found in association in other barrows, probably served for procuring fire. The urns belong to the type which have been called food vessels, to distinguish them from the cinerary urns in which the ashes of the deceased were placed. They may have contained two sorts of food, or food and drink, or, as Mr. Bateman supposes, the presence of two may indicate a double burial. About a quarter of a mile to the west there is a large conical tumulus, known as Gib Hill, which was connected with Arbor Low by a rampart of earth, which, however, is now very faint and imperfect. Gib Hill was opened by Mr. Bateman in 1843. He found that it had been raised over four smaller mounds, consisting of hardened clay mixed with wood and charcoal. The central interment consisted of a dolmen, or stone chamber, situated near the top of the mound. It was composed of four massive limestone blocks covered by a fifth, about four feet square by ten inches in thickness. The cist, having fallen in, was removed, and re-erected in the garden at Lomberdale House. It contained only a small urn, four and a quarter inches in height, a piece of white flint, and burnt human bones. In the earth of the tumulus were found also a flint arrow-head, a fragment of a basaltic celt, a small iron brooch, and another fragment of iron, supposed by Mr. Bateman to have belonged to a later interment, which had been previously disturbed. To the west is the Roman road from Buxton which passes southwards, not far from Kenslow Top, to the great tumulus of Minning Low. There can be no doubt that Gib Hill and the tumulus here were places of burial; but the original purpose of the circle is not so obvious. Mr. Bateman called it a temple; but the temple is the house of the Deity, and even when perfect this can scarcely have been regarded as a house. Still, just as the tomb was the

house of the dead, sometimes a copy of the dwelling, nay, in some cases the very dwelling itself of the deceased, so by an obvious chain of ideas the tomb developed into the temple. Even now, the northern races of men lived in houses founded on the models of those tombs. Having to contend with an Arctic climate, they constructed a subterranean chamber, over which they piled earth for the sake of warmth, and which for the same reason communicated with the open air, not directly, but by means of a long passage. In a few instances tumuli exactly resembling these modern houses had been discovered. At Godhaven, in Sweden, such a grave had been opened in 1830, and the dead had been found sitting, each with his implements, in the very seats which, doubtless, they had occupied when alive. Thus in some cases, that which was first a house at last became a tomb.

From Arbor Low the members drove through the Long Dale, a weird yet picturesque length of mountain scenery, to Hartington, and after lunch at the Charles Cotton Hotel proceeded, under the guidance of the Rev. W. Fyldes, the vicar, to examine the outlines of the foundations of an old castle supposed to have been built by the Ferrers, and afterwards in the posssession of Edmund, duke of Lancaster. From the castle grounds an excellent view of the church and the village is obtained. Like most of the stone-built villages of the Peak, Hartington has a clean and attractive appearance, with a fine open space, formerly used as a market-place. Hartington Hall (sixteenth and seventeenth century building) was next visited. In the front is the following inscription: "H. B. [Hugh Bateman] 1611. T. O. B. [Thomas Osborne Bateman] 1862." The hall is now used as a private boarding house. The parish church of St. Giles was next visited and described by the vicar.

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It is a fine old church, principally Early English and Decorated, and has several windows of remarkable purity. The main portion is thirteenth-century work, but from Saxon times a place of worship has stood upon this site. Amongst the objects of interest to the antiquary is a stone coffin with sculptured lid, the remains of ancient sculptured crosses, the chamber once used by a recluse, the lepers' window, and a fine mural sun-dial. Before leaving the church the members expressed their thanks to the vicar for his excellent and interesting description of this fine old church. Beresford Dale was next visited; also the far-famed fishing house of Walton and Cotton, at its entrance. Over the doorway is inscribed "Piscatoribus Sacrum, 1674," with the initials I. W. and C. C. intertwined. The ramble through this lovely dale was much enjoyed.

Wednesday, August 19th, 1896.

WARDLEY HALL.

The members visited Wardley Hall, the property of the Earl of Ellesmere, under the leadership of Mr. George C. Yates, F.S.A. The hall is picturesquely situated, and is nearly surrounded by a broad moat. Restorations by the Bridgewater Trustees have been going on for some time, and when completed Wardley will be an exceedingly interesting and comfortable residence. Previous to the present restorations the gateway was covered with plaster, and bore an inscription, R.D., 1811, the date of the former restorations. Now all the plaster is removed, and the gateway appears as originally built. The members were much pleased with the courtyard, which has been admirably restored, and looks very different from what it did a few years ago. The

entrance to the hall is now placed opposite the gateway, and the former entrance blocked up. The party first examined the exterior of the hall, walked round the moat, which is covered with water-lilies and other aquatic plants, and then visited the nicely laid out grounds within the moat. Afterwards they entered the hall, and were astonished at the numerous alterations made therein. Several fine fireplaces, which had been previously blocked up, are opened out; the floors retimbered, and the staircase almost entirely rebuilt. The celebrated skull has not yet found a resting-place, but a recess is to be made in the staircase for its reception, in the same spot where it has lain for so many years. The ghost room has lost its blood-stained floor, but that can be easily restored. The oak room has a fine old fireplace, partly blocked up, but it is hoped this will be reopened. The door, which formerly opened out on to the lawn, has been replaced by a window. Before the restorations, some cottages occupied one side of the hall, but these have been demolished, thus giving room for a passage round the whole building, containing several good rooms, with a stable and coachhouse underneath. All being assembled in the billiard-room, Mr. George C. Yates read a paper on the history of Wardley Hall.

Saturday, August 29th, 1896.

VISIT TO HATHERSAGE.

The members, under the leadership of Mr. George C. Yates, F.S.A., visited Hathersage, immortalised in Charlotte Brontë's famous novel, Jane Eyre. On arriving at Hathersage the party proceeded direct to the church, dedicated to St. Michael. It is not only one of the most picturesquely situated churches in Derbyshire, but is also

one of the best examples of ecclesiastical architecture that the county possesses. It consists of a nave with side aisles, chancel with north aisle or chapel, south porch, and an embattled tower, surmounted by a lofty spire. Its general design, and most of its features, connect the present church with the first half of the fourteenth century, when the Decorated style prevailed. Before the battlements of the porch, over the entrance, are four shields carved in stone, and a four-leaved rose. There are various quaint and well-defined gargoyles both on the south and north of the church; on the south side may be noticed a muzzled bear and the face of the tiger, and on the north a Turk's head. There are several objects of interest in the church. At the east end of the south aisle is a small niche which has formerly served as a piscina, and the presence of a former altar here is placed beyond doubt by the two corbel brackets for images which project from each end of the base of the east window. At the west end of the church is a fine octagon font of the Perpendicular period, of a chaliceshaped design. The font has three shields, two of which bear the arms of Eyre and Padley respectively, and betoken that it was the gift of Robert Eyre, the third son of Nicholas Eyre, of Hope, who married Joan, daughter and heiress of Robert Padley. On the south side of the chancel are three elegant sedilia of equal height, with carved stone canopies; beyond them is a small piscina of good design. On the north side of the chancel is an altar tomb under an elaborate stone canopy. On the top are the effigies, in brass, of Robert Eyre and his wife Joan, and their fourteen children. On the south side of the chancel, above the sedilia, are the brass effigies of a knight and his lady, kneeling at desks on which books are lying. The knight is in plate armour, bareheaded,