Sutton Hoo facts for kids
The Sutton Hoo burial site
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 Location in England
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| Location | Woodbridge, Suffolk, England |
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| Coordinates | 52°05′20″N 1°20′17″E / 52.089°N 1.338°E |
| Type | Two early medieval cemeteries, one with ship burial |
| Site notes | |
| Ownership | National Trust |
Sutton Hoo is a famous archaeological site in Suffolk, England. It holds two ancient Anglo-Saxon burial grounds from the 6th and 7th centuries. In 1938, archaeologists found an amazing ship burial here. It was untouched and full of valuable Anglo-Saxon treasures.
This site is very important for understanding the history of the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of East Anglia. It helps us learn about a time when not many written records existed. The first person to dig here was Basil Brown, who taught himself about archaeology. He worked for the landowner, Edith Pretty. When the site's importance became clear, national experts took over the excavation.
Inside the ship burial, archaeologists found many incredible items. These included gold and jewel-covered clothing fittings, a special helmet, a shield, a sword, a musical instrument called a lyre, and silver plates from the Eastern Roman Empire. The discovery of the ship burial reminds many people of the epic poem Beowulf. This Old English poem is partly set in Götaland in southern Sweden. Some finds at Sutton Hoo are similar to things found in Sweden. Many experts believe that Rædwald, a king of the East Angles, was buried in the ship.
More burials were found in the 1960s and 1980s. Another burial ground was found in 2000 during work for a new visitor center. The burial mounds are near the River Deben estuary. They look like about 20 small hills rising above the land. Today, the site has a visitor center with original objects, copies of finds, and a recreated ship burial chamber. The National Trust looks after Sutton Hoo. Most of the original treasures are now kept at the British Museum.
Contents
What's in a Name?
Sutton Hoo gets its name from Old English words. Sut and tun together mean "southern farm" or "settlement." Hoh means a hill shaped like a "heel spur." You can see this ending in other place names like Plymouth Hoe.
Where is Sutton Hoo?
Sutton Hoo is located on the bank of the River Deben. Across the river is the town of Woodbridge. This area was an important entry point into East Anglia after the Romans left in the 5th century.
Other ancient burial sites are found nearby, like those at Rushmere and Tuddenham St Martin. A ship burial at Snape is the only other one in England that can be compared to Sutton Hoo. This region, between the Orwell and Deben rivers, might have been an early center of royal power.
Life in Ancient Times
Early Farmers and Bronze Age Homes
People lived at Sutton Hoo as far back as 3000 BC, during the Neolithic period. Farmers cleared the forests and grew crops. They left small pots in pits near where large trees had been.
During the Bronze Age, people built roundhouses with wooden frames and thatched roofs. One house had a central hearth where a faience bead was found. These farmers grew barley, oats, and wheat. They also gathered hazelnuts. They dug ditches to mark their land. The soil eventually became poor, so the settlement was left empty. Later, sheep or cattle were kept there.
Iron Age and Roman Times
In the Iron Age (around 500 BC), people started growing crops again. They divided the land into small fields. They might have grown grapes and large cabbages. This farming continued into the Romano-British period, from 43 AD to about 410 AD.
Life for the local people did not change much when the Romans arrived. Some Roman pottery and a brooch have been found. The land around Sutton Hoo became worn out from too much farming. It was eventually left empty and became overgrown.
The Anglo-Saxon Cemetery
Cemetery History
After the Romans left Britain around 410 AD, Germanic tribes like the Angles and Saxons settled in the southeast. East Anglia was an early and busy place for these new settlers. The name "East Anglia" comes from the Angles. Over time, the local people adopted the culture of the newcomers.
Many pagan cemeteries from the East Anglian kingdom have been found. These include Spong Hill and Snape. Many graves contained grave goods like combs, brooches, and weapons. Animals were sometimes sacrificed and placed in the graves.
When the Sutton Hoo cemetery was used, the River Deben was a busy place for trade. Small farms grew up along the river. There was likely a larger center where important leaders lived. The Sutton Hoo grave field had about twenty burial mounds. It was used for important people who were buried with valuable items. This happened from about 575 to 625 AD.
Other Burials: Mounds 17 and 14
Some of the earliest burials at Sutton Hoo were cremations. In 1938, two were found. Under Mound 3, a man's ashes were found with a horse. There was also a Frankish throwing-axe and items from the eastern Mediterranean. Mound 4 held the ashes of a man and a woman, with a horse and possibly a dog.
Other mounds (5, 6, and 7) also contained cremations in bronze bowls. These graves often had gaming-pieces, tools, and drinking vessels. Mound 6 also had burnt animal remains.
Archaeologists found three more burials between the mounds. One small mound held a child's remains with a buckle and miniature spear. A man's grave had two belt buckles and a knife. A woman's grave contained a leather bag, a pin, and a chatelaine.
One impressive burial was of a young man with his horse in Mound 17. The horse was likely sacrificed for the funeral. The man's oak coffin held his pattern welded sword and sword-belt. Near his head were a firesteel and a leather pouch with rough garnets. Around the coffin were spears, a shield, a small cauldron, and a bronze bowl. These items are now on display at Sutton Hoo.
Similar burials with horses are found in England and other Germanic parts of Europe. Most date from the 6th or early 7th century.
Mound 14 was badly damaged by robbers. However, it once held very high-quality items belonging to a woman. These included silver items like a chatelaine, a purse-lid, a bowl, buckles, and casket hinges. There was also a piece of embroidered cloth.
Mound 2: A Smaller Ship Burial
This grave was also damaged by looters. It was likely the source of many iron ship-rivets found in 1860. In 1938, more rivets were found, showing it was a small boat burial. Later digs showed a rectangular wooden chamber, about 5 meters long, sunk into the ground. The body and grave goods were placed inside. A small ship was put over this chamber before a large earth mound was built.
Chemical tests suggest a body was present. Finds included pieces of a blue glass cup, similar to one found in the Prittlewell tomb. There were also gilt-bronze discs, a bronze brooch, and a silver buckle. Some objects were similar to those in Mound 1, like sword blade tips and drinking horn mounts. This shows a connection between the two burials.
The Execution Burials
The cemetery also contained remains of people who died violently. Often, their bones did not survive. However, their bodies stained the sandy soil, showing their shapes. Plaster casts were made of some of these "sand bodies."
These burials were likely of criminals, possibly from the 8th and 9th centuries. They were found in two main groups, one near Mound 5 and another outside the main cemetery.
The New Grave Field
In 2000, a new area was dug for the National Trust's visitor center. Early Anglo-Saxon burials were found there, some with valuable objects. One find was a 6th-century bronze vessel from the eastern Mediterranean. It was decorated with a scene of warriors fighting lions and had a Greek message: "Use this in good health, Master Count, for many happy years."
A group of medium-sized burial mounds was found near a former rose garden. They had been flattened, but circular ditches showed their positions. One burial had two pots and a well-preserved bronze hanging bowl. Another burial contained a man with his spear and shield. The shield had an ornamented boss and metal mounts with a bird and a dragon.
Mound 1: The Great Ship Burial
The ship burial found under Mound 1 in 1939 was one of the most amazing archaeological finds in England. It was huge, complete, and contained beautiful, high-quality objects.
The Ship's Story
Even though almost no wood survived, the shape of the ship was perfectly preserved. Stains in the sand showed its details. Most of the iron rivets were still in place. The ship was about 27 meters long, pointed at both ends, and 4.4 meters wide in the middle.
The hull was built with nine planks on each side, fastened with rivets. Twenty-six wooden ribs made it strong. It had been repaired, showing it was a well-made seagoing vessel. The ship had places for forty oarsmen. A central chamber inside had wooden walls and a roof.
The heavy oak ship was pulled from the river up the hill and placed in a trench. Only the top parts of the ship were visible above ground. After the body and treasures were added, an oval mound was built over the ship. This mound would have been a powerful symbol seen from the river. This was likely the last time the Sutton Hoo cemetery was used for its original purpose.
Much later, the roof of the burial chamber collapsed under the mound's weight. This squashed the ship's contents into a layer of earth.
Today, a full-size replica of the ship is being built. Work started in 2021, using oak planks and iron rivets. This project is a big experiment to learn how the ship actually sailed. The plan is to train a crew of at least 80 rowers.
Who Was Buried in the Ship?
No body was found in the ship. At first, people thought it might be a cenotaph (a monument for someone buried elsewhere). But soil tests in 1967 found traces of a body, which had disappeared in the acidic soil. A platform or large coffin, about 9 feet long, was likely present.
Objects near the body suggest it was a king. Most experts believe it was one of the East Anglian kings. Since 1940, H.M. Chadwick suggested it was Rædwald. This idea is still widely accepted.
Other suggestions include Rædwald's son, Eorpwald. Rædwald is the most likely choice because of the high quality of the items and the huge effort needed for the burial. The gold items showed his authority. The burial was done in a cemetery for important people, and Sutton Hoo is close to the royal home of Rendlesham.
As of 2019, the museum at Sutton Hoo states the body is Rædwald. The British Museum simply says "King of East Anglia." Analysis of coins found dates the burial to between 610 and 635 AD. This makes Eorpwald, who died around 627–28, also a possibility.
A closer look at the sword hilt suggests the person was left-handed. The hilt's gold pieces are worn on the opposite side expected for a right-handed person. The sword was also placed on the right side of the body, which is unusual for Anglo-Saxon burials.
Treasures from the Burial Chamber
The metal artworks found at Sutton Hoo are of the highest quality in England and Europe. Sutton Hoo is key to studying art in Britain from the 6th to 9th centuries. The gold and garnet items show a mix of old techniques and designs by a master goldsmith. This art style, called Insular style, combined Irish, Pictish, Anglo-Saxon, British, and Mediterranean art.
The Helmet, Bowls, and Spoons
A special "crested" helmet was placed on the left side of the head. Its decoration is similar to helmets found in Sweden. However, the Sutton Hoo helmet has a single iron skull, a full face mask, and deep cheekpieces. These features suggest it was made in England.
Helmets are very rare finds. The Sutton Hoo helmet rusted and broke into many pieces when the chamber roof collapsed. These pieces were carefully put back together.
On the right side of the head were ten silver bowls, likely made in the Eastern Empire around the 6th century. Under them were two silver spoons, possibly also Byzantine. One spoon has the name PAULOS (Paul) in Greek. The other was changed to SAULOS (Saul). Some think the spoons were a baptism gift for the buried person.
Weapons on the Right Side
On the right side of the "body" were several spears, with their tips pointing up. One had a wolf decoration. Closer to the body was the sword, 85 cm long, with a gold and garnet cloisonné handle. Its blade was still in its scabbard, which had amazing domed cellwork and pyramid-shaped mounts. The sword's belt was also found, with intricate garnet decoration.
Purse, Shoulder-Clasps, and Great Buckle
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The gold and garnet objects found near the upper body are true wonders of Sutton Hoo. Their artistic and technical quality is outstanding.
The "great" gold buckle is made of three parts. It has a long, oval shape with detailed animal designs. The gold surfaces were punched to add black niello details. The buckle is hollow and has a hinged back, possibly for a relic.
Each shoulder-clasp has two curved halves, joined by a removable pin. They have panels of interlocking garnets and colorful glass inlays. The ends of the clasps have garnet designs of interlocking wild boars. These clasps were used to hold together a stiff leather cuirass (body armor). No other Anglo-Saxon armor clasps like these are known.
The ornamental purse-lid covered a lost leather pouch. It hung from the waist-belt. The lid has a kidney shape with beautiful garnet plaques. These show birds, wolves eating men, and geometric patterns. The artist used designs from Swedish-style helmets and shields.
These items were made by a master-goldsmith. They allowed the owner to look very important, like an emperor. The purse held 37 gold coins, each from a different French mint. There were also three blank coins and two small ingots. This might have been money for the afterlife or a sign of loyalty. These coins help date the burial to the early 7th century.
Lower Body and Other Items
Near the lower legs were drinking vessels, including two drinking horns made from aurochs (an extinct type of wild cattle). These horns had matching gold mounts. Maplewood cups with similar mounts were also found. A pile of folded textiles lay on the left side.
A large amount of material was found in two piles at the east end of the wooden structure. This included a rare coat of ring-mail (chainmail), made of iron links. There were also two hanging bowls, leather shoes, a feather-filled cushion, and a wooden platter. An iron hammer-axe, possibly a weapon, was also found.
On top of these piles was a silver dish, likely made in Italy. It had a relief image of a female head in a late Roman style. This dish held small wooden cups, combs, small metal knives, a small silver bowl, and other personal items. A bone gaming-piece, thought to be the "king piece" from a game, was also found.
A large, round silver platter was placed over everything. It was made in the Eastern Empire around 500 AD and had the stamps of Emperor Anastasius I. A piece of unburnt bone was on this plate. The collection of Mediterranean silver at Sutton Hoo is unique for this time in Britain and Europe.
West and East Walls
At the north-west corner of the inner west wall stood a tall iron stand. Beside it was a very large circular shield. It had a central boss with garnets and pressed plaques of animal designs. The shield also had two large garnet-set emblems: a bird and a flying dragon. A small bell was nearby.
Along the wall was a long, square whetstone (for sharpening tools). It had human faces carved on each side. A ring mount with a bronze antlered stag figurine was at the top. This might have been a sceptre, a symbol of royal power.
In the south-west corner, a group of objects was found. These included a bronze bowl from the eastern Mediterranean and a damaged six-stringed Anglo-Saxon lyre in a beaver-skin bag. On top was a large, beautiful three-hooked hanging bowl. It had colorful enamel and glass inlays with spiral designs and red crosses. An enameled metal fish was mounted inside the bowl.
At the east end of the chamber, near the north corner, stood a wooden tub with a smaller bucket inside. To the south were two small bronze cauldrons, likely hung on the wall. A large bronze cauldron was also found, hung by one handle. Nearby was a long iron chain, almost 3.5 meters long, used for hanging a cauldron from a hall's beams. These items were for everyday use.
Textiles
The burial chamber had many textiles. Fragments of twill were found, possibly from cloaks, blankets, or hangings. There were also remains of cloaks with long-pile weaving. More unusual colored hangings, possibly imported, were found. These had stepped diamond patterns made with a Syrian technique. Two other patterned textiles, near the head and feet, looked like Scandinavian work from the same period.
Comparing Sutton Hoo
Similarities with Swedish Burials
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In the late 1800s, excavations in Vendel, Sweden, found 14 graves. Several were in boats up to 9 meters long. They contained swords, shields, helmets, and other items. Later, another burial ground with royal burials was found at Valsgärde. The custom of burying people with their belongings might have been changing as Christianity spread.
The graves in Vendel and Valsgärde also had ships, similar objects, and many sacrificed animals. Ship burials from this time are mostly found in eastern Sweden and East Anglia. The famous Gokstad and Oseberg ship burials in Norway are from a later time.
The items found at Sutton Hoo, like drinking horns, a lyre, a sword, a shield, and bronze and glass vessels, are typical of important graves in England. The similar way objects were chosen and arranged shows that people of high status had similar possessions and funeral customs. Sutton Hoo is a unique and very high-quality example. It also included symbols of power and had direct connections to Scandinavia.
One idea for these connections is that children of important leaders were often raised by friends or relatives in other lands. A future East Anglian king, fostered in Sweden, could have gotten high-quality objects and met armor makers before returning home.
Connections with Beowulf
The Old English epic poem Beowulf is set in Denmark and Sweden in the early 6th century. It starts with the funeral of a great Danish king in a ship filled with treasure. It also describes other hoards and Beowulf's own mound burial. The poem's descriptions of warrior life, mead-drinking, music, and rewarding bravery with gifts, and even a helmet, can all be seen in the Sutton Hoo finds. The connections to eastern Sweden seen in some Sutton Hoo objects strengthen the link to the world of Beowulf.
Many experts have shown how understanding Sutton Hoo helps us understand Beowulf, and vice versa. For example, after Sutton Hoo was found, more translations of Beowulf started using the word 'silver,' even though the original poem didn't specifically mention it.
Some scholars believe that the Wuffing dynasty (the ruling family of East Anglia) came from the Geatish house of Wulfing, mentioned in Beowulf. This suggests that the stories that became Beowulf might have been part of East Anglian royal traditions.
Excavations and Discoveries
Early Digs (Before 1938)
In medieval times, part of the mound was dug away. In the 16th century, looters dug into Mound 1 but missed the main burial. They didn't know the treasures were deep inside a buried ship. The area was also explored in the 1800s, but no good records were kept. In 1860, it was reported that many iron ship rivets had been found when a mound was opened.
Basil Brown and Charles Phillips: 1938–1939
In 1910, a large house called Tranmer House was built near the mounds. In 1926, Edith Pretty bought the estate. After her husband died in 1934, Edith became interested in Spiritualism, a belief in talking to the dead.
In 1937, Pretty decided to have the mounds dug up. She hired Basil Brown, a self-taught archaeologist from Suffolk. In June 1938, Pretty offered him a place to stay and a weekly wage. She suggested he start digging at Mound 1.
Brown decided to open three smaller mounds (2, 3, and 4) first, as Mound 1 had been disturbed. These mounds had been robbed, so only broken items were found. In Mound 2, he found iron ship-rivets and pieces of metal and glass. At first, it was unclear if they were Anglo-Saxon or Viking. The Ipswich Museum then became involved.
In May 1939, Brown began work on Mound 1. He was helped by Pretty's gardener, gamekeeper, and another worker. On the third day, they found an iron rivet, which Brown recognized as a ship's rivet. Soon, more were found. The huge size of the discovery became clear. After weeks of careful digging, they reached the burial chamber.
The next month, Charles Phillips from Cambridge University heard about the ship. He visited Sutton Hoo and was amazed. Soon, Phillips took over the excavation of the burial chamber.
Phillips and the British Museum initially told Brown to stop digging. But Brown kept working, which might have saved the site from treasure hunters. Phillips' team included other archaeologists and photographers.
There was some disagreement between Phillips and the Ipswich Museum. After the museum announced the discovery too early, reporters tried to get to the site. Pretty hired two policemen to guard the site day and night.
The finds were packed and sent to London. Later, a legal hearing decided that since the treasure was buried without the intent to recover it, it belonged to Edith Pretty. Pretty then generously gave the treasure to the nation so everyone could enjoy it.
When World War II started in September 1939, the treasures were put into storage. Sutton Hoo was used as a training ground for military vehicles. Phillips and his colleagues published important reports in 1940.
Rupert Bruce-Mitford: 1965–1971
After the war, the Sutton Hoo artifacts were taken out of storage. A team from the British Museum, led by Rupert Bruce-Mitford, studied them. They helped rebuild the sceptre and helmet. They also worked to preserve the artifacts so the public could see them.
Bruce-Mitford realized there were still questions about the site. In 1965, a second archaeological dig began, lasting until 1971. The ship's impression was uncovered again. It had been damaged since 1939.
However, it was still good enough to make a plaster cast and a fiberglass shape. The team then decided to remove the impression to dig underneath it. The mound was later rebuilt to look like it did before 1939. The team also studied Mound 5 and found evidence of prehistoric activity. They scientifically analyzed and rebuilt some of the finds.
Bruce-Mitford's detailed books, The Sutton Hoo Ship-Burial, were published in 1975, 1978, and 1983.
Martin Carver: 1983–1992
In 1978, a committee was formed for a third, even bigger excavation at Sutton Hoo. Martin Carver from the University of York was chosen to lead the dig in 1982. His goal was to learn about the "politics, social organization, and beliefs" of Sutton Hoo. Despite some opposition, the project began in 1983.
Carver wanted to restore the overgrown site. After using new survey techniques, the topsoil was removed from a large area. A new map showed that the mounds were placed in relation to older land patterns. Anglo-Saxon graves of people who had been executed were found. Mound 2 was explored again and rebuilt. Mound 17, an undisturbed burial, was found to contain a young man, his weapons, goods, and a separate grave for a horse. A large part of the grave field was left untouched for future archaeologists and new scientific methods.
Visiting Sutton Hoo
Edith Pretty gave the ship-burial treasure to the nation. It was the largest gift ever given to the British Museum by a living person. The main items are now always on display at the British Museum. You can see the original finds from Mounds 2, 3, and 4, and copies of the most important items from Mound 1, at the Ipswich Museum.
In the 1990s, the Sutton Hoo site, including Sutton Hoo House, was given to the National Trust. At Sutton Hoo's visitor center and Exhibition Hall, you can see the newly found hanging bowl and the Bromeswell Bucket. There are also finds from the horse burial and a recreation of the burial chamber.
The visitor center was designed by van Heyningen and Haward Architects for the National Trust. It cost £5 million and opened in March 2002. The Nobel Prize winner Seamus Heaney, who translated Beowulf, opened the center.
Sutton Hoo in Media
- The Wuffings, a 1997 play, tells the story leading to the Mound 1 burial.
- The Dig is a 2007 historical novel by John Preston. It reimagines the 1939 excavation.
- A Netflix film based on the novel, starring Carey Mulligan and Ralph Fiennes, was released in 2021. Some filming took place near Sutton Hoo.
- The site also appears in the Assassin's Creed Valhalla video game, released in 2020.
See also
In Spanish: Sutton Hoo para niños
Images for kids
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The Sutton Hoo burial site
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Anglo-Saxon Shoulder Clasp from Sutton Hoo Burial, 625-630
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Anglo-Saxon Sword Belt End Ornament from Sutton Hoo Burial, 625-630
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The Wicklaw region
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Finds from Mound 17
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Mound 2 is the only Sutton Hoo tumulus to have been reconstructed to its estimated original height.
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"Sand body" preserved for museum display
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Mound 17 (orange), Mound 14 (purple), inhumations (green), and cremation graves (blue) at Sutton Hoo
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Mound 1 (in red) within the burial ground (burial mounds are coloured grey)
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A so-called 'ghostly' image of the buried ship was revealed during excavations in 1939. The 'ghost' effect was the result of sand discoloured by the organic matter which had rotted away. Still from a film made by H. J. Phillips, brother of Charles Phillips.
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A replica of the Sutton Hoo helmet produced for the British Museum by the Royal Armouries
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The purse-lid
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Great Buckle
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Ornate gold belt
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The two identical shoulder-clasps from the treasure.
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The shield-fittings reassembled
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The recreated burial-ship at Sutton Hoo
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A Swedish shield from Vendel
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A helmet from the 7th century ship-burial at Vendel.
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A notice in the 24 November 1860 edition of The Ipswich Journal
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Recent excavations revealed a figure that had been rolled into a shallow grave.
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The Sutton Hoo Exhibition Hall with helmet sculpture by Rick Kirby
