Archæological Discovery near Hove

Abstract

A SOMEWHAT remarkable find of traces of what would appear to be an ancient settlement is reported from the neighbourhood of Hove (The Times, February 20). The discovery has been made on the downs, north of Hove, where the existence of such remains had not previously been suspected. It is thought that they may be Roman, possibly of the first century A.D. The discovery was made on February 17 by a Corporation labourer who unearthed a collection of pottery, less than eighteen inches from the surface, when digging sewer trenches on a municipal housing estate. A further find was an earthenware vessel filled with about 450 small bronze coins, on some of which the head of a Roman emperor has been distinguished, but of a date not yet established. It is thought that the settlement, which overlooks Hove from the hills, may have been established about A.D. 50 and have lasted until the third century. The site is being investigated by Mr. H. G. Massey, curator of the Hove Museum, with the assistance of Dr. Cecil Curwen.