This beautiful ornament, according to the information kindly communicated by Mr. Fox, was found on May 24, 1848, upon a farm in his possession, in that part of the parish of Wendover, called Wendover Dean, and in the occupation of Mr. James Olliff. One of his labourers named Charles Rockell, employed in ploughing, observed the gold glittering on the ridge of his fresh-turned furrow: he picked it up, and on return from his work it was carried to his master.[1] The piece of ground where the bracelet was thus brought to light by the plough, had been woodland, covered with beech-trees, from which the county of Buckingham is supposed to have derived its name. In title-deeds, bearing- date 1696, the name of this wood is written "Rideings" grove or coppice. In later times it has been known as "Riddings" wood. The field at the present time bears the same name,—the Riddings.[2] In the winter of 1845 Mr. Fox had caused this wood to be cut down and grubbed up. The tenant had repeatedly ploughed and harrowed the soil; and, doubtless, the grubbing up of deep roots had brought this precious object to the surface, but it had remained concealed till the last spring. There is nothing about the field, such as a hillock or tumulus, nor any traditions concerning the locality, tending to throw light on this interesting discovery. Wendover is situate in one of the vallies of the Chiltern Hills, and this old woodland is on the brow of a hill on the west side of the valley. The farm, of which it is part, had been known by the name of "Dutchlands" as far back as the year 1696.[3] In the Ordnance Survey and some other maps the name is written Ditchland.
Although no ancient vestiges of occupation now appear near the spot where this discovery occurred, there are various
- ↑ This is not the only discovery recently made in this manner, in the county of Bucks. A fine pair of silver armlets, found in ploughing at Castlethorpe, with Roman coins, are given in the Journal of the Archaeol. Assoc, vol. ii., p. 353.
- ↑ Mr. Hartshorne, in his useful Remarks on Names of Places, appended to the "Salopia Antiqua," has noticed this, as occurring in two localities, called "Riddings," one near Broseley, the other near Ludlow. He suggests a derivation from C. Brit. Rhudd, ruber, on account of the colour of the soil, which, at one of the places in question, suddenly becomes red. "Or do they take their name from the A. Sax. hreddan, liberare, that is, land cleared of wood? There is a Ridding Wood near Maer, county Stafford." It can scarcely be questioned that lands assarted were thus called, from the Ang. Sax. hredding, ereptio; the name occurs in various places, near woodland districts, for instance, Reddings, near Monks' Risborough, Bucks; Ridding Farm, on the skirts of King's Wood, Kent; Ridinghurst, Surrey, &c.
- ↑ It was the property, at the time, of a Col. Bateman, and it has been conjectured that the name Dutchlands in some manner originated in the times of the Prince of Orange, and that the said Colonel might have served in his Dutch Guards.
