Sutton Hoo
- davang19
- Jun 24
- 2 min read
Updated: Jun 26
On a decidedly warm summer’s day, our journey took us to Sutton Hoo to understand something of Anglo-Saxon life through the archaeological discovery of a ship and other artefacts heaved from the River Deben.
After Edith Pretty inherited land at Sutton Hoo, where a workman named Basil Brown undertook initial digging of the Royal Burial Grounds. He found that earlier treasure seekers had robbed the site. As ideas progressed, Edith placed the more experienced Charles Phillips in charge; he continued excavating at a rapid pace before the 1939 outbreak of war. Basil continued to be employed as the excavator who understood soil samples in Suffolk. Ultimately , the British Museum became interested despite opposition from Ipswich Museum. Peggy Piggot found ‘a small pyramid of old gold’. Finds of 263 items located gold, garnet, silver, bronze, enamel, iron, wood, bone, textiles, mead, feathers and firs. They recognised, after noting changes in colours of the earth, despite some items in mint condition, that acidity of the soil had destroyed a number of articles.
The ship which accommodated 80 rowers, was 27 metres in length was located at the Royal Burial Ground, known as the ‘Anglo Saxon Valley of the Kings’. It brought to light the hugely powerful and wealthy King Raedwell who ruled East Anglia but also battled for Northumbria and died in AD 626.
Little was written at the time but developments occurred with Bede’s arrival AD 635. Equally, little was known of ‘ordinary families’. However, Christianity spread alongside greater communication for foreign trade.
Some members visited Edith’s house on the site while a visit to the exhibition was worthwhile. Although containing a number of replicas, there was a bronze vessel showing a North African hunting scene made in Byzantine Mediterranean workshop. Of course, the British Museum is the location of most of the artefacts.
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