removed in the process of enlarging the vast sand pits that a mere fragment of the defensive earthwork can be traced.
Just enough remains to-day to indicate that the bold hill, commanding the valley of the Thames, selected by the Britons, or Romans, as the site for their strong fortress, was steeply scarped for some 15 ft. down, and at the foot of the scarp surrounded by a rampart.
On the south-west a piece of a second or outer rampart remains, which probably extended all round the camp, but met with the excavator's pick earlier than the inner rampart.
Even of the inner rampart only a few more yards remain than of the outer, and these must shortly disappear to be replaced by the floor of the great pit, at 60 ft. or 70 ft. lower level.
A week or two before the writer's visit, two nearly perfect vases and one broken vessel of the Romano-British period were found on the slope of the rampart when digging it away.
Cobham: Cobhambury Wood. — On high ground commanding an extensive view eastward, above the road from Cobham to Cuxton, are traces which may appertain to a hill fort. Mr. George Payne considers the 'ramparts' to be the outlines of an extensive oppidum, some 300 yds. square,[1] but the rampart seems in places to be very meagre, more a terracing of the slope than a bank, and the trenches die out. The thick growth of timber and underwood renders it very difficult to form an opinion as to the extent of artificial work.
Cobham: Cobham Park Oppidum. — This work is very similar to certain Celtic strongholds, usually hill forts, to be found in various parts of the country. A work, for example, of a like character is that of Castel-y-Gaer, Llwyngwril, Merionethshire, which has a lunar defence on the north-east side and is constructed with a similar rampart, fosse and outer bank facing an ancient road passing across the front.
The rear is undefended owing to the steepness of the approach to the top plateau from that side, and the fosse runs out in the same way to cover ground on both sides as at Cobham.
The work here is exceptionally interesting on account of the good state of preservation of the pits in the fosse such as are common to many hill forts, and are supposed to be connected with the defence of the main entrances, the causeways enabling men to quickly advance and return to and from the ramparts.
A doubtful point is the defence of the west side. In other cases a defended annexe for cattle in British works, or for camp retainers in the case of the Roman forts, is sometimes found on the protected flank, away from the probable direction of attack. The mound where the water gauge now is may have been an annexe, but the remains are too vague to suggest a definite conclusion.
The only piece of possible Roman work is the straight trench on the west side, but as it may be comparatively recent nothing can be authoritatively stated as to this.
392
- ↑ Coll. Cantiana (1893).
