Sutton Hoo – Anglo Saxon Burial Site

On the 4th May 2013, my wife & I visited Sutton Hoo, near Woodbridge, in the English County of Suffolk. People have lived and farmed in the area since the end of the Stone Age. Sutton Hoo is now owned and managed by the English National Trust, being given to the trust in 1998. The exhibition, which tells the story, has been made possible by a major grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund and by generous financial support from many other private and public bodies and individuals. Since spring 2002, Sutton Hoo estate has been open to the public and is the site of two 6th and early 7th century cemeteries. It has also become famous for the discovery of a Saxon Warlord who was buried with a range of superb jewellery and armour in the belly of his own ship. There are also a number of burial mounds and numerous graves that contained the so called "sand-body" burials. The soil of the area is very acid and destroyed everything organic, leaving behind only items of metal and ghostly dramatic impressions in the sand, where once lay human bodies and Saxon ships.

Sutton Hoo kept its secret for more than 1300 years, until 1939, on the brink of war, an incomparible buried treasure was discovered. Excavations that have taken place at Sutton Hoo uncovered an Anglo Saxon royal burial, filled with many priceless treasures, including one of the largest wooden ships every to be discovered. Also amongst the haul was a large gold buckle, a masterpiece of the goldsmith's art, 2 pair's of gold shoulder clasps, the ends of which are decorated with pairs of boars set in garnet and millefiori glass and the two halves being held together by a gold pin. The major discovery was a simply stunning Saxon War Helmet, all of which are thought to have belonged to the Anglo Saxon King, Raedwald of East Anglia, who died around AD624.

On the site, an 80 foot long ship was hauled up from the river Deben near the historic river port of Woodbridge and a burial chamber was errected in the middle of it.The burial was obviously for a Royal King and along with his ship, the people of the day buried a superb haul of his treasure and personal belongings that included many gold & silver brooches, a gold purse lid, dishes, the sword of state, drinking horns,a lyre and the King's magnificent Saxon War Helmet.

The helmet has become a symbol of Sutton Hoo, yet it was discovered and had survived in many small pieces and fragments. It was only reconstructed after years of painstaking work by the staff at the British Museum Laboratory.

An artistic impression of the war helmet outside the visitors centre at Sutton Hoo – Tony Davison©

An exact replica of the stunning Saxon War Helmet – The original is in the British Museum, London – Tony Davison©

The mask takes the form of a dragon with wings spread across the eyes. The tail forms the nose shield and the dragon's head points upwards towards the forehead.The dragons wings and eyes are inlaid with incredibly vivid red Indian Garnets. Remarkably, the Anglo Saxons must have had trading routes with Asia and other areas of Southern Europe or North Africa.