult male c50 facing left almost face downwards, right arm flexed to right shoulder, knees flexed, a large Beaker behind the pelvis standing on and partly surrounded by ash in a grave 1.5m x 1.2m.
5 An adult male c50 on left side, arms flexed, without grave goods in a grave 1.8m x 1.2m.
6 An adult male supine, knees flexed, left arm flexed, without grave goods in a grave c2.4m x 1.6m.
7 An adult female c50 with little ash on the floor in this case, but signs of burning reaching c0.3m up the walls. The body was crouched on the right side, left arm fully flexed, knees flexed, without grave goods in a grave c2.1m x 1.5m.
8 Disturbed grave 1.5m x 1.4m possibly holding a Beaker found independently.
9 An adult female c50 on right side, right arm flexed, legs flexed, with dental disease, without grave goods in a grave c1.8m x 1.2m.
10 An adult male c30 facing left, right arm partly flexed, knees drawn up, no grave goods in a grave c2.1m x 1.2m.
11 A (?)male child c8 oriented S without grave goods in a grave c0.9m x 0.6m.
12 Disturbed grave 1.8m x 1.4m.
13 A child c5 oriented SSE without grave goods in a grave c0.9m x 0.6m.
14 An adult male c35, contracted on left side, a Beaker behind the pelvis in a grave 1.8m x 1.2m.
15 No ash on the floor of the grave (c1.6m x 0.9m) but dark coloured sand, with an adult male c60 on left side, limbs so fully flexed they must have been bound in that position, and a Beaker behind the pelvis. A bronze dagger was on the chest between the upper arms.
16 An adult male c50 on left side in a grave c1.5m x 0.9m, knees flexed, right arm half flexed, the skull trephined. There were no grave goods. The lightly cremated bones of a young adult female were placed behind and in contact with the pelvis.
17 An adult male c25 on left side, contracted, legs flexed, without grave goods in a grave c1.5m x 0.9m.
18 An adult female c40 on the left side, contracted, a Beaker at the feet, and a bronze awl on the body, in a grave c1.6m x 1.2m.

At c3m west of No 16 was a pit c0.9m deep resembling these graves and containing a large collared urn of a very Early Bronze Age type with a cremation within. This was considered evidence for a transition.

Burials 11/13, 9, 7, 10, 15, 16, 6 and 4 were all in a SSE/NNW line. Burials 8, 5, 2 and 3 were in a line to the east converging at a narrow angle on No 4. Burials 14, 17 12 and 18 appear unaligned if indeed any alignment can be deduced among these.

Remains/Period Y4

County Oxfordshire

Region SE

National grid square SP

X coordinate 482

Y coordinate 81

Bibliographic source Leeds 1938a

Query

Site name	Foxley Farm Beaker Cemetery, Eynsham
Site number	1023
Burial codes	4005 4009 4021 4023 4026 4028 4030 4031 4032 4035 4043 4046 4048 4051 4053 4065 4071 4072 4075 4084 4093 4098 4103 4104 4105 4106 4107 4108 4109 4110 4111 4122 4123 4128 4129 \\\\n4141 4153 4159 4161 4168 4181
2500bc-14/1300bc	A Beaker cemetery with 18 recorded graves, all broadly oriented NS except for No 4 which was oriented E. The Beakers were all A type barring one B type. The graves apart from No 15 were uniformly rectangular and varied in depth from 0.75m to 1.8m in the gravel. On the floor a layer of grey or sometimes black ash completely surrounded the skeleton (never beneath or on the bones) and extended a little way up the walls. This had the appearance of brushwood burnt after the depositing of the body. Every skeleton lay on a thin layer of soft grey sand, and No 15 alone was very tightly constricted as if bound on deposition. There was no evidence for a mound of any substance, each grave being refilled with its own upcast. There were 4 massive post holes 0.9m in diameter and 0.5-0.75m deep in the vicinity. Those buried belonged to a uniform and readily recognisable type, tallish, of slender build, coffin-shaped skulls with pronounced brow ridges, and narrow rather retreating foreheads. They appeared to have been healthy in life. 1 A child c2 or less with a handled Beaker in a grave 1.8m in diameter. 2 An adult male c50 without grave goods in a grave c2.1m x 1.5m. 3 An adult male c25-30 facing left and almost face downwards, arms flexed in front of chest, legs flexed in part, with handled Beaker in front of pelvis in a grave 2.4m x 1.5m. 4 An adult male c50 facing left almost face downwards, right arm flexed to right shoulder, knees flexed, a large Beaker behind the pelvis standing on and partly surrounded by ash in a grave 1.5m x 1.2m. 5 An adult male c50 on left side, arms flexed, without grave goods in a grave 1.8m x 1.2m. 6 An adult male supine, knees flexed, left arm flexed, without grave goods in a grave c2.4m x 1.6m. 7 An adult female c50 with little ash on the floor in this case, but signs of burning reaching c0.3m up the walls. The body was crouched on the right side, left arm fully flexed, knees flexed, without grave goods in a grave c2.1m x 1.5m. 8 Disturbed grave 1.5m x 1.4m possibly holding a Beaker found independently. 9 An adult female c50 on right side, right arm flexed, legs flexed, with dental disease, without grave goods in a grave c1.8m x 1.2m. 10 An adult male c30 facing left, right arm partly flexed, knees drawn up, no grave goods in a grave c2.1m x 1.2m. 11 A (?)male child c8 oriented S without grave goods in a grave c0.9m x 0.6m. 12 Disturbed grave 1.8m x 1.4m. 13 A child c5 oriented SSE without grave goods in a grave c0.9m x 0.6m. 14 An adult male c35, contracted on left side, a Beaker behind the pelvis in a grave 1.8m x 1.2m. 15 No ash on the floor of the grave (c1.6m x 0.9m) but dark coloured sand, with an adult male c60 on left side, limbs so fully flexed they must have been bound in that position, and a Beaker behind the pelvis. A bronze dagger was on the chest between the upper arms. 16 An adult male c50 on left side in a grave c1.5m x 0.9m, knees flexed, right arm half flexed, the skull trephined. There were no grave goods. The lightly cremated bones of a young adult female were placed behind and in contact with the pelvis. 17 An adult male c25 on left side, contracted, legs flexed, without grave goods in a grave c1.5m x 0.9m. 18 An adult female c40 on the left side, contracted, a Beaker at the feet, and a bronze awl on the body, in a grave c1.6m x 1.2m. At c3m west of No 16 was a pit c0.9m deep resembling these graves and containing a large collared urn of a very Early Bronze Age type with a cremation within. This was considered evidence for a transition. Burials 11/13, 9, 7, 10, 15, 16, 6 and 4 were all in a SSE/NNW line. Burials 8, 5, 2 and 3 were in a line to the east converging at a narrow angle on No 4. Burials 14, 17 12 and 18 appear unaligned if indeed any alignment can be deduced among these.
Remains/Period	Y4
County	Oxfordshire
Region	SE
National grid square	SP
X coordinate	482
Y coordinate	81
Bibliographic source	Leeds 1938a