Netflix’ “The Dig” has left the world abuzz with excitement about the amazing discoveries made at Sutton Hoo, and particularly the time and “lost” civilization they represents. Of course we were obsessed with the “Anglo-Saxons” long before it was cool – that diverse, swirling mix of ancient Britons and new arrivals to our shores who grew new identities and kingdoms from the decay of post-Roman Britain, made spectacular and vibrant art built on global networks of trade, laid down the foundations for the English language, literature and common law, and shepherded this rain-soaked and fractured isle on the edge of the world, to a well organised and influential state, centre of learning and culture at the heart of medieval Europe. The amazing treasures of the king’s burial at Sutton Hoo represent an early moment in this story – the pivotal 6th-7th century – when ambitious new kingdoms were just beginning to emerge, and after a period of relative isolation, were increasingly reconnecting with the world beyond. The treasures themselves illustrate this well, with goods from Scandinavia to the Middle East, materials from as far away as India, and with artwork representing a complex dance between multiple influences, identities and beliefs.
The unfolding of the story of this lost culture didn’t end in 1939 though; since then, many more wonderful treasures have been found, and older ones have been re-discovered. Here are some more treasures from Britain from the time of Sutton Hoo you might not have heard of, in no particular order, and, where you can see them.
The unfolding of the story of this lost culture didn’t end in 1939 though; since then, many more wonderful treasures have been found, and older ones have been re-discovered. Here are some more treasures from Britain from the time of Sutton Hoo you might not have heard of, in no particular order, and, where you can see them.
The Taplow Princely Burial
Taplow Buckle (C) British Museum Another great royal burial mound, this one had been erected not overlooking a coastal estuary, but within a much older Iron Age hillfort overlooking the river Thames not far from Maidenhead. The mound was dug in 1883 by the Berkshire Archaeological and Architectural Society. Unfortunately, they were not nearly as careful in their excavation as the conscientious Basil Brown, undermining a yew tree which collapsed and smashed the burial chamber. Inside were the variously scattered grave-goods of a royal burial from within a generation of the great mound at Sutton Hoo.
The amazing finds included a wonderfully garnet and filigree-decorated gold buckles and clasps, no less than 19 feasting vessels including four large glass beakers, two huge jewelled drinking horns and various other decorated drinking vessels, buckets and cauldrons, a sword, two shields, three spears, a set of gaming pieces, and approximately 2.5m of woven metallic gold trim from the edge of a coat or cloak. Like Sutton Hoo the burial also contained a wonderful lyre, with bird fittings and horn inlay.
The amazing finds included a wonderfully garnet and filigree-decorated gold buckles and clasps, no less than 19 feasting vessels including four large glass beakers, two huge jewelled drinking horns and various other decorated drinking vessels, buckets and cauldrons, a sword, two shields, three spears, a set of gaming pieces, and approximately 2.5m of woven metallic gold trim from the edge of a coat or cloak. Like Sutton Hoo the burial also contained a wonderful lyre, with bird fittings and horn inlay.
It’s not as easy to guess who was buried at Taplow – sitting at an intersection between the territories of multiple kingdoms, but the style of many of the objects suggest connections to Kent – for a short time in the late 6th century the most powerful and influential Anglo-Saxon kingdom, with strong trade connections to the Frankish Empire and first to convert to Christianity.
Where to See: Although many were damaged during the dig, but the most spectacular and best-preserved treasures are on display in the early Medieval room at the British Museum, London, alongside the treasures from Sutton Hoo.
Where to See: Although many were damaged during the dig, but the most spectacular and best-preserved treasures are on display in the early Medieval room at the British Museum, London, alongside the treasures from Sutton Hoo.
Relics of St. Cuthbert
Mid Anglo-Saxon monk and scribe (Thegns of Mercia team member Harry Ball) Throughout the time of these great, seemingly pagan burials, the leaders of Anglo-Saxon kingdoms were gradually converting to Christianity, and new churches and monasteries were springing up all over Britain. The North of England and southern part of Scotland (forming the increasingly powerful Kingdom of Northumbria) was the meeting-point between two conflicting branches of Christianity, as the Celtic Christianity of the Britons and Irish had continued to evolve in the centuries relatively cut-off from Rome, while the Roman church had returned to Britain with the mission of St Augustine at the end of the 6th century. Reconciling both influences Northumbria’s monastic communities became major centres of scholarship, and in this landscape emerged the fascinating character of St Cuthbert – a miracle-working priest, bishop, and later hermit, who would effectively become the patron saint of the North of England after his death in 687 CE.
Cuthbert had many adventures after he died; his body was found within its coffin to be perfectly preserved after 11 years, resulting in him becoming the focus of a posthumous cult and shrine where miracles continued to be reported. In the decades and centuries that followed, offerings continued to be added to his relics, which were rescued by the fleeing monks when the Vikings took Lindisfarne in 875, thence touring various churches, residing at Chester-le-Street until 995, then going to Ripon, and eventually Durham. During the construction of a new shrine for Cuthbert in Durham in 1104, the casket was opened and a perfectly preserved but very small 7-8th century book was found, likely having been sequestered by a devoted follower of Cuthbert as an offering shortly after he died.
Cuthbert had many adventures after he died; his body was found within its coffin to be perfectly preserved after 11 years, resulting in him becoming the focus of a posthumous cult and shrine where miracles continued to be reported. In the decades and centuries that followed, offerings continued to be added to his relics, which were rescued by the fleeing monks when the Vikings took Lindisfarne in 875, thence touring various churches, residing at Chester-le-Street until 995, then going to Ripon, and eventually Durham. During the construction of a new shrine for Cuthbert in Durham in 1104, the casket was opened and a perfectly preserved but very small 7-8th century book was found, likely having been sequestered by a devoted follower of Cuthbert as an offering shortly after he died.
This palm-sized book, the St Cuthbert Gospel or Stonyhurst Gospel, is the oldest surviving European-bound book (which to say a book of pages sewn together along a spine and placed in a folded cover, as opposed to to a continuous rolled or folded scroll - effectively the earliest example of a book formatted as we would recognise it today) – a tiny, beautifully but plainly written copy of the Gospel of St John on Coptic-bound velum pages within a binding of birch-wood and red-dyed goatskin. The binding was clearly designed to be both decorative and tactile, with raised, moulded and tooled decoration depicting a chalice (perhaps the Holy Grail) and vines representing new life, in turn highlighted with fine lines of blue and yellow paint, while the reverse features a geometric “carpet page” like design mirroring the more elaborate designs painted on pages of greater Anglo-Saxon gospels. This may be less “shiny” than others on this list but is the ultimate treasure for any bibliophile; just imagine holding the oldest surviving bound book!
"The Cuthbert Cross" - gold and garnet cloisonne pectoral cross / pendant discovered in Durham in the 19th century; likely an offering to Cuthbert's shrine in the time shortly after his death, by an early Anglo-Saxon abbess.
Cuthbert’s shrine has yielded many other treasures over the years, including spectacular embroidered vestments likely added to the coffin by King Aethelstan before 995. Most spectacularly, in 1827, inspection of the coffin uncovered a wonderful jewelled gold cross with garnet inlay. Though 7th century in style, this enormously rich and quite feminine-looking artefact is an odd fit for the austere saint, and there are a growing number of similar crosses from lavish female burials, many of which have been found in the neighbourhood of early monasteries. Women played a surprisingly great role in the early Anglo-Saxon church – founders of many of the great monasteries, and it has been suggested the Cuthbert Cross could have been added as an offering to Cuthbert shortly after his death, by one such lady.
Where to See: The Cuthbert Gospel is kept at The British Library, London though rarely on public display; you can explore a digital copy here.
The other relics of St Cuthbert, including the cross, are displayed at Durham Cathedral.
Where to See: The Cuthbert Gospel is kept at The British Library, London though rarely on public display; you can explore a digital copy here.
The other relics of St Cuthbert, including the cross, are displayed at Durham Cathedral.
Hunterston Brooch
Its important to recognise that beyond culturally “Anglo-Saxon” territory (very very approximately corresponding to the boundaries of modern-day England) other kingdoms existed with distinctive cultures which had continued to evolve from roots in the British Iron Age. Historic records show that these kingdoms played a pivotal role in the wider story of Britain during the Anglo-Saxon and Viking Age, through war, diplomacy, religious influence, and trade. However, archaeological finds which give us glimpses of these cultures are unfortunately rare.
One spectacular example of such a find is the Hunterston Brooch, discovered in Ayrshire in the 1830s, and dated based on the style of decoration to around 700 CE. The brooch – of the distinctly un-Anglo-Saxon pseudo-penannular type, was made of cast silver, gilded, and then decorated with interlacing animal decoration executed in gold filigree of incredible intricacy. The style and type of brooch is strongly reminiscent of Irish examples, yet the Hunterston Brooch’s animal decoration more closely resembles the designs seen in Anglo-Saxon art, hinting that it may have been manufactured by a craftsman familiar with both traditions, perhaps at the royal site of Dunadd in Argyll – seat of power of the Dalriada kingdom. The Christian cross surrounded by a rectangular halo, further surrounded by bird heads, is an emphatic symbol of the Christian identity of whoever commissioned the work – unsurprising given the importance of this region as part of a sphere of Celtic Christianity focused around the coasts of the Irish Sea. The brooch appears to have been prized for a long time, for the back bears a scratched-in inscription of Old Norse runes, probably from the 10th century, which translate as “Melbrigda owns this brooch”, Though in "Viking" runes this name is a Gaelic one, and further proves that this, and others like it, were worn by women. Personal artworks from this period in Scotland are extremely rare and precious finds; some of those which do exist, dated a little later and from other regions (such as the treasures of the St Ninian's Isle Hoard) are quite distinct in style, suggesting quite a wide diversity in cultural expression across Scotland's kingdoms.
Where to See: The Hunterston Brooch, together with many other related finds, are displayed at the National Museum of Scotland in Edinburgh.
Where to See: The Hunterston Brooch, together with many other related finds, are displayed at the National Museum of Scotland in Edinburgh.
The Avon Valley Queen
Early Anglo-Saxon ladies with 6th century style dress - the peplos - pinned with paired brooches with beads between. (Thegns of Mercia team members Georgina, Julia and Lindsey). The spectacularly rich burials of the 7th century happened at a time when the practice of burying people with treasures was already going out of fashion. The hundreds of cemeteries of usually more modest burials of the preceding hundred-or-so (the 6th century) provide us with insights into more “ordinary” folk, living during a time when kingdoms were just beginning to emerge from a landscape of more disparate local identities. In some parts of the UK, these cemeteries provide clues for understanding the effects and scale of the “Anglo-Saxon migration”, with varying evidence for Romano-British continuity and cultural adaptation. In particular, womens dress items – especially brooches which were used to pin the dress – provide an abundant and highly varied dataset to examine issues of identity and culture across lowland Britain. The most spectacular individual examples are, on their own, not nearly as valuable to us as the data as a whole, but for the purposes of this article we could have chosen any of hundreds of spectacular examples, mostly from smaller museums scattered across England, to exemplify these wonderful objects. Foregoing any of the more obvious choices, we wanted to raise awareness of a lesser known find from a small cemetery in Stratford-on-Avon.
Gilded shoulder (saucer) brooches, bead swag, degraded copper-alloy buckle and penannular brooch from G15, Alveston Manor, Stratford-on-Avon, Warwickshire. (CC. Image courtesy of the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust). The Avon valley through Warwickshire and Worcestershire in the 6th century was populated by communities with substantial Romano-British heritage, living at the “crossroads” between various newly forming Anglo-Saxon kingdoms, and the cemeteries in this zone, though without spectacular warrior burials, are abundant in female burials with goods of enormous variety indicating cultural and trade links pointing in every possible direction, probably along the many Roman roads and navigable rivers which criss-cross the south Midlands. These cemeteries usually contain one, or perhaps two female burials with markedly more lavish goods – including larger gilded cloak brooches – sometimes apparently imported from richer regions and sometimes seemingly low-quality locally made copies. It’s likely these ladies were the most prominent matriarchs of their local communities, buried with these lavish goods as a mark of respect, and although burial with these distinctive brooches fell out of fashion by the end of the 6th century, one fascinating burial in a small cemetery near Stratford-on-Avon suggests in the Midlands it continued into the 7th, ending with a spectacular final flourish.
In 1934 an excavation near the Alveston Manor Hotel in Stratford uncovered remains of around 64 burials, including one of an elderly woman with a unique assemblage of dress items. On her shoulders she wore highly unusual examples of otherwise quite common animal-art decorated gilded saucer brooches – unusually with central buttons (actually versions of the tiny, exclusively southern “button brooch”) inside (shown above). She had a ringer-ring of coiled silver, a swag of polished amber and rare blue glass beads, a set of toilet-implements for her belt, a penannular brooch possibly for her veil or shawl, and most impressively, a truly enormous, 21cm long “great square headed brooch” – one of, if not the largest ever found in the UK.
In 1934 an excavation near the Alveston Manor Hotel in Stratford uncovered remains of around 64 burials, including one of an elderly woman with a unique assemblage of dress items. On her shoulders she wore highly unusual examples of otherwise quite common animal-art decorated gilded saucer brooches – unusually with central buttons (actually versions of the tiny, exclusively southern “button brooch”) inside (shown above). She had a ringer-ring of coiled silver, a swag of polished amber and rare blue glass beads, a set of toilet-implements for her belt, a penannular brooch possibly for her veil or shawl, and most impressively, a truly enormous, 21cm long “great square headed brooch” – one of, if not the largest ever found in the UK.
The back appears to have been repaired with salvaged metal; a fish fitting – possibly recycled from the “pagan” pike fitting of an earlier shield is juxtaposed with a splayed-armed cross with one of its branches removed – a juxtaposition of pagan and Christian, with the latter treated disrespectfully suggesting the community was not yet reconciled with the new faith. This is perhaps the latest surviving example of the dying breed of great square-headed brooches and exemplifies the complex dance of identity taking place at that time. An unselfconscious 6th century style, its intaglio looks back to a Roman past, while its garnet settings reach towards the future.
The wearing of such an enormous and flashy brooch by the occupant of the grave (if indeed she did wear it in life) would have marked the wearer out as someone of great importance, and for this valuable object to be sacrificed - placed in her grave rather than inherited and kept in use - must surely have been a huge mark of respect for her, by her community. The wearer of these amazing objects was likely a long-lived matriarch, perhaps the wife of a chieftain or even, for a time, a community leader in her own right, with influence across the south Midlands, and who may have been alive to witness the beginning of the folding of this region into the new kingdom of Mercia. This grave assemblage stands head and shoulders above anything else that has been found in the region, and for this reason we call her the Queen of the Avon Valley.
Where to See: The finds from Alverston Manor are kept in the secure vaults of the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust and not on public display. Items from other 6th century noblewomen’s burials from these communities can be seen at the Almonry Museum in Evesham, and the Market Hall Museum in Warwick.
The wearing of such an enormous and flashy brooch by the occupant of the grave (if indeed she did wear it in life) would have marked the wearer out as someone of great importance, and for this valuable object to be sacrificed - placed in her grave rather than inherited and kept in use - must surely have been a huge mark of respect for her, by her community. The wearer of these amazing objects was likely a long-lived matriarch, perhaps the wife of a chieftain or even, for a time, a community leader in her own right, with influence across the south Midlands, and who may have been alive to witness the beginning of the folding of this region into the new kingdom of Mercia. This grave assemblage stands head and shoulders above anything else that has been found in the region, and for this reason we call her the Queen of the Avon Valley.
Where to See: The finds from Alverston Manor are kept in the secure vaults of the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust and not on public display. Items from other 6th century noblewomen’s burials from these communities can be seen at the Almonry Museum in Evesham, and the Market Hall Museum in Warwick.
The Franks Casket
In 1857 British Museum curator Sir Augustus Wollaston Franks stumbled across a number of panels of carved whale’s bone in an antique shop in Paris, which had earlier been parts of a box with silver fittings (now lost) used as a sewing box by a family in Auzon, Haute Loire. As keeper of the British Medieval collection, Franks immediately recognised the significance of the pieces, purchased and donated them to the British Museum, although a missing piece was later found and sold to the Bargello Museum in Florence.
Franks Casket - c700-750 CE. Carved whale-bone reliquary or treasure-box ( (C) British Museum)
The 23x19x11cm casket, dated to the early 8th century, is likely to have been made in the kingdom of Northumbria either as a reliquary or even perhaps a king’s treasure box. The box is carved all over in low relief, with images depicting various stories, legends and historical events, surrounded by inscriptions in Anglo-Saxon runes, some of which relate to the stories depicted, and some which describe the story of the whale whose bones were used to make the box.
Scholars have struggled for over a century to come up with overarching narratives or explanations for this odd combination of disparate scenes from history and mythology, with often very tenuous results, but there may have been no “grand plan” behind the design of the casket other than to delight its owner with pictures from his favourite stories. This peculiar mixture of imagery is evidence of the awareness of early-middle Anglo-Saxons of stories of, and the history of the world beyond their shores, and of the coexistence of Christian and pagan mythology at that time.
Where to See: The pieces Franks collected were put back together with a cast copy of the bargello fragment, with the casket proudly displayed in the Early Medieval room of The British Museum, alongside the Sutton Hoo finds and others.
Where to See: The pieces Franks collected were put back together with a cast copy of the bargello fragment, with the casket proudly displayed in the Early Medieval room of The British Museum, alongside the Sutton Hoo finds and others.
The Staffordshire Hoard
Part of the Staffordshire Hoard (CC. David Rowan, Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery) A find which by now should need no introduction, the Staffordshire Hoard is the largest collection Anglo-Saxon of gold and silver metalwork ever found. Discovered by a metal detectorist in 2009 in a field right beside the A5 and M6-Toll in Hammerwich near Lichfield, Staffordshire, the hoard comprises over 3500 pieces of treasure, much of it damaged in antiquity, including 5.1kg of gold and 1.4kg of silver. The majority of the identifiable pieces of the Hoard are jewelled fittings from weapons and war gear, including at least 86 gold or silver-hilted swords, and two seaxes (war knives), and the highly fragmentary remains of at least one gold-encrusted helmet. Other notable items include a large gold processionary cross (with fittings for it to be placed on an altar), a pectoral cross (pendant), a gold strip with warlike Latin biblical inscription, and a huge quantity of gold-and-garnet cloisonne strip fittings which may have decorated a range of objects from horse harnesses and saddles, to altars or holy book covers.
Most of the material in the Staffordshire Hoard is of the highest quality of Anglo-Saxon craftsmanship, comparable to the finest items in Sutton Hoo Mound 1, and much of it (particularly the garnet cloisonné work) may have originated from the same workshop. However, the Hoard is more diverse in style and dating, with the manufacture of the pieces spanning around 550-650 CE, so was collected over a long period of time – the gathered loot from many different military campaigns. Unusually it contains no feminine treasure whatsoever, in stark contrast to finds from cemeteries. Analysis of the garnets from the Hoard revealed that the larger almandines originated from India, demonstrating the connectedness of the early Anglo-Saxons to far-reaching trade networks.
The Hoard represents the enormous wealth and sophistication of the accoutrements of the warriors of early Anglo-Saxon kingdoms, who advertised their skill in battle (and intimidated their enemies) by displaying their wealth gained through warfare in the form of impressive, ostentatious wargear. The giving of such gear also served to bind the loyalty of warriors to their leaders.
Most of the material in the Staffordshire Hoard is of the highest quality of Anglo-Saxon craftsmanship, comparable to the finest items in Sutton Hoo Mound 1, and much of it (particularly the garnet cloisonné work) may have originated from the same workshop. However, the Hoard is more diverse in style and dating, with the manufacture of the pieces spanning around 550-650 CE, so was collected over a long period of time – the gathered loot from many different military campaigns. Unusually it contains no feminine treasure whatsoever, in stark contrast to finds from cemeteries. Analysis of the garnets from the Hoard revealed that the larger almandines originated from India, demonstrating the connectedness of the early Anglo-Saxons to far-reaching trade networks.
The Hoard represents the enormous wealth and sophistication of the accoutrements of the warriors of early Anglo-Saxon kingdoms, who advertised their skill in battle (and intimidated their enemies) by displaying their wealth gained through warfare in the form of impressive, ostentatious wargear. The giving of such gear also served to bind the loyalty of warriors to their leaders.
Unlike grave finds, the Hoard had little in the way of context with which to explain its story – found in a mostly empty field near an old Roman road, and so a great many mysteries remain. Further, as the thousands of pieces mostly represent the broken-off precious-metal bits of larger items, the precise purpose of many of the pieces remains unknown, providing ripe opportunities for further discoveries to be made by experimentation and reconstruction.
Where to See: An enormous collection of finds, the Staffordshire Hoard is divided between multiple venues. The largest portions can be viewed at Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery in Birmingham, and the Potteries Museum and Art Gallery in Hanley, Stoke-on-Trent. Other pieces, and replicas, are displayed at Tamworth Castle and Lichfield Cathedral. The world's largest collection of Staffordshire Hoard replicas, presented reassembled and in context, can occasionally be seen at Thegns of Mercia living history events.
Where to See: An enormous collection of finds, the Staffordshire Hoard is divided between multiple venues. The largest portions can be viewed at Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery in Birmingham, and the Potteries Museum and Art Gallery in Hanley, Stoke-on-Trent. Other pieces, and replicas, are displayed at Tamworth Castle and Lichfield Cathedral. The world's largest collection of Staffordshire Hoard replicas, presented reassembled and in context, can occasionally be seen at Thegns of Mercia living history events.
West Stow
Spectacular treasures from graves and treasure hoards provide insights into the identities and culture of the early Anglo-Saxons, their trade connections, outlook, and developing artistic expression, but gaining an understanding of the world these people lived in day to day, the sorts of lives they led, has proven much more difficult. The reasons for this are threefold; more “ordinary” people usually had very few possessions so left little behind as clues for archaeologists to study, Anglo-Saxons predominantly lived in small communities of wooden buildings which left little archaeological trace behind, and finally, those communities most often evolved into our modern villages and towns, so their traces have usually been paved over or obliterated by later land use.
Old replica of a modest "sunken feature building" at West Stow
A fairly unique exception – a well preserved Anglo-Saxon settlement was discovered near Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk, from 1947. Earlier investigation had found an early Anglo-Saxon cemetery, and Basil Brown himself (of Sutton Hoo fame) conducted digs there, uncovering pottery kilns suggestive of the presence of a settlement. Stanley West, helping on that investigation, later informed renowned Anglo-Saxon archaeologist Prof. Vera Evison, and between them they went on to excavate the massive site over the following 15 years.
The excavations uncovered 69 sunken-feature buildings (houses and/or barns built into, or over, a pit), a further 7 post-hole buildings probably representing communal village halls (varying around 8x4m), areas reserved for various crafts and industries, animal pens, and small boundary ditches. Tools and other finds associated with craft-working (including weaving, potting, bone and antler-working) were particularly abundant at the site informing our understanding of Anglo-Saxon crafts, and both botanical and animal remains have provided invaluable insights into the Anglo-Saxon diet, agricultural practice and animal husbandry.
Although a settlement of at least 76 buildings sounds quite large, in fact, many of the buildings were not contemporaneous, instead having been continually abandoned or burned down, and then re-built - a pattern seen on other sites. It might be that Anglo-Saxon communities regularly dismantled, and then re-built their houses, getting rid of old thatch, rotten beams, and vermin, as a way of keeping the dwellings fresh, safe and healthy. As a result the remains represent multiple generations of houses belonging to a small community of perhaps fewer than 10 families.
The excavations uncovered 69 sunken-feature buildings (houses and/or barns built into, or over, a pit), a further 7 post-hole buildings probably representing communal village halls (varying around 8x4m), areas reserved for various crafts and industries, animal pens, and small boundary ditches. Tools and other finds associated with craft-working (including weaving, potting, bone and antler-working) were particularly abundant at the site informing our understanding of Anglo-Saxon crafts, and both botanical and animal remains have provided invaluable insights into the Anglo-Saxon diet, agricultural practice and animal husbandry.
Although a settlement of at least 76 buildings sounds quite large, in fact, many of the buildings were not contemporaneous, instead having been continually abandoned or burned down, and then re-built - a pattern seen on other sites. It might be that Anglo-Saxon communities regularly dismantled, and then re-built their houses, getting rid of old thatch, rotten beams, and vermin, as a way of keeping the dwellings fresh, safe and healthy. As a result the remains represent multiple generations of houses belonging to a small community of perhaps fewer than 10 families.
Together the finds paint a vivid picture of the lives of early Anglo-Saxons, living in what appears to have been a modest but lively rural settlement in a relatively infertile and sandy corner of Suffolk. West Stow is, in a sense, not important because it is special, but because it is so ordinary, and as far as we can tell, broadly representative of hundreds of similar village communities. Indeed, what makes the site so special is arguably the circumstances which allowed the remains of this 6-7th century village to remain untouched until excavations uncovered it, like an Anglo-Saxon Pompeii, in the 20th century; it appears to have been gradually abandoned during the 7th century for mysterious reasons – perhaps repeated crop failure, continual struggle with sand-blows (a major problem in this area historically) or emigration due to the consolidation of the new kingdom of East Anglia further south. The site was further covered in a thick layer of sand from a huge sand-blow during the late medieval period, which served to protect the delicate settlement remains from ploughing.
Where to See: Experimental reconstructions of some of the buildings began to be constructed at West Stow from the 1970s onwards, and the site now boasts a small reconstructed village “West Stow Anglo-Saxon Village”, with various cottages and a modest hall, while the visitors centre includes a museum where many of the finds from both the cemetery and village excavations are displayed.
Where to See: Experimental reconstructions of some of the buildings began to be constructed at West Stow from the 1970s onwards, and the site now boasts a small reconstructed village “West Stow Anglo-Saxon Village”, with various cottages and a modest hall, while the visitors centre includes a museum where many of the finds from both the cemetery and village excavations are displayed.
Beowulf
Preserved in a 10th century manuscript (Cotton Vitellius A. xv) the 3182 lines of Old English alliterative poetry vividly describing the adventures of a Swedish warrior who saves the kingdom of the Danes from a pair of terrible monsters, later becomes king and dies valiantly saving his people from a rampaging dragon, is arguably the birth certificate of English literature. Beowulf is widely recognised to be a rare survivor of a rich tradition or oral storytelling stretching far back into the early Anglo-Saxon period, and the vivid descriptions of warrior accoutrement, feasting gear and jewellery, as well as the moving descriptions of various funerary rites, bear uncanny resemblance to what we see represented in early Anglo-Saxon archaeology, at sites such as Sutton Hoo. It is quite clear that the world-building of Beowulf is based on a folk-memory of early Anglo-Saxon times, and for that reason included here as one of, if not the single greatest treasure from the time of Sutton Hoo.
The settings of the main events in Beowulf - and even more so in its various "story within a story" digressions - represent the outward-looking Anglo-Saxon worldview, cheering for, and having a sense of kinship with heroes from overseas. Yet despite the foreign setting, the descriptions in Beowulf provide an Anglo-Saxon's-eye-view of their own world, their social order, practices and changing beliefs. The pictures painted by this incredible work of literature are worth a thousand archaeological finds, yet, like Shakespeare, Beowulf cannot be truly experienced and understood unless it is heard aloud, ideally in a dark hall and by the light of the campfire.
Where to See: The Beowulf manuscript Cotton Vitellius A. xv. is housed at The British Library in London. Oral performances of Beowulf, contextualised with the material culture of the Early Anglo-Saxons, can occasionally be experienced at Thegns of Mercia events and hall-nights.
Where to See: The Beowulf manuscript Cotton Vitellius A. xv. is housed at The British Library in London. Oral performances of Beowulf, contextualised with the material culture of the Early Anglo-Saxons, can occasionally be experienced at Thegns of Mercia events and hall-nights.
Mounds of the Peak District
Pendant from White Low burial mound, Derbyshire, excavated by Bateman; gold filligree and cloisonne integrating garnet and blue glass (Sheffield Museums). Ok, ok. We’re a bit biased here. In the mid 19th century a Derbyshire antiquarian named Thomas Bateman became obsessed with the many mounds which dot the landscapes of the White Peak, and over 10 years excavated around 100 tumuli, uncovering various finds spanning at least 3000 years of history. His techniques were primitive by modern standards but scrupulous by the standards of the day; he kept detailed notes of each excavation and employed a talented watercolour artist to produce paintings of the finds as they came out of the ground. The crown jewel of Bateman’s discoveries was the burial of a mid 7th century Anglo-Saxon prince under a wide but, by then, very low mound, at a place called Benty Grange, beside an old Roman road and not far from a spectacular Bronze Age stone circle. The terribly acidic soil had destroyed most of the grave goods, but he was able to recover the remains of a helmet formed of iron strips and large silver-capped rivets (with the tell-tale texture
Crest of the Benty Grange helmet, c650 CE. Excavated by Bateman in 1848 (Sheffield Museums). in the corrosion, of horn plates), and a boar crest which was later found to have gold-and-garnet eyes, gilded silver spots and joints. From the arrangement of rivets and pattern of corrosion Bateman worked out that the iron frame must have been covered with segments of horn, with the gaps between them in turn covered by additional horn strips. The helmet further had a cross, surrounded by an arrangement of silver studs, on the nasal, which when juxtaposed with the boar suggested the occupant of the grave may well have been “hedging his bets” between Paganism and Christianity. The design of the helmet was brought to life in a reconstruction undertaken in the 1980s, though crucial clues on the remains, and in Bateman's diary, were missed, leading to some errors. We presented a new interpretation of the helmet in 2018 implementing these changes and incorporating insights from other helmets discovered since the original reconstruction (pictured).
Although interpreted as the burial of a warrior chieftain, no skeletal remains survived, and unusually, no weapons were recovered. Bateman, did, however, discover other hallmarks of high-status late phase burials, including a silver-bound cup decorated with crosses and roundels, fragments of a hanging bowl with enamelled escutcheons, and a mass of iron chainwork with hayfork-like element, likely to have been the cauldron suspension chain and hook, from a great hall, similar to the one in Sutton Hoo mound 1.
Benty Grange was the first discovery of an Anglo-Saxon helmet, and one of the first Anglo-Saxon princely burials to be uncovered. Burials elsewhere in the landscape have yielded early Anglo-Saxon swords with decorated scabbards, shields, spears, and elaborate gold-and-garnet feminine jewellery. Its not clear if these burials represent a well-connected local community of hill-dwellers in the mid 7th century, or whether they might represent communities from further away – perhaps the heartland of Mercia - choosing to bury their dead in this most prominent of locations, in a landscape already teeming with ancient monuments.
Gold and garnet necklace from Galley Low, Derbyshire (c7th). Museums Sheffield.
With the complete lack of substantial burials in their core territory representative of the leadership of Mercia in the 7th century – the probable collectors but not makers or wearers of the Staffordshire Hoard - the mounds of the Peak District are arguably the closest we can get to seeing the material culture of the early Mercians.
Where to See: Bateman’s finds, including the Benty Grange helmet, are displayed at Weston Park Museum in Sheffield. The new interpretation of the helmet, together with reproductions of other finds from these mounds form part of educational displays at Thegns of Mercia events.
Where to See: Bateman’s finds, including the Benty Grange helmet, are displayed at Weston Park Museum in Sheffield. The new interpretation of the helmet, together with reproductions of other finds from these mounds form part of educational displays at Thegns of Mercia events.
The Orkney Hood
We know from the abundance of elaborate dress-items, and hygiene tools, that folk of the 6-7th centuries took great care of their appearance – that costumes were often elaborate and ostentatious, but unfortunately British soils very rarely provide conditions suitable for textile remains to survive. Mineralised traces of textiles preserved on metal items – usually smaller than a postage stamp – can inform our understanding of the kinds of textiles the folk of this period made clothing from, and with reference to arrangements of dress items, finds of more complete garments from related periods and cultures, and rare pictorial depictions, we can build a vague sense for what Anglo-Saxon dress looked like. However, nothing comes close to the ability to study a fully preserved item of clothing.
One utterly unique example of such a find was uncovered near a farm in Tankerness, Orkney, in 1867; a fringed, woven woollen hood, almost perfectly preserved in a peat bog, where the anaerobic conditions prevented its decay. The hood appears to have been made for a child, and has been radiocarbon-dated to 250-615 CE.
One utterly unique example of such a find was uncovered near a farm in Tankerness, Orkney, in 1867; a fringed, woven woollen hood, almost perfectly preserved in a peat bog, where the anaerobic conditions prevented its decay. The hood appears to have been made for a child, and has been radiocarbon-dated to 250-615 CE.
The Orkney Hood - Rare surviving woollen garment for a child, from 250-615 CE. ( (C) National Museum of Scotland)
The hood itself was made of 2/2 herringbone twill weave with erratic widths of chevron stripes, woven on an upright loom from yarns of varying thickness spun from naturally brown, somewhat ‘hairy’ ancient-breed sheep similar to modern Shetlands, which had been cut from an approximately 1m bolt and assembled somewhat sloppily with crude over-stitching, suggesting the tailor was not the same person as the skilful weaver who made the cloth. The hood features various embellishments of tablet-woven ribbon of varying width and intricacy, some not quite long enough to circumnavigate the hood and therefore leaving gaps – suggestive that these had been recycled from earlier garments, as, apparently, had the fringed trim.
This amazing survivor is a priceless example of an actual, intact item of clothing, perhaps made for and worn by a Pitcish child on Orkney over 1400 years ago, and the weaving technology demonstrated – strongly comparable to techniques evidenced among remains in early Anglo-Saxon cemetery finds – is suggestive of a relatively well-shared textile-making culture throughout Migration-Period Britain.
Where to See: The Orkney Hood is on display at the National Museuem of Scotland, Edinburgh.
This amazing survivor is a priceless example of an actual, intact item of clothing, perhaps made for and worn by a Pitcish child on Orkney over 1400 years ago, and the weaving technology demonstrated – strongly comparable to techniques evidenced among remains in early Anglo-Saxon cemetery finds – is suggestive of a relatively well-shared textile-making culture throughout Migration-Period Britain.
Where to See: The Orkney Hood is on display at the National Museuem of Scotland, Edinburgh.
The Lichfield Gospels
The illuminated manuscripts -decorated bibles - of the middle Anglo-Saxon period, and most specifically the early 8th century are perhaps the most spectacular examples of artistic expression from the period; an incredibly colourful and vibrant conversation between Anglo-Saxon and Celtic (British & Irish) artistic traditions masterfully combined by impossibly skilful artists as acts of devotion their new religion in scriptoria across Britain in what has become known (somewhat counterintuitively) as “insular art”, on thankfully timeless velum pages with colourful pigments imported from across the known world.
Amazing examples of this art include the literally golden pages of the Stockholm Codex Aureus, the riot of colour of the Lindisfarne Gospels, and the fractal beauty of the Books of Durrow and Kells. Scholarly debate continues as to where some of these most lively examples originated – whether the Columban monasteries of Ireland (eg. Kells), Scotland (Iona) or the North of England (Durham).
Amazing examples of this art include the literally golden pages of the Stockholm Codex Aureus, the riot of colour of the Lindisfarne Gospels, and the fractal beauty of the Books of Durrow and Kells. Scholarly debate continues as to where some of these most lively examples originated – whether the Columban monasteries of Ireland (eg. Kells), Scotland (Iona) or the North of England (Durham).
The Lichfield / St Chad Gospels - early 8th century illuminated manuscript of Latin text of the gospels of Matthew, Mark and (part of) Luke, with marginalia in early Old Welsh.
The example we’ve chosen for this list, from the great number of amazing surviving illuminated books of the period, is not necessarily the most famous or most spectacular example, but is incredibly important in reaching out to an important part of the “Anglo-Saxon” world not yet mentioned. The Lichfield (or St Chad’s) Gospels have been kept in a church in the small city – ecclesiastical centre of the Kingdom of Mercia – since the 10th century, and miraculously survived both the reformation and being briefly looted from the city during the English Civil War, though during the latter one of the original two codices was lost. The extant volume comprises the gospels of Matthew and Mark, and part of the gospel of Luke, in atypical vulgate Latin written in semi-uncial insular majuscule, and includes elaborate illumination pages with portraits of the evangelists, an incredibly intricate carpet-page, a Chi-Rho monogram page (pictured) incorporating both animal and trumpet-spiral motifs seen in 7th century jewellery and hanging-bowls respectively, and an elaborate page with the symbols of the evangelists. The art is extremely intricate and lively, with strong Irish affinities, yet the manuscript’s margins record (in Latin) part of the book’s history between its writing and its arrival in Lichfield in the 10th century, that ties it intimately with Wales.
Lichfield / St Chad Gospels - early 8th century illumination (page 220- "Carpet Page"). Page is divided into fields by a square-sided cross, with all spaces filled with intricate animal interlace, in turn entwined in vine-like interlaces. ( (CC) Lichfield Cathedral )
These inscriptions describe how the book had been exchanged for a prized horse by a welsh man named Gelhi, who then gifted the manuscript to the the sanctuary of St Teilo at Llandaff. A further inscription describing a land dispute is one of the oldest surviving written examples of Old Welsh prose.
Its doubtful that the Lichfield Gospels originated in Wales; later illuminated manuscripts with possible Welsh origins include the Hereford Gospels (later 8th century) and the Ricemarsh Psalter (11th century) and are different in style. Instead, the Lichfield Gospels appear to have been made in a northern or central English scriptorium (perhaps Lichfield itself) or else in Ireland. Nevertheless, the journey of the manuscript into Wales and back to Lichfield, picking up some Old Welsh along the way, establishes the Lichfield Gospels not just as a treasure for the Midlands but also for Wales, whose kingdoms, as Bede records, were powerful and influential in the 6-8th centuries, yet remain relatively invisible in the period’s archaeology.
Where to See: The Lichfield Gospels are displayed at Lichfield Cathedral, Lichfield, Staffordshire, alongside a rare example of middle Anglo-Saxon figural stone-carving (the Lichfield Angel) and some items of the Staffordshire Hoard. A digital edition of the Lichfield Gospels is viewable online.
Its doubtful that the Lichfield Gospels originated in Wales; later illuminated manuscripts with possible Welsh origins include the Hereford Gospels (later 8th century) and the Ricemarsh Psalter (11th century) and are different in style. Instead, the Lichfield Gospels appear to have been made in a northern or central English scriptorium (perhaps Lichfield itself) or else in Ireland. Nevertheless, the journey of the manuscript into Wales and back to Lichfield, picking up some Old Welsh along the way, establishes the Lichfield Gospels not just as a treasure for the Midlands but also for Wales, whose kingdoms, as Bede records, were powerful and influential in the 6-8th centuries, yet remain relatively invisible in the period’s archaeology.
Where to See: The Lichfield Gospels are displayed at Lichfield Cathedral, Lichfield, Staffordshire, alongside a rare example of middle Anglo-Saxon figural stone-carving (the Lichfield Angel) and some items of the Staffordshire Hoard. A digital edition of the Lichfield Gospels is viewable online.
Prittlewell Princely Burial
Another princely burial! In 2003 an archaeological survey in advance of a road-widening scheme in Prittlewell near Southend, Essex, discovered an intact burial chamber near the site of an earlier-discovered small early Anglo-Saxon cemetery. What followed was a meticulous excavation of the only fully intact Anglo-Saxon burial chamber ever to been discovered in modern times, by Museum of London Archaeology Service. So spectacular and numerous were the finds, and research opportunities afforded by the burial, that took 16 years for MOLA to process and write up the excavation.
The chamber, built of timbers, was approximately four square meters in size, with a wooden coffin at one side, and the various grave goods arranged around the remaining space, with some originally having been hung on the walls. The finds included a sword, shield, spear with carved shaft, elaborate lyre, hanging bowl, Coptic bronze basin, painted wooden box containing a silver communion spoon, stave-built buckets, glass vessels, remains of an elaborately decorated drinking horn and various other cups and vessels, a unique iron folding stool, and a wooden game-board with bone playing pieces. Within what had been the coffin was found a fine buckle fabricated from sheet gold, in the waist area, smaller buckles likely to have been for garters / shoe straps at the lower legs, and over the eyes were two small gold-foil crosses – a practice otherwise unknown in Britain but reminiscent of similar foil crosses from Italy- which might indicate that the occupant was an early convert to Christianity, although the rest of the burial appears to be pagan in nature.
The chamber, built of timbers, was approximately four square meters in size, with a wooden coffin at one side, and the various grave goods arranged around the remaining space, with some originally having been hung on the walls. The finds included a sword, shield, spear with carved shaft, elaborate lyre, hanging bowl, Coptic bronze basin, painted wooden box containing a silver communion spoon, stave-built buckets, glass vessels, remains of an elaborately decorated drinking horn and various other cups and vessels, a unique iron folding stool, and a wooden game-board with bone playing pieces. Within what had been the coffin was found a fine buckle fabricated from sheet gold, in the waist area, smaller buckles likely to have been for garters / shoe straps at the lower legs, and over the eyes were two small gold-foil crosses – a practice otherwise unknown in Britain but reminiscent of similar foil crosses from Italy- which might indicate that the occupant was an early convert to Christianity, although the rest of the burial appears to be pagan in nature.
Drinking vessel from the Prittlewell Princely Burial, c600 CE. (MOLA / Southend Museums)
Originally dated to around 610-20 CE, radiocarbon dating of the cups suggests construction of the tomb occurred between 575-605, decades earlier than the grander but comparable kings burial at Sutton Hoo. This dating is troubling given the Christian elements, as the traditional narrative is that Anglo-Saxon royalty did not begin to adopt Christianity until the arrival of St Augustine in 597. The identity originally suggested for the occupant – King Saebert (first 'officially Christian' king of Essex) has been all but ruled out by this new dating, leaving the name of this “King of bling” a mystery. He is likely to have been a prince of the kingdom of Essex.
Finds from the Prittlewell Princely Burial (Museum of London Archaeology / Southend Museum)
The discovery of the Prittlewell Princely Burial shines a light on an otherwise less well-understood Anglo-Saxon kingdom, provides some of the earliest evidence for the interaction between paganism and Christianity in Anglo-Saxon burial practice, and provides us with some of the best ever examples of non-dress-item material culture including actual examples of furniture and carpentry.
Where to See: A selection of the finds from the Prittlewell Princely Burial are currently displayed at Southend Central Museum, Southend-on-Sea, Essex.
Where to See: A selection of the finds from the Prittlewell Princely Burial are currently displayed at Southend Central Museum, Southend-on-Sea, Essex.
Palatial Great-Hall Complexes
We've seen many examples of wonderful material culture, particularly associated with Anglo-Saxon royalty, but where did these warrior kings live? It’s hard to imagine gold-encrusted early Anglo-Saxon royal courts such as those represented by the princely burials or Staffordshire Hoard operating out of the modest village-halls and pit-houses seen at places like West Stow. Anglo-Saxon royal courts appear to have been mobile, allowing kings to exert their authority over, and benefit from the hospitality and resources of communities across their territories, but nevertheless, we do have evidence for permanent royal estates. In fact, despite the scarcity of well excavated “ordinary” settlements, a surprisingly large – and growing – number of more lavish buildings of the 7th century have been uncovered, dotted around Britain – many of which have been found in locations intimately associated with early Anglo-Saxon royal courts.
Reconstruction of an 10-11th century Viking great-hall at Ribe Viking Centre, Ribe, Denmark, of similar scale to excavated early Anglo-Saxon great halls.
These sites generally have a single great hall, with few if any ancillary buildings, and may represent somewhat isolated “villas” or palace complexes, where kings could hold court, host and muster their troops, entertain guests and exert authority over territory, while apart from village / town communities. The halls were typically rectangular, with a large central space aisled by wooden pillars, and small partitioned rooms at one or each end (sometimes built-on as an extension or porch). Examples include;
Where to See: There’s little to see at these sites, many of which are on private land, and no reconstruction of an early Anglo-Saxon aisled great-hall has ever been undertaken. Perhaps one day, with enough enthusiasm for this period’s rich history, that might change?
- Yeavering / Ad Gefrin - Northumbria. A buttressed and aisled great hall, and its subsequent replacement(s) built over the same footprint, together with ancillary buildings including a possible pagan temple, and a unique timber amphitheatre-like structure / Cuneus. (18x8 – 30x10m).
- Sutton Courtnay, Oxfordshire. An aisled great hall (30x10m) with at least one sunken-feature building nearby- likely to be the site of a royal vill established by King Ine of Wessex in the early 8th century. Likely a seat of power for the kings of Wessex.
- Cowedery’s Down, Basing, Berkshire. A probable 8th century great hall (21x10m) with unusual double-bulwarked walls, surrounded by sixteen earlier-dated buildings of the 6-7th centuries. Likely a seat of power for the kings of Wessex.
- Lyminge, Folkestone, Kent. Associated with a church established by a Kentish princess and former Northumbrian queen in 633, 2012-19 excavations here found not only remains of the original church, and a number of burials, but also a great hall complex containing fragments of Anglo-Saxon gold jewellery, combs, and Roman glass. Likely to have been a major seat of power for the kings of Kent.
- Rendlesham, Suffolk. Known to have been the seat of power of the East Anglian court including those buried at Sutton Hoo, investigations of Rendlesham in 2016 identified the remains of a royal hall complex (23x9m) together with a scattering of fine high status 6-7th century jewellery comparable to the material culture seen at the royal burial ground.
- Atcham/Attingham, Shropshire. Seemingly too far west to have been a centre of early Anglo-Saxon power, excavations here in 2018 uncovered the remains of two great halls, arranged end-to-end, between the Roman and post-Roman town of Wroxeter and the early medieval town of Shrewsbury, and timbers were radiocarbon dated to the 7th century, with finds including loom weights and sherds of late Roman pottery.
Where to See: There’s little to see at these sites, many of which are on private land, and no reconstruction of an early Anglo-Saxon aisled great-hall has ever been undertaken. Perhaps one day, with enough enthusiasm for this period’s rich history, that might change?
We hope you enjoyed this short tour through the amazing riches of Britain's so-called "Dark Ages" of the 6-8th centuries. The list is by no means exhaustive, and was hopefully, in some places, surprising. In particular we feel it is extremely important whenever there's a surge in interest in "Anglo-Saxon treasure" to recognise that the wonders of this period don't belong to modern England alone, depended hugely on the relationship of these peoples to the wider world, go beyond mere gold and silver to include finds such as settlements, textiles, and stories, and that the value of all such things is measured not in material value but in what such items can teach us about the distant past.
Did any of these finds surprise you? Did your favourite treasure make the list? Comment and let us know!
Did any of these finds surprise you? Did your favourite treasure make the list? Comment and let us know!
Checked 09/03/2024
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