Anglo-Saxon Archaeology Blog

Book your place at 'Portable Antiquities: Archaeology, Collecting, Metal Detecting' Conference

2010-02-06T15:36:00.001+01:00

Registration is now open for the ‘Portable Antiquities: Archaeology, Collecting, Metal Detecting’ conference on 13th and 14th March 2010. This event is co-organised by the CBA and Newcastle University’s International Centre for Cultural and Heritage Studies, and takes place at Newcastle University and the Great North Museum: Hancock.

The papers at this conference offer perspectives from a range of different interest groups, look at recent research, present case studies from around the UK and beyond, and ultimately offer views about what the future may hold for portable antiquities management. Much debate is anticipated at this timely event.

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Robbie Williams and Noddy Holder asked to help keep Staffordshire Hoard in the Midlands

2010-01-25T09:46:00.001+01:00

POP star Robbie Williams has been asked to donate part of his huge fortune to help save the Staffordshire Hoard for the Midlands, the Sunday Mercury can reveal.

The Stoke-on-Trent singer is on a secret list of celebrities and millionaires being contacted in a bid to raise £3.3 million to keep the Anglo-Saxon treasure in the region.

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Artefacts selected to outline history of North Yorkshire

2010-01-19T09:08:00.000+01:00

AN ANGLO-SAXON helmet, a Viking arm ring and a Second World War Halifax Bomber are just some of the artefacts that tell the story of North Yorkshire’s history, according to a new project.

Ten items of varying shapes and sizes have been selected to outline the history of the county as part of a national project entitled A History Of The World.

It was developed by the British Museum, 350 museums across the country and the BBC.

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Find £3.3m to buy Staffordshire hoard for nation, public urged

2010-01-14T08:12:00.001+01:00

Historian Starkey spearheads fight to save Anglo-Saxon 'gangland bling' unearthed in West Midlands

A public appeal was launched today to raise £3.3m in three months to buy the Staffordshire hoard, one of the most jaw-dropping of archeological finds or, as the historian David Starkey called it, 5.5 kilos of Anglo-Saxon "gangland bling".

Politicians and archaeologists joined Starkey in Birmingham to launch a campaign to raise the money and keep the hoard, the largest and most significant find of Anglo-Saxon gold, in the Midlands. Failure to raise the money was almost unthinkable, said Starkey.

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Appeal to keep Anglo-Saxon gold hoard in West Midlands

2010-01-13T12:49:00.000+01:00

Historian Dr David Starkey has backed a campaign to keep the UK's largest hoard of Anglo-Saxon gold in the region it was unearthed.

The appeal, launched at Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery, aims to raise £3.3m to buy the Staffordshire Hoard which was discovered last July.

Up to 1,500 artefacts were found in a field near Lichfield by metal detecting enthusiast Terry Herbert.

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Historian Dr David Starkey launches campaign to keep Staffordshire gold hoard in Midlands

2010-01-13T12:48:00.000+01:00

Historian Dr David Starkey today launched a fundraising drive to keep the largest ever hoard of Anglo-Saxon gold in the region where it was discovered.

The campaign, being launched at Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery, aims to raise £3.3 million to acquire the Staffordshire Hoard, which was found by a metal detectorist last summer.

If the campaign is successful, the Hoard would be jointly acquired by both the Birmingham museum and the Potteries Museum and Art Gallery in Stoke-on-Trent.

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How did King Harold die at the Battle of Hastings

2009-12-18T18:46:00.001+01:00

A recent article is challenging the notion that the Anglo-Saxon King Harold Godwinson was killed by an arrow to the eye during the famous Battle of Hastings. The battle, fought in 1066, was a pivotal moment in England's history, ushering in an era of Norman rule.

In an article for The Historian, a publication by the Historical Association, Chris Dennis argues that Harold Godwinson was actually hacked to death by a group of knights that may have included William the Conqueror.

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The Market Rasen Sword

2009-12-12T19:35:00.000+01:00

This doesn’t really count as news, but I have only just discovered this three-part video on the Market Rasen (East Lincolnshire) Sword.

Part 1
Part 2
Part 3

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2009-12-12T18:29:00.001+01:00

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New evidence found about the Battle of Fulford

2009-12-02T14:40:00.001+01:00

The discovery of over a thousand pieces of iron, including arrowheads and axe heads, may provide valuable new details about the Battle of Fulford, which was fought between a Viking and Anglo-Saxon army in 1066.

The battle was won by the Norse forces led by the Norwegian king Harold Hardrada on September 20, 1066. Historians and archaeologists have now evidence that the Vikings spent the next few days setting up hearths to reprocess metal left over from the battle. Their efforts came to a sudden halt when the Vikings were decisively defeated by the English king Harold Godwinson five days later at the Battle of Stamford Bridge.

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'Pillaging' Vikings unmasked as eco warriors

2009-12-02T14:39:00.000+01:00

THEIR reputation for raping and pillaging may not have set them out as the ideal role-models for an environmentally-friendly way of life.

But it seems that lessons could perhaps be learnt from the Vikings after the intriguing discovery in Yorkshire of what is believed to be a metal recycling centre dating back to the 11th century.

Historians and metal detector enthusiasts have made the find which is being heralded as evidence of how the Norse invaders recycled their fearsome array of weapons.

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'No tax cash' for treasure hoard

2009-11-27T17:41:00.001+01:00

Birmingham council taxpayers will not have to pay to acquire a haul of 7th Century Anglo-Saxon treasure, according to plans by the city's authority.

The hoard, valued at £3.285m, was unearthed in Staffordshire.

Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery and the Potteries Museum and Art Gallery in Stoke-on-Trent are both hoping to buy the treasure from the Crown.

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Anglo-Saxon gold is worth £3.285m

2009-11-26T20:25:00.001+01:00

A haul of Anglo-Saxon treasure recently unearthed in Staffordshire has been valued at £3.285m.

The money will be split between metal detector enthusiast Terry Herbert, who found the hoard, and Fred Johnson, who owns the farm where it was discovered.

Mr Johnson said he had not made any plans for the money but did not think he would be leaving his farm.

The value of the 7th century hoard, the largest Anglo-Saxon gold hoard found, was set by a committee of experts.

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http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2009/nov/26/staffordshire-anglo-saxon-hoard-millions

2009-11-26T20:24:00.000+01:00

The Staffordshire Hoard, the largest collection of Anglo-Saxon treasure ever found, has been valued at £3.3 million by the Treasure Valuation Committee in a summit at the British Museum in London, where a selection of items from the find have gone on display.

Terry Herbert’s raft of sword fittings, helmets, religious jewellery and gold, dated to the late 600s or early 700s. The metal detectorist found them in fields in South Staffordshire and will net an equal split of the total with landowner Fred Johnson in a deal struck between the pair.

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Staffordshire Anglo-Saxon treasure hoard valued at £3.3m

2009-11-26T20:23:00.000+01:00

The largest and arguably most beautiful hoard of Anglo-Saxon gold ever found in Britain has been valued at nearly £3.3m by a panel of experts, a reward that will be shared between the amateur metal detectorist who found it and the Staffordshire farmer in whose pasture it lay hidden for 1,300 years.

Professor Norman Palmer, chair of the treasure valuation committee, whose members pored over 1,800 gold, silver and jewelled objects in a day-long session at the British Museum, said: "It was breathtaking – we all agreed that it was not only a challenge but a privilege to be dealing with material of such quantity, quality and beauty. It was hard to stop our imaginations running away with us."

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Bid to map out 7th-century abbey

2009-11-24T14:59:00.000+01:00

Ancient ruins in Lincolnshire are to be uncovered as part of a plan to map out the history of a former abbey.

A team of archaeologists are currently at Bardney Abbey where they are carrying out trial excavations on the site, which dates back to 7th century.

Work on the Benedictine abbey, near the banks of the River Witham, is being carried out on behalf of The Jews' Court Trust. The aim is to find out if the ruins can be safely restored and displayed.

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Anglo-Saxon treasure found in Norfolk

2009-11-18T20:43:00.001+01:00

A silver-gilded knob dating back to the late 6th or early 7th century has been declared as treasure at a Norwich inquest.

The knob has a cast animal head on it and was found by metal detector Vincent Butler on land belonging to the Diocese of Norwich in Fransham, between Swaffham and Dereham, on October 1, 2007, but the inquest was delayed for two years for various reasons.

Greater Norfolk Coroner William Armstrong said at yesterday's Norwich inquest that the finder had permission to be detecting on the land.

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Bid to bring Anglo Saxon gold hoard home

2009-11-13T16:13:00.000+01:00

A CASH value could be placed on the Staffordshire Hoard by the end of this month giving Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery its first clear indication of how much it needs to raise to buy the treasure.

Archaeologists from the British Museum are currently casting their expert eyes over the 1,600 Anglo-Saxon gold pieces found buried in a field in near Burntwood earlier this summer.

It could be a tough job as the Staffordshire Hoard being the largest and most significant Anglo-Saxon find ever is completely unique and some would say priceless. The museum’s Treasure Valuation Committee is expected to meet before the end of the month to put its first cash figure on the largest ever Anglo-Saxon find and offer it to the Secretary of State for Media, Sport and Culture.

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One step closer to bringing our treasure hoard back home

2009-11-11T14:13:00.001+01:00

Hopes of bringing the Staffordshire Hoard of Anglo-Saxon treasure back to its home county and region have been given a boost after the British Museum said it would not try to buy it.

The news came at the launch of a temporary exhibition of the 1,662 pieces of gold and silver at the London museum.

Philip Atkins, Leader of Staffordshire County Council, said: “The British Museum confirmed they are not interested in acquiring the hoard and said that once the valuation is made, there is no suggestion that it will go anywhere other than Staffordshire and Birmingham.”

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This treasure stirs the West Midlands' Anglo-Saxon soul

2009-11-10T15:33:00.000+01:00

The Staffordshire hoard has brought history to life in modern-day Mercia – and it is here that the collection has to return

From the Lindisfarne gospels to the Lewis chessmen, much of British heritage policy is about putting things back where they belong. Now we have a golden opportunity not to commit the original sin, and ensure the most fascinating find in a generation remains where it should.

The Staffordshire hoard, that stunning collection of 1,500 Anglo-Saxon gold and silver goods discovered near Lichfield, has just gone on display at the British Museum with the earth still on it – the hoard's final outing before the treasure valuation committee sets a price to be split between the finder Terry Herbert and the field owner. But once those experts have announced whatever millions are needed, the loot must be fast-tracked out of Bloomsbury back to the kingdom of Mercia.

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Anglo-Saxon treasures on display

2009-11-03T20:45:00.000+01:00

A small selection of the most important Anglo-Saxon find since the discovery of the Sutton Hoo burial site has gone on display at the British Museum.

A total of 18 items, all taken from the Staffordshire Hoard, can be viewed by the public in London.

The hoard, made up of more than 1,500 objects, was first discovered in early July in a field in south Staffordshire by a man using a metal detector.

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Staffordshire treasure hoard goes on show at British Museum

2009-11-03T20:43:00.000+01:00

Some of the most spectacular treasure finds made in Britain have gone on display at the British Museum, still caked with the clay of the Staffordshire field that hid them for 1,300 years.

Fred Johnson, the farmer on whose land near Lichfield more than 1,500 pieces of Anglo-Saxon gold and silver were found in July last year, paid his first visit to London to see the pieces safely installed in the museum, and had bought a new suit for the occasion.

"It's been an incredible experience. I'm overwhelmed by it all," he said, looking down on the jewel-studded gold that once ornamented swords, shields and helmets of princely quality. "They say this will change the history books; it's a strange thought that came from something lying in my field all this time. I'm trying to keep a level head about it. I'm trying not to think at all about the value of it."

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City reveals 'Bronze Age site'

2009-11-02T08:37:00.001+01:00

Archaeologists have unearthed what they say could be a prehistoric Bronze Age burial site in central Oxford.

Experts say important chiefs may have been laid to rest at the site of the former Radcliffe Infirmary.

Land around the River Thames, known as the River Isis as it passes through Oxford, was often used for prehistoric burial, ritual and social monuments.

The Museum of London Archaeology (Mola) also revealed evidence of a later 6th Century Saxon settlement.

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Welcome to the AD 410 web site

2009-10-20T15:42:00.000+02:00

2010 marks the 1600th anniversary of the end of Roman Britain in AD 410 - one of the greatest turning points in our history. What was life on the island like at this critical moment? Was it fire and sword, with barbarian raids, peasant risings, tribal warfare?

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Sutton Hoo welcomes monumental treasure into collection

2009-10-19T19:12:00.000+02:00

After Birmingham Museum's breathtaking temporary display of the Staffordshire Hoard, the National Trust at Sutton Hoo have this week revealed their own treasure – a modern remake of the Royal Sceptre from the Sutton Hoo finds.

Suffolk stonemason and sculptor Brian Ansell was commissioned by the National Trust in February 2009 to carve a replica of the sceptre, which was found in 1939 among numerous treasures at the Royal Anglo-Saxon burial site.

The detailed replica will be added to the life-sized reconstruction of the burial chamber in the Exhibition Hall and used as part of a handling collection to help visitors learn more about the Anglo Saxon treasures discovered 70 years ago.

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