The first paper in this volume contains Observations on the Julia Strata, and on the Roman Stations,, Forts, and Camps, in the counties of Monmouth, Brecknock, Caermarthen, and Glamorgan. II. Obfervations on an Infcription at Spello. III. An account of fome Antiquities found in Ireland. V. An account of a remarkable Monument in Penrith Church-yard, Cumberland. VI. An account of fome Antiquities discovered on digging into a large Roman Barrow at Elenborough, in Cumber land. ( VII. Account of fome Roman Monuments found in Cumberland. VIII. A Differtation on the Gule of Auguft, as mentioned in our Statute Law. By John Pettingal, D. D. The Gule of August signified the feftival of St. Peter ad Vincula, observed by the church of Rome in honour of their patron faint, on the firft day of Auguft. Dr. Pettingal imagines the expreffion to be of Celtic origin. He tells us that in the British or Welsh tongue in ufe at this day, a holy day is called Wyl, or, to ftrengthen the found, Gwyl; thus in the rubrick of the Welsh liturgy every faint's day is the Wyl or Gwyl of fuch a faint. In common converfation, the day of St. John is called Gwyl Jevan; of St Andrew, Gwyl Andreas; and the first of August, Gwyl Awft. • Where then, fays the author, can we look fo properly for the Gule of Auguit, as from the Celtic or British, dydd Gwyl Areft, which fignifies among them the first of August From hence he alfo derives the reason, why in Scotland they call the feftival of Christmas, the rule, i. e. the Wyl or feftival of the Nativity; and in the fame phrafe, the Christmas holydays are called in Wales wylian or gwyliau hadolig, the feaft of Chriftmas; where vylia or gwyliau is the plural of wyl or gryl. He remarks that, in the Old English or British language, the T, W, and G, were ufed interchangeably for each other; of which he produces fome examples. IX. Obfervations on the mistakes of Mr. Lifle and Mr. Hearne, in refpe&t of King Alfred's Prefent to the Cathedrals. The late use of the Stylus or Metalline Pen. Mr. Wife's conjecture concerning the famous Jewel of King Alfred further purfued; fhewing it might poffibly be part of the Stylus fent by that king with Gregory's Paftoral, to the monaftery at Athelney. X. Obfervations on the Aeftel. XI. Ob XI. Obfervations on Mr. Peter Collinfon's Paper on the Round Towers in Ireland. XII. Obfervations on the Round Tower at Brechin, in Scotland. XIII. The Bull-running, at Tutbury, in Staffordshire, confidered. XIV. Obfervations on the Altar, with a Greek Infcription, at Corbridge, in Northumberland. XV. Obfervations on the fame Infcription. XVI. Obfervations on Dr. Percy's account of Minstrels among the Saxons. XVII. An account of the Monument commonly afcribed to Catigorn. XVIII. Obfervations on Stone Hatchets, by the late Bishop Lyttelton. With these Observations his lordship laid before the fociety a stone, which was found fome years ago, near Spurnfton, in the parish of St. Cuthbert, Carlisle, in a little hillock, or raised piece of ground. The bishop fuppofes it to be of the fame kind with those which Gefner, Aldrovand, and other writers on natural philosophy, abfurdly name. Ceraunia, or Thunder-bolts, affirming that they fall from the clouds in ftorms of thunder. His lordship thinks it unquestionable that this stone was a military weapon, answering to the steel or iron battle-ax in later times; and that it had been fabricated at a very early period, and by barbarous people, before the use of iron or other meals was known. He is alfo of opinion that these ftones are by far the most ancient remains exifting at this day of our British ancestors, and probably coeval with the firft inhabitants of this island. XIX. Obfervations on Stone Hammers. XX. Obfervations on an Inscription in the Church of Sunning-hill, Berks. XXI. Defcription of an ancient Font at Bridekirk. XXII. Obfervations on Cæfar's Invafion of Britain; and more particularly his Paffage across the Thames, by the Hon. Daines Barrington. In two letters on this fubject, Mr. Barrington produces very strong arguments for concluding that the Tamefis, mentioned by Cæfar, was not the river now called the Thames, but the Medway; and we acknowledge. that the words of Cæfar, if accurately attended to, will not bear any other construction. As the Medway empties itself into the Thames, Mr. Barrington fuppofes that it might very poffibly go at this time by the lame name, efpecially as the Celtic word 7 am imports a river in the Gaulish language, and that ys fignifies crooked, or rvinding, as Bullet informs us. Such a name was therefore applicable to almost every river; C 2 and upon upon the fuppofition of the Medway being called Tamefis, most of the difficulties refpecting the part of the river where Cæfar's army forded to attack Caffibelan, will be folved. After refuting, with great precifion, the opinions of Camden and bishop Kennet, concerning Cæfar's paffage of the Thames at Coway Stakes, and the battle of Wallingford, Mr. Barrington cites the authority of Dio Caffius to prove that the Romans understood by the Tamefts a different river from that which is now called the Thames. The abovementioned hiftorian, in his 60th book, defcribes Plautius following the Britons to the mouth of the Tauera, and then mentions a bridge at no great diftance over the river, which was actually paffed by fome German auxiliaries. Mr. Barrington here fubmits the queftion, whether our ancestors could have built a bridge over the Thames, where it empties itself into the fea, and whether it does not therefore amount to an irrefragable proof, that some other river than the modern Thames was then known by the appellation of Ταμεσα. XXIII. Remarks on the time employed in Cæfar's two Expeditions into Britain. By the Rev. Dr. Owen. In these Remarks, Dr. Owen alfo maintains by fenfible arguments the opinion of Mr. Barrington, that the Medway, and not the Thames, was the river which Cæfar understood by the Tha mefis. XXIV. Copy of the Draught of a Proclamation in the year 1563, relating to Perfons making Portraits of Queen Eli zabeth; which is (aid to be taken from the original draught in the paper-office, in the hand-writing of fecretary Cecil. As this draught affords moft convincing proof of the vanity of that princess, and how much he was flattered by her courtiers with regard to the graces of her person, we fhall present our readers with the copy. It is fimilar to the mandate of Alexander, which enjoined that only a painter and statuary of the first eminence fhould prefume to form a reprefentation of him. Forafmuch as thrugh the natural defire that all forts of fubjects and people, both noble and mean, have to procure the portrait and picture of the Queen's Majeftie, great nomber of Paynters, and fome Printers and Gravers, have allredy, and doe dayly attempt to make in divers manners portraietures of hir Majeftie in paynting, graving, and pryntyng, wherein is evidently fhewn that hytherto none hath fufficiently expreffed the naturall reprefentation of hir Majefties person, favor, or grace, but for the mcft part have alfo erred therein, as thereof dayly complaints are made amongst hir Majefties loving fubjects, in fo much that for redress hereof hir Majeftie hath lately bene bene fo inftantly and fo importunately fued unto by the Lords of hir Confell and others of hir nobility, in refpect of the great disorder herein used, not only to be content that some fpeciall coning paynter might be permitted by access to hir Majeftie to take the natural reprefentation of hir Majestie whereof the hath bene allwife of hir own right difpofition very unwillyng, but also to prohibit all manner of other perfons to draw, paynt, grave, or pourtrayit hir Majefties perfonage or vifage for a time, untill by fome perfect patron and example the fame may be by others followed. Therfor hir Majeftie being herein as it were overcome with the contynuall requests of fo many of her Nobility and Lords, whom she cannot well deny, is pleased that for thir contentations, fome coning perfon mete therefor, fhall fhortly make a pourtraict of hir perfon or vifage to be participated to others for fatisfaction of hir loving fubjects, and furdermore commandeth all manner of perfons in the mean tyme to forbear from payntyng, graving, printing, or making of any pourtraict of hir Majeftie, until fome fpeciall perfon that shall be by hir allowed fhall have firft finished a pourtraicture thereof, after which fynifhed, hir Majefty will be content that all other painters, printers, or gravers, that fhall be known men of understanding, and fo thereto licensed by the hed officers of the plaices where they fhall dwell (as reafon it is that every perfon fhould not without confideration attempt the fame) fhall and maye at their pleasures follow the fayd patron or firft portraiture. And for that hir Majeftie perceiveth that a grete nomber of hir loving subjects are much greved and take great offence with the errors and deformities allredy committed by fondry perfons in this behalf, fhe ftraightly chargeth all hir officers and minifters to fee to the due obfervation hereof, and as foon as may be to reform the errors already committed, and in the mean tyme to forbydd and prohibit the fhewing or publication of fuch as are apparently deformed, until they may be reformed which are reformable.' XXV. A Differtation on the Crane, as a dish served up at great tables in England. XXVI. An account of a Roman Sepulchre found near York. XXVII. Extract of two Letters concerning Roman Antiquities discovered in Yorkshire. XXVIII. The Construction of the Old Wall at Verolam. XXIX. Conjectures on an ancient Tomb in Salisbury Cathedral. XXX. An account of an illuminated MS, in the Library of C. C. C. Cambridge. XXXI. Some Remarks on Mr. Walpole's Hiftoric Doubts on the Life and Reign of King Richard the Third, XXXII. Obfervations on a Greek Infcription brought from Athens. XXXIII. Some account of certain Tartarian Antiquities. XXXIV. Observations on the fame. XXXV. A Defcription of the Sepulchral Monument at New Grange, near Drogheda, in Ireland. XXXVI. A fuccin& Narrative of the Battle of Chefterfield. XXXVII. Account of a Roman Pavement, with Wheat underneath it, found at Colchefter. Dr. Piggot, a phyfician of that town, having obferved, a few years ago, that some fruit trees in his kitchen garden did not thrive fo well as the reft, ordered a man to dig at a little distance from the outermost of them, expecting to find a bed of gravel, or fome fuch ob ftruction, that prevented the roots from striking freely into the ground. After digging to the depth of a yard and an half, there appeared a Roman pavement of brick, under which was a ftratum of wheat, pure, and unmixed with any earth or rubbish, and as black as if it had been burnt, resembling that brought from Herculaneum. XXXVIII. Mr. Lethieuller's Obfervations on Sepulchral 'Monuments. XXXIX. A View of the Ancient Conftitution of the English Parliament. XL. Obfervations on the preceding article.. XLI. Druidical Remains in or near the Parish of Halifax in Yorkshire. XLII. Extract of a Letter concerning certain Difcoveries in Ely Minster. The Plates in this volume are numerous, and in general better executed than thofe in the preceding. IV. The Hißory of the British Dominions in North America: from the First Difcovery of that vaft Continent by Sebaftian Cabot in 1497, to its prefent Glorious Establishment as confirmed by the late Treaty of Peace in 1763. In Fourteen Books. 410. 185. boards. Strahan. THE HE very great national importance to which the British colonies have arrived, would naturally render it rather furprizing that a good and complete history of them had not appeared. Publications concerning our American territory would fill a library, but among them all we look in vain for a work of merit equal to the importance of the fubject. The lively 7 |