I think that the iron workings at Iron Acton were all much
>earlier (bell pits?) -
As Tim says the use of 'bell pits' is unlikely at Iron Acton. The effective
use of the bell pit technique is really confined to mining of banded nodular
deposits as in the Coal Measure Ironstones and those found in more recent
strata on the Blackdown Hills in East Devon. For the former see Lynn
Willies, 'Ironstone Mining in Derbyshire', in Mining History: Bull. PDMHS,
vol. 13, no. 4, (Winter 1997), pp. 1-11; Exeter Archaeology have excavated a
good example of the latter.
Many mining historian use the term 'bell pit' to refer to early shaft
mining. It is much better to use the term 'shaft mound' for the surface
evidence, particularly for non-ferrous metal mining where you are unlikely
to find a true bell pit.
Peter
______________________________________________
Peter Claughton, Blaenpant Morfil, Rosebush, Clynderwen,
Pembrokeshire, Wales SA66 7RE.
Tel. 01437 532578; Fax. 01437 532921; Mobile 07831 427599
University of Exeter - School of Historical, Political and Sociological Studies
(Centre for South Western Historical Studies)
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See http://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/files/mining-history/ for details.
Mining History Pages - http://www.exeter.ac.uk/~pfclaugh/mhinf/
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