The Jutish (Saxon) Cemetery at Lyminge, Kent

probably once present in the grave. The position of the finds indicated that the grave had not been disturbed. OTHER FEATURES Worked flints of Mesolithic type were found frequently on the site. The area investigated, however, had not suffered any disturbance, other than that caused by the grave digging, until within living memory a series of chicken houses, now removed, was erected on the field. Two shallow gullies, only a few inches deep into the subsoil, intruded on the south side of the area investigated. They were cleared within this area but their age could not be determined with certainty. A tiny chip of modern china was found in the fill of the north gully and it is possible that the clay fill is the result of drainage from the roofs of the chicken houses mentioned above, which had dissolved the chalk to a slight depth. It must be added that the fragment is so tiny and the gully so shallow that it could be an accidental intrusion. The gullies are neither perfectly aligned nor right-angled and no grave was found in the area within them. The possibility of a connection between these gullies and the cemetery cannot be ruled out and must await the further clearing of the area when it might be possible to determine the stratigraphical relationship between the two. Throughout the area investigated there was a fair scattering of pottery sherds both in the topsoil and in the grave fill.		One of these is a much worn fragment of Samian ware and another a fragment of Romano-British wheel-turned pottery. Two or three fragments may well be Bronze or Iron Age but otherwise these sherds present no unusual features, consisting invariably of hand-made, calcite gritted, poorly fired red and black ware. In no case has it been possible to hazard the shape of a complete pot from any of these fragments. INVENTORY OF THE BURIALS In the following inventory the alignment of the graves is indicated, by a bearing from true north taken along the line of the grave from head to feet. Thus a reading of 90 deg. indicates an east-west burial with the head at the westerly end of the grave. The depth of the grave is given from the present land surface; it is unlikely that there has been any great change in this since Saxon times. The position of the finds in the is given as from the position of the skeleton itself. GRAVE 1. A well-built man; 5 ft. 10 in.; 50 years of age; skeleton in good condition; well marked evidence of widespread osteo-arthritis; supine, full length, arms straight, head pillowed; 101 deg. 1ft. 10 in. deep Finds. An iron shield-boss (Fig. 3, No. 4) by the left elbow. The shield had been inserted vertically into the grave. The boss and its accompanying grip (Fig. 3, No. 3) were found by workmen.
Page 6 (This page prepared for the Website by Christine Pantrey)

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