Dear Paul Courtney and Histarchers,
 
>I don't know if there
>were bones- dealt with by another specialst- and it doesn't really explain why
>you should get them in corners. Our interpretation was the acton Court finds
>represented objects swept into large gaps between old oak floorboards (long
>since replaced). We may be over use to the idea of well carpentered closely-
>fitting floorboards (mine of c.1900) are tongue and grooved).
>Paul Courtney
 
I remember attending a country school once (Galston Gorge near Sydney)
where it was the custom for all 'used' metal ink nibs to be deposited
through a hole in the classroom floor (the teacher didn't mind).
 
I have also found piled deposits - suggesting that broken household goods
were sometimes deposited in a break in the floor. The presence of sand and
coins suggested that sweepings ended up there and the odd coin dropped on
the floor rolled into the crack or whatever.
 
Have often found that pins and buttons tend to concentrate near fireplaces
and windows in underfloor areas.
 
Where the original floor has been replaced, one often finds household goods
dating within the decade or so before that floor replacement (such as,
bottles, broken pottery and shoes).
 
Regards,
 
Robert
 
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