ABSTRACT
The provenance of most large mammal fossils from the CF-bF was recorded only by the name of the nearest coastal village. Nonetheless, analysis of the fossil taxa by these “localities” reveals some interesting patterns. A survey of deer (Cervidae) and elephants (Elephantidae) shows that the assemblages from Kessingland-Pakefield and Trimingham are of largely early Middle Pleistocene complexion, like that of the West Runton Freshwater Bed. Fossils from the foreshore at East Runton and the Happisburgh ‘Oyster Bed’ comprise largely Early Pleistocene species, while at other localities, a mixture of Early and early Middle Pleistocene elements occurs. Analysis of Savin’s data shows that fossils of earlier species were on the whole found further down the beach than those of later ones. Geological surveys, made when bone collecting was at its peak, give additional information about fossil horizons. In several cases these can be related to modern stratigraphical units, allowing old fossil collections to be placed in stratigraphical context.
