tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-47830984356911848472025-07-29T19:15:42.934+02:00The Anglo-Saxon Archaeology Blog is concerned with news reports featuring Anglo-Saxon period archaeology. If you wish to see news reports for general European archaeology, please go to The Archaeology of Europe Weblog.David Beard MA, FSA, FSA Scothttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04960863966432246464noreply@blogger.comBlogger655125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4783098435691184847.post-67832486903853820792024-12-01T10:24:00.001+01:002024-12-01T10:24:58.701+01:00<p>&nbsp;</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/v2/t:0,l:0,cw:0,ch:0,q:80,w:970/kwo8VzyxHjgPFFNraBJSxU.jpg.webp" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><img border="0" data-original-height="546" data-original-width="970" height="225" src="https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/v2/t:0,l:0,cw:0,ch:0,q:80,w:970/kwo8VzyxHjgPFFNraBJSxU.jpg.webp" width="400" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span><div><span style="font-family: arial;">An unusual piece of Anglo-Saxon jewelry — a plagiarized pendant rife with typos — that was discovered by a metal detectorist has now been declared treasure in the U.K.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">The pendant imitates a Roman coin called a solidus, a type of gold coin introduced by the emperor Constantine in the fourth century A.D. It was discovered in January 2023 near the town of Attleborough in Norfolk, England, and dates to the late fifth to early sixth century. The piece of jewelry copies the imagery and inscriptions found on coins from the time of emperor Honorius, ruler of the Western Roman Empire from A.D. 393 to 423.</span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><a href="https://www.livescience.com/archaeology/anglo-saxons-plagiarized-a-roman-coin-and-its-full-of-typos?utm_source=flipboard&amp;utm_content=topic/archaeology" target="_blank">Read the rest of this article...</a></span>David Beard MA, FSA, FSA Scothttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04960863966432246464noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4783098435691184847.post-61910476387327563982024-07-04T18:36:00.001+02:002024-07-04T18:36:24.882+02:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/4c1aa78051b03d948cb8561c6b3d6315cf36df3a/0_117_3500_2101/master/3500.jpg?width=1900&amp;dpr=2&amp;s=none" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="800" height="240" src="https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/4c1aa78051b03d948cb8561c6b3d6315cf36df3a/0_117_3500_2101/master/3500.jpg?width=1900&amp;dpr=2&amp;s=none" width="400" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Exotic items found at sites such as Sutton Hoo may have been brought to England by returning warriors, rather than via trade. Photograph: Joe Giddens/PA</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">Sixth-century Anglo-Saxon people may have travelled from Britain to the eastern Mediterranean and northern Syria to fight in wars, researchers have suggested, casting fresh light on their princely burials.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">St John Simpson, a senior British Museum curator, and Helen Gittos, an Oxford scholar, have concluded that some of the exotic items excavated at Sutton Hoo, Taplow and Prittlewell, among other sites, originated in the eastern Mediterranean and north Syria and cannot have been conventional trade goods, as others have suggested.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">Simpson said that “compelling evidence” suggests the individuals buried at those sites had been involved in Byzantine military campaigns in northern Mesopotamia during the late sixth century, fighting the Sasanians, an ancient Iranian dynasty.</span></div><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/science/article/2024/jul/04/anglo-saxons-may-have-fought-in-northern-syrian-wars-say-experts" target="_blank">Read the rest of this article...</a></span></p>David Beard MA, FSA, FSA Scothttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04960863966432246464noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4783098435691184847.post-28784329676879091062024-04-09T09:09:00.002+02:002024-04-09T09:09:44.123+02:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="495" data-original-width="634" height="312" src="https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/04/08/12/83361741-13276681-image-a-1_1712576072856.jpg" width="400" /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">According to archaeologists, England relied on silver imported from France to make its own coins around 1,300 years ago. Even older English coins used silver from the eastern Mediterranean, in the Byzantine Empir.</span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span><div><span style="font-family: arial;">The study is the collaboration between researchers at the universities of Oxford, Cambridge and Vrije Universiteit in Amsterdam, the Netherlands.&nbsp;</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">Lead author Dr Jane Kershaw from the University of Oxford said England imported silver from France from AD 750 to 820 at a time when relations were 'up and down'.&nbsp;</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">'Relations were sometimes sour, but they weren't at war,' she told MailOnline.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">For the study, the archaeologists analysed the chemical makeup of 49 silver coins minted in AD 660-820 England, the Netherlands, Belgium and northern France, all now housed at the Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge.&nbsp;</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><a href="https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-13276681/coins-England-relied-silver-France.html" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: arial;">Read the rest of this article...</span></a>David Beard MA, FSA, FSA Scothttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04960863966432246464noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4783098435691184847.post-69554436529669000322024-04-02T11:29:00.002+02:002024-04-02T11:29:15.386+02:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="450" data-original-width="800" height="225" src="https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/1024/cpsprodpb/8790/production/_133040743_untitled-6.jpg.webp" width="400" /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Most of the combs were made from red deer antler, although some were made from bone</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">An unearthed collection of Viking combs is "extraordinary and unique in the UK", according to archaeologists.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">The antler and bone finds were discovered in Ipswich, Suffolk, during 40 excavations over the course of 20 years.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">Authors Ian Riddler and Nicola Trzaska-Nartowski said they included "an extraordinary sequence of Viking combs unmatched elsewhere in the country".</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">They indicate the presence of Vikings in Ipswich in the late 9th Century.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">Riddler and Trzaska-Nartowski are among the authors of a recently published analysis of 1,341 finds and 2,400 fragments of waste unearthed during digs between 1974 and 1994.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">"It was always our intention that the book had a European outlook and placed Ipswich in the centre of a developing early medieval world for one particular craft," they said in a statement about the analysis.</span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-suffolk-68685682" target="_blank">Read the rest of this article...</a></span>David Beard MA, FSA, FSA Scothttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04960863966432246464noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4783098435691184847.post-78504336831549316512024-03-20T09:16:00.002+01:002024-03-20T09:16:44.238+01:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="460" data-original-width="800" height="230" src="https://cdn.thecollector.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/sutton-hoo-discoveries.jpg?width=1200&amp;quality=70" width="400" /></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br />Edith Pretty, one of England’s first female magistrates, owned a huge estate in south-east Suffolk known as Sutton Hoo. Pretty had been aware for some time that there was something intriguing about her Suffolk estate. Round mounds of earth loomed across it and in 1937, she decided the time had come to learn something about them. She contacted the Ipswich Museum, hoping to find a professional to excavate the mounds. The museum sent amateur archaeologist Basil Brown to Mrs. Pretty’s estate. Shortly thereafter, Brown began excavating, eventually uncovering the Anglo-Saxon world of Sutton Hoo.<br /><br /><a href="https://www.thecollector.com/sutton-hoo-discoveries/" target="_blank">Read the rest of this article...</a></span>David Beard MA, FSA, FSA Scothttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04960863966432246464noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4783098435691184847.post-69052269874708881392024-02-19T18:01:00.002+01:002024-02-19T18:01:09.021+01:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="490" data-original-width="800" height="245" src="https://medievalists.gumlet.io/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/mnet24021802.jpg?format=webp&amp;compress=true&amp;quality=80&amp;w=768&amp;dpr=1.5" width="400" /></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span><div><b><span style="font-family: arial;">Beowulf and the North Before the Vikings</span></b></div><div><b><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></b></div><div><b><span style="font-family: arial;">By Tom Shippey</span></b></div><div><b><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></b></div><div><b><span style="font-family: arial;">Arc Humanities Press</span></b></div><div><b><span style="font-family: arial;">ISBN: 9781802700138</span></b></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">How much history is there in the story of Beowulf? The author argues that we can learn more about the people and places mentioned in the poem than has been commonly accepted, and it also sheds light on the Viking raids that began at the end of the eighth century.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">Excerpt:</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">Beowulf’s anti-historical critics do of course have a point. If you believe that history cannot be written without dates and documents, then Beowulf offers neither. On the other hand, students of prehistory are accustomed to making what they can of other kinds of evidence, like legends and late traditions. And there is in addition the solid and ever-increasing evidence of archaeology, the “open frontier” of Beowulf-studies and of early history. As Ulf Näsman, Professor of Archaeology at Linnaeus University in Sweden, puts it: “archaeologists can write history.” Moreover, and as it happens, even for Beowulf we do have some surprising documentary evidence, which also gives us a date.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><a href="https://www.medievalists.net/2024/02/new-medieval-books-beowulf-and-the-north-before-the-vikings/" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: arial;">Read the rest of this article...</span></a>David Beard MA, FSA, FSA Scothttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04960863966432246464noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4783098435691184847.post-88116066788046792692024-02-15T11:09:00.002+01:002024-02-15T11:09:39.150+01:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="236" data-original-width="634" height="149" src="https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/02/15/01/81285383-13085445-image-a-1_1707959190278.jpg" width="400" /></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span><div><span style="font-family: arial;">The impact the Vikings had on Britain is being examined in a new set of stamps issued by Royal Mail.&nbsp;</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">The eight stamps feature Viking artefacts and locations of significance from around the UK.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">These include an iron, silver and copper sword, a silver penny minted in York, silver and bronze brooches, an antler comb and case from Coppergate, York, and a Hogback gravestone from Govan Old, Glasgow.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">The release of the collection also marks 40 years since the Jorvik Viking Centre opened in York.</span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><a href="https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-13085445/Vikings-Britain-new-stamps-issued-Royal-Mail.html" target="_blank">Read the rest of this article...</a></span>David Beard MA, FSA, FSA Scothttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04960863966432246464noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4783098435691184847.post-57790302021140687372024-02-08T12:16:00.002+01:002024-02-08T12:16:54.322+01:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="602" data-original-width="800" height="301" src="https://www.heritagedaily.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/MOLA2-1920x1446.jpg" width="400" /></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span><div><span style="font-family: arial;">&nbsp;Archaeologists from Archaeology South-East have uncovered traces of the Saxon town of Lundenwic beneath the National Gallery in London.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">Following the collapse of Roman Britain, Londoninium (London) fell to ruin and was abandoned during the 5th century AD.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">Anglo-Saxons settled 1.6 km’s to the west of the former Roman capital, establishing a small town known as Lundenwic in the area of present-day Covent Garden.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">During the 6th century AD, England was split into multiple Anglo-Saxon kingdoms termed the Heptarchy. As borders changed through conquest and marriage, the town of Lundenwic found itself first within the domain of Essex, then Mercia, and subsequently Wessex.</span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><a href="https://www.heritagedaily.com/2024/02/traces-of-saxon-town-found-beneath-londons-national-gallery/150454" target="_blank">Read the rest of this article...</a></span>David Beard MA, FSA, FSA Scothttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04960863966432246464noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4783098435691184847.post-87341823962340581262024-01-31T09:42:00.000+01:002024-01-31T09:42:02.127+01:00<p>&nbsp;</p><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjy0aoSHQBHyPagcTWN1OJGbQbpJk6ntFZOc7Gh8orqUr8DgmfB3l0yW1IQUFzl_AQDaD7FNgxcQqLkF9dqWQ1Ou4SUrs-xH3ZaLfgWEk3Y_xvHi3psCrDJh3cvHoOancHFd2euly2w4SecQn1n3XUz-ORUk-Ob50W-mCkOh7cwppr4T-3d_Z1L/s1200/Tom%20Quad%20DJB.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><img border="0" data-original-height="547" data-original-width="1200" height="146" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjy0aoSHQBHyPagcTWN1OJGbQbpJk6ntFZOc7Gh8orqUr8DgmfB3l0yW1IQUFzl_AQDaD7FNgxcQqLkF9dqWQ1Ou4SUrs-xH3ZaLfgWEk3Y_xvHi3psCrDJh3cvHoOancHFd2euly2w4SecQn1n3XUz-ORUk-Ob50W-mCkOh7cwppr4T-3d_Z1L/s320/Tom%20Quad%20DJB.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Tom Quad, Christ Church, Oxford University – image David Beard</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">The Oxford Experience summer school is held at Christ Church, Oxford.&nbsp;</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Participants stay in Christ Church and eat in the famous Dining Hall, that was the model for the Hall in the Harry Potter movies.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">This year there are twelve classes offered in archaeology.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="http://archeurope.com/oxford-experience-archaeology/" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: arial;">You can find the list of courses here…</span></a></div></div>David Beard MA, FSA, FSA Scothttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04960863966432246464noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4783098435691184847.post-87097558626501812812023-12-19T09:23:00.002+01:002023-12-19T09:23:51.613+01:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="460" data-original-width="800" height="230" src="https://cdn.thecollector.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/emperor-honorius-letter.jpg?width=1200&amp;quality=70" width="400" /></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span><div><span style="font-family: arial;">The Romans ruled Britain for nearly four centuries, from 43 CE until the beginning of the fifth century. Most commentators agree that the actions of Magnus Maximus can be viewed as the beginning of the end of Roman rule over Britain. He withdrew a large portion of Roman troops when he proclaimed himself emperor and set off to attack Emperor Gratian on the continent. This was in 383, quite some time before the fifth century. But while acknowledging that it was a gradual process, many modern sources claim that one specific year can be cited as the final end. In 410 Emperor Honorius wrote a letter telling the recipients that the Romans could no longer protect them. But was it really sent to Britain?</span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><a href="https://www.thecollector.com/emperor-honorius-letter/" target="_blank">Read the rest of this article...</a></span>David Beard MA, FSA, FSA Scothttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04960863966432246464noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4783098435691184847.post-84779873342889420652023-12-19T09:16:00.003+01:002023-12-19T09:16:30.573+01:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="1200" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2TvBQZZzdo5i4d4eTmqCMXHMrwQEsdpLxp0hxzC2c2FPpUEiCl0T4uxCPpXEPmSRwvQjkP7wzfyVmOlKV3CglryYHkFyqvpVhG5Q0gs3ImW1zYcfrKBz2um6vMJHyezBfK0Hmw54vC_3QvaBtXcG9PQpa1JQWnoeGzoYaQMGT0ET4sZzf_kNc/s320/Sutton%20Hoo%20Replica%201.jpg" width="320" /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;">The Sutton Hoo Saxon ship project, spearheaded by master shipwright Tim Kirk, is a remarkable effort to reconstruct the largest Saxon ship ever discovered. <br />Source: The Sutton Hoo Ship's Company</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">The treasures of Sutton Hoo in East Anglia are legendary, including the imprint left by the largest Saxon ship ever found.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">Expert shipwright Tim Kirk has been leading a team of volunteers to create an authentic reconstruction of the vessel, with a view to it being sailed in 2025.&nbsp;</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">With occasional references to the reconstruction activity at the Viking Ship Museum in Roskilde, Tim talks at length to The Viking Herald about how the project came about, the pitfalls of using a unique Saxon burial site as an army training ground, and the quest to discover what the ship was used for 1,400 years ago.&nbsp;</span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><a href="https://thevikingherald.com/article/sutton-hoo-saxon-ship-reconstruction-aims-for-2025-sailing/764" target="_blank">Read the rest of this article...</a></span>David Beard MA, FSA, FSA Scothttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04960863966432246464noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4783098435691184847.post-40949256594047571972023-12-06T08:33:00.002+01:002023-12-06T08:33:45.447+01:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="400" data-original-width="800" height="200" src="https://scx1.b-cdn.net/csz/news/800a/2023/scandinavias-oldest-kn-1.jpg" width="400" /></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span><div><span style="font-family: arial;">This summer, archaeologists and a metal detectorist conducted a small survey of Herlaugshagen, at Leka in the northern part of Trøndelag County. They found something amazing.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">The goal was to date a burial mound and find out if it contained a ship. They carried out the surveys on behalf of the Norwegian Directorate for Cultural Heritage and in collaboration with Trøndelag County Authority.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">The archaeologists were over the moon when they found large rivets confirming that this was indeed a ship burial, and their enthusiasm didn't subside when the finds were recently dated.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">"The mound was constructed in approximately 700 CE. This is called the Merovingian period and precedes the Viking Age. This dating is really exciting because it pushes the whole tradition of ship burials quite far back in time," said Geir Grønnesby, an archaeologist at the NTNU University Museum.</span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><a href="https://phys.org/news/2023-12-scandinavia-oldest-ship-burial-mid-norway.html" target="_blank">Read the rest of this article...</a></span>David Beard MA, FSA, FSA Scothttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04960863966432246464noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4783098435691184847.post-45021349475782929122023-11-29T17:41:00.002+01:002023-11-29T17:41:24.524+01:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="444" data-original-width="710" height="250" src="https://www.archaeology.org/images/News/2311/England-Rendlesham-Temple.jpg" width="400" /></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br />RENDLESHAM, ENGLAND—In the eighth century, an English monk and historian known as The Venerable Bede wrote of a king’s village at “Rendlaesham,” and of a temple equipped with both Christian and pre-Christian altars. BBC News reports that the site of a possible 1,400-year-old temple has been uncovered at Rendlesham in eastern England, which is located near Sutton Hoo, the archaeological site where East Anglian king Raedwald is thought to have been buried in A.D. 625. The possible temple structure measured more than 30 feet long and 16 feet wide, and had been built with substantial foundations. The excavation also uncovered evidence of a ditch that may have surrounded the royal village, traces of two other timber buildings, and a mold used for casting fine pieces of decorative horse harnesses similar to those unearthed at Sutton Hoo.<br /><br /><a href="https://www.archaeology.org/news/11917-231128-england-rendlesham-temple" target="_blank">Read the rest of this article...</a></span>David Beard MA, FSA, FSA Scothttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04960863966432246464noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4783098435691184847.post-75012209393524789082023-11-22T10:34:00.002+01:002023-11-22T10:34:16.682+01:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1318" data-original-width="2048" height="206" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzA4LmzmOXTO_hxy3nlkAhrulfPFuwvorv-jsczxlfBMA03hF3B_McdaZETEk_W2CJIJ9gDRRKrCGvs-_62ZD894U8-I7l0l-ZDibB2jTYW1_oa3Q2yUR0ZsA131QoArf0QBLhVriXD3hzrLzJ79O1mS_SDim4q8x3Q5jCwlreqrdpL45tmfP6/s320/Rendlesham%20Temple.jpg" width="320" /></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span><div><span style="font-family: arial;">Sutton Hoo has been home to some of the most amazing discoveries from Early Medieval England. Now, archaeologists have uncovered the remains of a 1400-year-old, possible pre-Christian temple in the same area.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">The discovery was made this summer near the village of Rendlesham in southeastern England, as part of digs conducted by Suffolk County Council’s Rendlesham Revealed community archaeology project. This comes from the same project that last year uncovered the remains of a large timber Royal Hall, confirming the location as a royal settlement of the East Anglian Kings.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">This year’s excavations also uncovered evidence of fine metalworking associated with royal occupation, including a mould used for casting decorative horse harnesses similar to that known from the nearby princely burial ground at Sutton Hoo. The royal compound was found to have been more than twice the size that was previously thought, bounded by a 1.5 kilometre-long perimeter ditch that enclosed an area of 15 hectares (the equivalent to about 20 football pitches).</span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><a href="https://www.medievalists.net/2023/11/1400-year-old-temple-discovered-in-england/" target="_blank">Read the rest of this article...</a></span>David Beard MA, FSA, FSA Scothttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04960863966432246464noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4783098435691184847.post-11497153059693368122023-10-09T10:58:00.002+02:002023-10-09T10:58:34.445+02:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="400" data-original-width="800" height="200" src="https://image.jimcdn.com/app/cms/image/transf/dimension=1280x10000:format=jpg/path/s2217cd0bb1220415/image/i366666efc764d0d1/version/1696628359/viking-great-heathen-army.jpg" width="400" /></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span><div><span style="font-family: arial;">The Great Heathen Army, a coalition of Norse warriors, stormed the shores of England in the late 9th century, forever altering the trajectory of the island nation's history.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">Originating from the rugged landscapes of Scandinavia, these Viking invaders were driven by a combination of ambition, revenge, and the lure of England's riches.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">Their arrival posed a formidable challenge to the fragmented Anglo-Saxon kingdoms, which were ill-prepared for the scale and ferocity of the Viking onslaught.</span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><a href="https://www.historyskills.com/classroom/ancient-history/great-heathen-army/" target="_blank">Read the rest of this article...</a></span>David Beard MA, FSA, FSA Scothttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04960863966432246464noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4783098435691184847.post-4802851920335988012023-10-09T10:52:00.002+02:002023-10-09T10:52:44.302+02:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="324" data-original-width="800" height="162" src="https://www.sciencealert.com/images/2023/10/SuttonHooHelmetReconstruction2016BlackBackground.jpg" width="400" /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;">A reconstruction of a helmet found in the Sutton Hoo burial.<br />(British Museum, Public Domain/Wikimedia Commons)</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">There are a significant number of Anglo-Saxon burials where the estimated anatomical sex of the skeleton does not align with the gender implied by the items they were buried with.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">Some bodies identified as male have been buried with feminine clothing, and some bodies identified as female have been found in the sorts of "warrior graves" typically associated with men.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">In the archaeology of early Anglo-Saxon England, weaponry, horse-riding equipment and tools are thought to signal masculinity, while jewelery, sewing equipment and beads signal femininity. And, for the most part, this pattern fits.</span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><a href="https://www.sciencealert.com/anglo-saxon-burials-are-challenging-our-understanding-of-gender-identity" target="_blank">Read the rest of this article...</a></span>David Beard MA, FSA, FSA Scothttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04960863966432246464noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4783098435691184847.post-31258770088962493672023-10-07T17:25:00.002+02:002023-10-07T17:25:05.421+02:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="800" height="240" src="https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/825b2c7fbf1a9cfb7a5af64cd2f88f2adcce5c50/0_698_3687_2213/master/3687.jpg?width=620&amp;dpr=2&amp;s=none" width="400" /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;">A detail of the Cheddar brooch after conservation work.<br />Photograph: Museum of Somerset</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">When it emerged from the earth it was dull, corroded and battered, the centuries it had spent lying beneath a Somerset field having taken their toll.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">Now restored and gleaming, the Cheddar brooch, a rare early medieval piece regarded as one of the most important finds of its kind, is going on display at a museum close to where it was found by a metal detectorist.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">Dating from about AD800 to 900, the large silver and copper alloy disc brooch hails from a time when the survival of Saxon Wessex was in doubt and Athelney on the Somerset Levels provided a refuge for King Alfred the Great.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">Interlaced animal and plant designs in bright silver and black niello – usually a mixture, of sulphur, copper, silver and lead – are set against a gilded back panel. The animals represented include wyverns – dragon-like creatures with two legs, wings and long tails that would later become a symbol of Wessex.</span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2023/oct/03/rare-medieval-cheddar-brooch-display-somerset" target="_blank">Read the rest of this article...</a></span>David Beard MA, FSA, FSA Scothttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04960863966432246464noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4783098435691184847.post-23497878955641071342023-10-07T17:14:00.002+02:002023-10-07T17:14:38.802+02:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="783" data-original-width="800" height="392" src="https://swheritage.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/Cheddar-Brooch-After-image.jpg" width="400" /></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span><div><span style="font-family: arial;">A very rare Early Medieval brooch, that lay hidden for many centuries, is going on display at the Museum of Somerset in Taunton. It comes from a time when the survival of Saxon Wessex was in doubt and Somerset provided a refuge for King Alfred the Great at Athelney.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">Dating from about AD 800 to 900, the large silver and copper alloy disc brooch is well over a thousand years old and is one of the most important single objects ever found in the county. Conservation work by Pieta Greaves of Drakon Heritage has removed centuries of corrosion and soil deposits to reveal the exceptional quality of its decoration. Interlaced animal and plant designs in bright silver and black ‘niello’ are set against a gilded back panel. The animals represented include wyverns – dragon-like creatures with two legs, wings and long tails, that would later become one of the symbols of Wessex.</span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><a href="https://swheritage.org.uk/news/cheddar-brooch-on-display/#:~:text=The%20brooch%20was%20found%20by,archaeological%20excavation%20of%20the%20findspot." target="_blank">Read the rest of this article...</a></span>David Beard MA, FSA, FSA Scothttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04960863966432246464noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4783098435691184847.post-64818701734171698952023-10-06T09:41:00.002+02:002023-10-06T09:41:46.301+02:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="533" data-original-width="800" height="267" src="https://static.independent.co.uk/2023/10/05/17/Cheddar%20Brooch%20After%20Conservation.jpg?quality=75&amp;width=990&amp;crop=3%3A2%2Csmart&amp;auto=webp" width="400" /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;">The high status Anglo-Saxon brooch found in a field near Cheddar, Somerset</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;">(South West Heritage Trust)</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><b><span style="font-family: arial;">Giant silver brooch found in the Somerset Levels is one of the largest such objects ever found</span></b></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">A mysterious piece of early medieval jewellery found by metal detectorists in Somerset could have royal origins, experts believe.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">The huge nine-centimetre diameter silver and bronze brooch, one of the largest such objects ever found, was unearthed by a metal detectorist on the edge of former marshland between Cheddar and Wedmore - two locations associated with Anglo-Saxon royalty.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">Experts believe the brooch may be linked to the household of Alfred the Great or one of the other Anglo-Saxon kings of England.</span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><a href="https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/giant-brooch-somerset-metal-detector-b2424713.html" target="_blank">Read the rest of this article...</a></span>David Beard MA, FSA, FSA Scothttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04960863966432246464noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4783098435691184847.post-76383127927193872162023-06-26T10:26:00.002+02:002023-06-26T10:26:29.655+02:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="532" data-original-width="800" height="266" src="https://www.medieval.eu/wp-content/uploads/nordforsk-viking-warrior-mentality.jpg" width="400" /></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span><div><b><span style="font-family: arial;">"Making a Warrior: the Social Implications of Viking Age Martial Ideologies” is the title of a new research project, which was recently granted substantial funding from Nordforsk. Partners are the Universities in Oslo, Copenhagen, Uppsala, and Reykjavik.</span></b></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">Archaeologist Marianne Moen, who has also recently taken over the position as Head of Department of Archaeology at the Museum of Cultural History, will be the project manager for the upcoming research project “Making a Warrior: the Social Implications of Viking Age Martial Ideologies” that is starting up in the fall of 2023.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">– The Viking Age often evokes associations with violence and war, with images of tough men enacting scenarios of violence and war. At the same time, we know that the truth was much more complex. This project is based on the premise that Viking warriors were not a uniform group of people, and that warrior ideals moreover had socio-political and ritual aspects that were as important as the actual war and violence in itself, she tells us.</span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><a href="https://www.medieval.eu/how-to-make-a-viking-warrior/" target="_blank">Read the rest of this article...</a></span>David Beard MA, FSA, FSA Scothttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04960863966432246464noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4783098435691184847.post-36647452289511045972023-06-24T15:57:00.002+02:002023-06-24T15:57:53.597+02:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="533" data-original-width="800" height="267" src="https://www.medieval.eu/wp-content/uploads/WEB-Chillingham-cattle-dreamstime_l_209413597.jpg" width="400" /></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span><div><span style="font-family: arial;">Also known as the Chillingham Cattle, Britain is home to four flocks of White Cattle living in the wild since the 12th century.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">The fierce and shy wild cattle living in the park at Chillingham is but one flock of four roaming at Woburn, Dynevor, and Cadzow. Earlier on, such herds were a common feature in the British landscape, probably kept for their ornamental and symbolic value. Known in the 12th century as Tauri Sylvestres, they have apparently always been considered a wild sub-species. The herd at Chillingham, though, was first mentioned in 1645. Today, about 130 animals live in the 150-ha large park in Northumberland. The herd is protected from being earmarked, a true sign of their “wild” status.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">These flocks of wild cattle were treated as a kind of super-deer eaten on festive occasions, such as at the Archbishop of York installation feast in 1466. At the celebrations, six wild bulls were roasted and served. It appears the white cattle survived as potent medieval status symbols alongside other wild species. Evidence from Auckland Castle indicates a herd of White Cattle was kept in the 15th-century deer park for ornamental reasons together with wild horses.</span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><a href="https://www.medieval.eu/wild-cattle-in-britain-descendants-of-viking-cattle/" target="_blank">Read the rest of this article...</a></span>David Beard MA, FSA, FSA Scothttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04960863966432246464noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4783098435691184847.post-8866615812366980662023-06-20T11:51:00.002+02:002023-06-20T11:51:53.896+02:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="530" data-original-width="800" height="265" src="https://medievalists.gumlet.io/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/52973720896_0a07c68da5_k.jpg?format=webp&amp;compress=true&amp;quality=80&amp;w=700&amp;dpr=1.5" width="400" /></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span><div><b><span style="font-family: arial;">“Ipswich ware” jars and pots, first made 1,400 years ago in the English town, are being fired again in a replica Anglo-Saxon kiln thanks to funding from The National Lottery Heritage Fund.</span></b></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">This new experimental archaeology project is being led by Suffolk County Council Archaeological Service, to investigate how Anglo-Saxon pottery was once made in Ipswich. The new kiln has been built and fired by studying archaeological remains excavated from the Buttermarket in Ipswich, something never attempted before. Only two kilns have ever been excavated in Ipswich, the other was discovered at Stoke Quay.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">Ipswich ware pottery was made in the town from c. AD 680-870. Jars, cooking pots and pitchers were the most commonly-made items, simple in design and grey in colour. They were mass-produced and distributed throughout eastern England, and were some of the first of their kind in post-Roman Britain.</span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><a href="https://www.medievalists.net/2023/06/ipswich-ware-pottery-made-for-the-first-time-in-over-1000-years/" target="_blank">Read the rest of this article...</a></span>David Beard MA, FSA, FSA Scothttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04960863966432246464noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4783098435691184847.post-7765189477516340642023-06-20T10:52:00.002+02:002023-06-20T10:52:22.248+02:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="497" data-original-width="750" height="265" src="https://www.suffolknews.co.uk/_media/img/750x0/US7HKX4NZZWGOWS5S8HD.jpg" width="400" /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Teams in Tunstall have been recreating 1,400 year-old Anglo-Saxon pottery, known as 'Ipswich-ware'. Picture: Suffolk County Council</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">Cash for the project was donated by The National Lottery Heritage Fund.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">This comes after an Anglo-Saxon kiln was uncovered under the Buttermarket shopping centre in Ipswich.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">Faye Minter, from Suffolk County Council, said project such as this were important as they allow teams to test hypotheses.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">She said: “They allow us to test historical methods and techniques based on evidence from excavations.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">“This can give invaluable insight into our history - the lives, skills and industry of people who lived in the past.”</span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><a href="https://www.suffolknews.co.uk/ipswich/news/1-400-year-old-suffolk-pottery-remade-in-archaeology-project-9317680/" target="_blank">Read the rest of this article...</a></span>David Beard MA, FSA, FSA Scothttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04960863966432246464noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4783098435691184847.post-16624625755470111912023-06-20T10:33:00.002+02:002023-06-20T10:33:15.579+02:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="450" data-original-width="800" height="225" src="https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/976/cpsprodpb/CB52/production/_130105025_16a3b73e-8d9e-4cd1-9e4e-9bec76432ac7.jpg.webp" width="400" /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Without DNA analysis, forensic artist Hew Morrison could not be sure of her precise eye and hair colour</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">The face of a girl who died more than 1,300 years ago has been revealed through facial reconstruction.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">Her skeleton was found buried on a wooden bed, with a gold and garnet cross on her chest at Trumpington, Cambridgeshire, in 2012.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">The image will go on display as part of a Cambridge University exhibition.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">Anglo-Saxon specialist Dr Sam Lucy said "as an archaeologist I'm used to faceless people" so it was "really lovely" to see how she may have looked.</span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-cambridgeshire-65919518" target="_blank">Read the rest of this article...</a></span>David Beard MA, FSA, FSA Scothttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04960863966432246464noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4783098435691184847.post-64566052649797158852023-06-20T10:29:00.002+02:002023-06-20T10:29:11.411+02:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="780" data-original-width="615" height="400" src="https://i2-prod.cambridge-news.co.uk/incoming/article27129658.ece/ALTERNATES/s615b/0_burial-woman-facial-reconstruction_Credit_-Hew-Morrison-2023.jpg" width="315" /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;">The face of a 16-year-old woman buried near Cambridge in the seventh century<br />(Image: Hew Morrison ©2023)</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">The face of a teenager buried near Cambridge in the seventh century has been reconstructed after analysis of her skull. Archaeologists from the University of Cambridge discovered the burial site at Trumpington Meadows in 2012.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">Forensic artist Hew Morrison created the likeness using measurements of the woman's skull and tissue depth data for Caucasian females. Without DNA analysis, Mr Morrison could not be sure of her precise eye and hair colour, but the image offers a strong indication of her appearance shortly before she died. (see the reconstructed photo below).</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">Mr Morrison said: "It was interesting to see her face developing. Her left eye was slightly lower, about half a centimetre, than her right eye. This would have been quite noticeable in life."</span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><a href="https://www.cambridge-news.co.uk/news/cambridge-news/first-look-what-anglo-saxon-27129670" target="_blank">Read the rest of this article...</a></span>David Beard MA, FSA, FSA Scothttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04960863966432246464noreply@blogger.com