A Letter from the Reverend Dr. Hugh Todd (S. T. P.) Sub-Dean and Prebendary of Carlisle, toDr. Edmund Halley (L. L. D.) Savilian Professor of Geometry in Oxford, and Fellow of theRoyal Society; Giving an Account of Some Antiquities Lately Found at Corbridge inNorthumberlandAuthor(s): Hugh ToddSource: Philosophical Transactions (1683-1775), Vol. 27 (1710 - 1712), pp. 291-295Published by: The Royal SocietyStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/103122 .

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III. A Letter from thc G?eaerend 1)r. [Iugh Todd (s. r. .) Sgb-Dedn and Grebendary ot;tcarline:> to Or. Edmund Halley (L.L.D*) Saviliall I)rofeJ7br of Geowetry- in Oxford, And Fellow of tSc Royal Society; Gi)Zing an Sccoat of fiome

Antifusties lately jound at Corbridge i7Z Norw thumberland.

s I RX ^ 0 M E'" Years ago} when r was ia-Town Yo'u were 3 pleafed to defire me, when my Occafions-,-mighe carry m: into that Couratry9Wto glyeXYou a particL31av Acciount of the Truth of a Relationj which was Sent up to the Athenian S-eiety} of the entire Skelecon of -a pro digious MQReF of; Humane Forrn,- above 22 0ot iE lengtb-j which -was>-diScover'd upo-a elle Banks -of thW River- Ty¢eX not zfar f-rom CorSridge, in Northan6ertasdd The &elation was -very particuar; and if it ha-d bcea tru feem'd eo go fa-rther towards a Proof of {-uch [tu pendous Figuress in ancient Times; than any oehe Argumenta that- I have met- with, 1lpOa: that Sub-; 3-e-&

LaPc Sumsmer7- my Affairs obligedo me- to Ray rhree cr four Days at CorbridgeO During my being there) I lnadv thc bel} ObSe-rvations I couldX to give bot-h mfir Self arld C)thers Satisfa&ion in an AC£<3U of a Matter of EXad :, which had amuted the NationX faw mucbn as thav 1zad donet

(291 )

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( t9z ) That I may be more Exa& and Satsfa&ory, In W7tt

i have to offerX l thall gove You an Accourltf t. 0f thz Place itSelf. and of the AntiquitiesX that are thereO II. Of the Bones and Teeth, whicil are diSco6rere ;1 Tl]>Fe;

and faid tobe of fo prodigious a SigneSs 1X1. I ha1t offer tny T1zoughts of tlle NGatter; 9f?ith SulJmiElon to sYour, and Orl;zerX better udgrnents.

I. The Place -where the Bones were-found is not Cor- Iridge, but ---Colsbe.J9er, a Mile W+;eR of itv upon t-he N. Banks of tlle River T7ne: formerly a Roman Colon7 > buts at preSent, a Field of Corn -; nothtng orz AnFiqulty t6nta;n;ng; but GOme YVa;1ls and ELllBbi; veHsC;X IheW jT tO h3YX bCen a VerY large FOrtreSS. StOneS, WhiCI) 11aVe bCen dUg UP, With FigUreS and In[CriPt10nS UDOn tlLem, haRre b&eN A11 rCmOVXd to Corbrzdge whtch has rire out Of itS RUiX@. ThereX I CaW Al[aS inrCgibd; Oad IMP. P4# AVRTLIO...* AnOtE}Xr LEG. X1. AV(:;. tOH. -ItTt. But That, whteh is moft Rcmarkables is that which lEands in a corner of the Church-yard} D- dicated to Hercule> in Old Capital, Greek Ch2ra2crs w ;the like to whichX i3 nor to be met withs I think, ial xny otller Part of this Inand. The-Charadrers, are inz diSrent plain ̂ and, as I could leafd themn thus ;

aM PA K XC 1 <

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s et Herezwli Tyrio Divin Do?saX Arch1-tSvrerdotali;z 3 reSq

per SanwXtx Sacerdvteg oXererGtv. The Altar feems to have

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(293 ) been EredredX by fome of the Af4iZaks Phznz-ctanAuxiltaW rtes; who might be in Garrifon here) near tbe Frontier} 1lnder gUrbicas Lallitws, in the tfite of M. Aurw Wato[txss about S D t40. The tar lS Yery I>arge; hollow at the Tops (as*u(ual) for IncenGe: On t1Sc Stdes) are inZ gravad a Bullas t}ead; Witll GarlandsX atiu Sacrificrg Inliruments.

IT, Tlle Teeth and Bones9 wtl-ich were dllEouterXdS by the Rilrer Tte's b-reaking in upon the Bank were found near t-he Foundations of ttle Old Fort; an-d neithel higher up, nor lower dosvn than tlle SuinXs of It feem to reach. I examind the Perfon wlso made the firii DiScovery; and had Money ir preSentng fo{nW of the Bnnes from fome Gentlemen in the bleiglzbourbood ; WhOZ in all probabilityX gave in the Ac>unt, and their Queries upo itS to the Ger.tlem.en of t1Re A-feniazt So* cicty: And I was as exaEt) as pGiaill n the Semarks} wlzich l-made my felf upon the Sper Upon thn whole, xt appear'd to me: That there rvsWr was an entire Slse- leton found in that Place The Teetli and Bones 1ye in the BankX in b9tratZs; fiometimes at one fometimes at two Yards deptlls for above acs Yards in length. In Come places1 there appars to have teen a fOtt of

Pavement or Foundatioa of Stone; which rllns aiong with the Bon>,J2rttJerJ]rvsua; Cometimes above fometimes below them The Bones are cf dsierent Sizes The TeetbX whicll are moR perfed: and entire, are very large; fome three or four Inches in compaf; * RibsX Shank-BonesX eS:* Cmany of thenzoi not exceeding the ordinary Dimenfions Qf thok of Shp and Oxen I could mect with no lkenzains of tiornS; tilelSe being mc3re eafily 'corrupted, than the BonesX which are of a harder Sublkance Tho Teeth 1oo3< as lf tht y were Hu mane; but I cannot airm thel to be fe w 4n1 they IJTeS fometinzesX at fo ;reat a diLtance from tlie Sibs and SllankBonts ) t1zat {Mould ni7 One computP¢> (a3 I fuo

' X - pot.e

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,2R4 ) pofe- tI Que-riRs mibht do) the Length of the Monfler9 firom One to the Other, they might calculate lzis Lon- gitudev tO nQ07 or 300 Y"dsX as reafonably, as - to 22 Foo;. The Tectll and ISc3rles are in fuch Quantities; thar, w1th t5t £']p Oi a Labourer o-r two) Ypu might in s few Hours, gather a Bulhel of themO s

Il1. Frons the Account X leave giuen9 it tnay not- be ufflpreafot7able to lnier: That the AltarX here D¢dIcated to rlze T7ri*n Hercales, was nreryr fatrlous and much fre- ua¢X}ted : l*IacXt) Oxen; and fuch like Creatures ass Bifons and Bonafitia., (s7ith which the Country hereabouts did anciently altound: The entire Htead a-ndEJorns of One> being lately dug upa xn a matthy Cround ) refembling csaE}y thofe Greaturcs5 a.s tbezr are defcrib'd by GeJner and Others) WEtE Sacrificcd tIhereon: And7 that their

BonPi lDeilng Asl tlzrouXn toretber; andX according to the Sup;>ritit.o.n cxf tbeSe Tirnes, laid under tiJe FcluZ dtiorl arjd Pav?enent of tlze Fortn are the verNt fanne Bones, acetil3 Sleul jsn RibRj eF wIz-ich bytheRiver& waffiling asvxy tlne Bankg aie now difcoverXdg an:i brougllt to LiQheO And, iS I migl:lL be allow'l to guefs a littld hrthcr; I might think it nor impoElble, Tbat (as Frkeo ens in Gelclerland, is fler8lis Cafira; and HerIland in

CornSall, was Herctwliw Prosontoriw^, So) upon the Re ceEs of th-t RovyansX tlle SFxoa-s who-fucceedRd them n?ight call this Noted Station Herral-rea;4er, and byt cor- rupttOnS Co!eaJ^er; cr Colche/ier, i s Mvdern N5amew And, what may fomewhat con&rm rlze tOnJeaure9 t-he ad ja cent TovYn of Corbrirfge, whxch, as I faid, has rs-en Ollt of its Ruinsj is called in the Charter o{ H. 1 {;w]ereby that King ga^e ic to the Secutar Canons of CarlifeX be fore tiae EreEt30nS etlaer of the Priory or BInzoprick7) ColDr)geX and Colbxrgh £eW gatEle as Col-cevJ?er: Tte lSrideX froin whence it may reem to takx its D-norrJi- nat?aon; t3eing of a much }ater hiredlon. Thae C)xen

uSed

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( 2:95 ) ufed to be Sactificed to lgercalews tete needs rto otller Evidence) tharl the A8tar itrelf; whereon anOs'sElead, with Sacr.ficing InArumentss are delineatedX You will rective by the Oxfprcs CarrierX a great many Teeth and Bones; whereby You may bc able to give a much bet- ter JudgmentX whether they are Humane or no, than I can c)nlyX I wtould obSerwre thib, wRhat if it do no£

appear tilat they agree prfe&ly witll tlle Teeth and ]30nes of Oxenn it will not follow that*.therefor: they muft be Humane, and that thare were Men of prodibi ous Stature whc) made uSe of them X SeeingX as I faid, there were in theSe Parts, other Creatures of very great Size, tQ whom ehey might belongX and of whoSe Teeth and Bones, we have, nowtX very few SpecimensX to com

pare them with Thuss witll fome trouble both to Tou and my Sel;t, I have perform'd tny PromiCe; and {hewn wllatXI iall be-ready to do upon all OccaSons, that I am with great E-Reem

Yir very>teGi6Xdte Fkie>EX CarliJle FeDr. I7.

I 7 IO- I Io Snd kblc Ser-eant,

-H u s H T o x3 a.

1\.T. ^ Xx 2

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