PRICELESS ARTEFACTS OF AN ANCIENT KING

The find at Sutton Hoo – a ship and a burial chamber full of treasures – revolutionised our understanding of early England. Until then, the Anglo-saxon age had been regarded as primitive, but these artefacts showed how sophisticated they were. The 27m-long ship – which had rotted into the earth – had been brought up the River Deben and used as the final burial place for a very rich man, thought to be King Raedwald, a great ruler of East

Anglia who had triumphed over the Kingdom of Northumbria. He was also an early Christian, worshipping Jesus alongside other gods.

His grave was found in one of around 20 burial mounds on the site (many had been looted in Tudor times). The objects in Raedwald’s grave included exquisitely designed weapons, a lyre and carved drinking horns. Items such as a shield from Scandinavia and shoulder clasps like those worn by Roman Emperors showed us this was someone who borrowed from other cultures.

Coins were also discovered, revealing that money was used much earlier than had been thought, while the most iconic of the treasures is the Sutton Hoo helmet. Its intricate decoration has led to it being called the most important Anglo-saxon artefact ever discovered. The treasures can be seen at the British Museum and at Sutton Hoo, now a museum itself.