Identifier: archaelogicalind00akerrich (find matches)
Title: An archaelogical index to remains of antiquity of the Celtic, Romano-British, and Anglo-Saxon periods
Year: 1847 (1840s)
Authors: Akerman, John Yonge, 1806-1873
Subjects: England -- Antiquities
Publisher: London, J. R. Smith
Contributing Library: University of California Libraries
Digitizing Sponsor: MSN

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the Chalk Hills. The practice of the Anglo-Saxons, alreadyalluded to, of connecting their myths withthe most remarkable monuments found bythem on their arrival in this country, hasgiven rise to traditions, which may at firstappear to be purely local, but which furtherenquiry will discover to be the remains ofpopular superstitions of a remote period. Inthis way, as already observed, the well-knowncromlech at Ashbury, in the county of Berks,popularly termed Wayland Smiths cave, hasbeen associated with Weland, the mythic smithof the Pagan Saxons; and, in all probability, thefamous white horse at Uffington, in the samecounty, cut in the chalk of the downs, has, by asimilar mode of adoption, been attributed to amuch later period than that to which it doubtlessbelongs, and ascribed to the great Alfred, as amonument of his victory over the Danes in thatneighbourhood. But the style alone of this rudefigure, of which a representation is here given,from actual admeasurement, would be sufficient
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COLOSSAL FIGURES CUT IN THE CHALK HILLS. 43 to justify our classing it with monuments of theCeltic period. The horse being a well-known Saxon symbol,or device, has greatly favoured the popularappropriation; but the fact, that this animal is avery conspicuous object on the coins of the Gauls,and the ancient Britons, previous to the establish-ment of the Romans in this island, is sufficientto cast a doubt on its reputed Saxon origin.The very striking resemblance in the style of thisrude figure to attempts to represent a horse on theearly money of the ancient Britons, is anotherargument against the popular tradition. Atany rate, if really Saxon, its barbarous executionwould not justify our assigning it to the days ofAlfred, but rather to Pagan Saxon times. To the same class belongs the gigantic humanfigure, armed with a club, carved in the Chalk-hill, at Cerne-Abbas, in Dorsetshire.^ For the loan of this cut, iUustrating a paper l)y Mr.Thorns on these representations of horses in Enghnid

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