Sutton Hoo, Burial Ground of Kings

Visit this unique Ship Burial and see fabulous Saxon Regalia

Aug 24, 2007 Richard Mudhar

Sutton Hoo, near Woodbridge and only an hour or so from London is the site of mysterious low mounds, , traces of the prestigious 7th c Saxon ship burial of King Raedwald

Here a king was buried, along with some beautiful jewelled artefacts. He was most likely King Raedwald of East Anglia, who died c 625AD.

The splendour of the burial gives the lie to the usual perception of the Dark Ages as a dismal intercession between the fall of the Roman Empire to the coming of Christianity. The craftsmanship and colourful beauty of these objects hints at a rich culture, and the find is of such national importance that some of the artefacts are now located in the British Museum in London. The site is now in the care of the National Trust, and the exhibition centre brings the history to life. Some of the jewelled artefacts are on display at Sutton Hoo, along with a reconstruction of the ship burial to put the findings in context.

Ship burial

This was a ship burial, a Saxon tradition, but few have been discovered as the wooden ships rot away over time. This ship was different - though made of wooden planks, they were held together with iron nails. The wood rotted away over the 1300 years to the discovery of the site in 1930, but the nails were left in the ground in the ghostly form of the original boat. This enabled the incredibly detailed excavation to recover the form of the original burial even though the boat itself was gone, and the exhibition hall centrepiece is a reconstruction of the burial. Only two ship burials have ever been discovered in Britain, and both of them were at Sutton Hoo.

The artifacts include:

Sutton Hoo Helmet

The full-face helmet buried with the king is a striking icon of Sutton Hoo. Its form only became clear after it was painstakingly reassembled in the laboratories of the British Museum from hundreds of small pieces. The original is located in the British Museum (photo) and a replica of what the helmet originally looked like is at Sutton Hoo itself.

Purse cover

This magnificently jewelled object is normally on show at the British Museum, and the overall shape is reconstructed, but the gold cloisonné parts were excavated in the dig. There is an excellent level of detail on a a very small scale with these metal parts, showing Saxon craftsmanship was of a very high standard.

Visiting Sutton Hoo

Sutton Hoo is in the care of the National Trust, and is easily accessible, about an hour and a half from London. Woodbridge is the nearest town and railway station, and is a picturesque destination in itself.

More information

Readers with a particular interest in the Saxon period may want to visit West Stow Anglo-Saxon Village, about 40 miles to the west, near Bury St Edmunds along a fairly straightforward route

Historical background

National Trust site information.

The copyright of the article Sutton Hoo, Burial Ground of Kings in U.K./Ireland Travel is owned by Richard Mudhar. Permission to republish Sutton Hoo, Burial Ground of Kings in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.

the iconic Sutton Hoo helmet	what the helmet would have looked like new	purse lid (normally in British Museum)
intricate buckle	recostruction of the ship burial in the exhibition