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Show 208 BURIAL OF THE REMAINS CHAP. IV. here only 9 inches thick. sections, not copied, we Fig. 12. In some other likewise have Light-coloured cnrth with large pieces of broken tiles, 7 in.es. Dn.rk, flne·grain rd ntbhl,h '' ith small bits 01 til e~ , 20 inches. Mn.de bottom with fra~· men ts of Liles, l:l iucl1 ·~. Fine-~rnined mudr ~round with thP dcbri; of uldvr buildings. Section in the ceutre of the Basilica at Silchcster. evidence of bu·ildings having been erected over the ruins of older ones. In one case CHAP. IV. OF ANCIENT BUILDINGS. 209 there was a layer of yellow clay of very unequal thickness between two beds of debris, the lower one of which rested on a floor with tesserre. The old broken walls appear sometimes to have been roughly cut down to a uniform level, so as to serve as the foundations of a temporary building; and Mr. Joyce suspects that some of these buildings were wattled sheds, plastered with clay, which would account for tho above-mentioned layer of clay. Turning now to the points which more immediately concern us. Worm-castings were observed on the floors of several of the rooms, in one of which the tesselation was unusually perfect. The tessene here consisted of little cubes of hard sandstone of about 1 inch, several of which were loose or projected slightly above the general leveL One or occasionally two open worm-burrows were found beneath all the loose tesserro. Worms have also penetrated the old walls of these ruins. A wall, which had just been exposed to view during the excavations then in progress, was examined; it was built of large flints, and was 18 inches in thickness. p |