West Stow Anglo-Saxon Village facts for kids
Reconstructed buildings at West Stow Anglo-Saxon Village
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| Established | 1999 |
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| Location | West Stow, Suffolk |
| Type | Archaeological open-air museum |
West Stow Anglo-Saxon Village is an amazing place in Suffolk, eastern England, where you can step back in time! It's both an archaeological site (where old things are dug up) and an open-air museum (where you can see reconstructed buildings).
People have lived in this area for thousands of years, from the Stone Age to Roman times. But it's most famous for a small village that existed here between the mid-5th century and early 7th century CE. This was during the early Anglo-Saxon period, a time when Anglo-Saxon people settled in Britain.
Archaeologists found about 70 "sunken-featured buildings" and 8 larger halls here. After the Anglo-Saxon village was abandoned, the land became farmland.
People first became interested in the site in 1849 when an Anglo-Saxon cemetery was found nearby. Later, archaeologists like Stanley West started digging at the village site between 1956 and 1972. After the digging finished, they decided to rebuild the village! This project, called "experimental archaeology," started in 1974. In 1999, the site opened to the public with a new visitor center, museum, and cafe.
Contents
Where is West Stow Village?
West Stow Anglo-Saxon Village is located on the north bank of the River Lark. It's next to the modern village of West Stow in Suffolk. The ancient village was built on a small hill, about 4.5 meters high, which would have stood out in the landscape.
The area around the village looks very different today compared to how it looked in Anglo-Saxon times. In the 1980s, old rubbish dumps near the site were turned into a Country Park. Now, the landscape has grass, birch, and oak trees. A line of pine trees planted in the 1800s also cuts through the site.
The ground here is mostly chalk, with patches of boulder clay and sand. The site is about 11 kilometers west of the town of Bury St. Edmunds.
Life Before the Anglo-Saxons
The West Stow site shows signs that people lived here long before the Anglo-Saxons. The wider Lark Valley has many ancient settlements.
Stone Age Hunters
Archaeologists found tools and waste from hunter-gatherers who lived here during the Mesolithic, or "Middle Stone Age." They camped on the hill and left behind many stone tools.
Farmers of the New Stone Age and Bronze Age
Tools and arrowheads from the Neolithic (New Stone Age) and Bronze Ages have also been found near the West Stow site. This shows that people were farming and living in the area for a very long time.
The Anglo-Saxon Village
During the early Anglo-Saxon period, West Stow was a small village made of timber buildings. Digging at the site revealed many different structures. There were 69 "sunken-featured buildings" (SFBs) and 7 larger buildings called halls. They also found traces of smaller structures, pits, and ditches. The village did not have strong defenses like walls or fences until its very last years.
Sunken-Featured Buildings (SFBs)
Most of the buildings at West Stow were called "sunken-featured buildings" (SFBs). These buildings had a pit dug into the ground, and then a wooden structure was built over it. In the past, these were sometimes called "pit houses." Archaeologists found 70 of these SFBs at West Stow.
The Halls
The other type of building found at West Stow was larger. These were called halls and were supported by wooden posts. Archaeologists found the holes where these posts once stood. There were seven halls in total. Most of them were built along the top of the hill, running roughly from east to west.
These halls were likely important gathering places for the villagers. For example, Hall 1 was about 7.9 meters long and 4.1 meters wide. It had gaps that suggest two doorways. Inside, a patch of burnt sand showed where a hearth (fireplace) might have been.
Hall 2 was probably the largest, about 9.7 meters long and 4.3 meters wide. It had a dividing wall inside, creating a smaller room. A hearth was also found in this hall. Many items were found in Hall 2, including old Roman coins, metal strips, a bone pin, and parts of a loomweight (used for weaving).
Hall 7 was the most complex building at West Stow. It was about 11.4 meters long and 7.8 meters wide. It showed more advanced building techniques than the other structures. Many interesting items were found here, including Roman bronze coins and various tools made of bronze, iron, glass, and bone.
Other Village Features
Archaeologists also found smaller post-built structures that were not halls. These might have been small workshops or storage sheds. There was no clear evidence of fences around these smaller buildings.
Four large areas of disturbed soil were found, which archaeologists called "Hollows." They contained small pieces of pottery and some metal objects. Their exact purpose is unknown, but they might have been pens for animals.
About 79 pits were also found from the Anglo-Saxon period. Some of these were rectangular with flat bottoms. Their purpose is still a mystery.
In the last years of the village, some ditches were dug. Those on the western side seemed to mark out different areas of the settlement.
Modern Discoveries and Rebuilding
Digging Up the Past: 1849–1976
The first discoveries at West Stow happened by accident in 1849. An Anglo-Saxon cemetery was found, and people collected skeletons and pots. Later, in the late 1800s and mid-1900s, archaeologists found and dug up Roman pottery kilns (ovens for making pottery).
The person who really started the big dig of the Anglo-Saxon village was Stanley West. He became interested in the site after finding Anglo-Saxon pottery pieces there in the 1940s. In 1958, he talked to Professor Vera Evison, another archaeologist, about why no one was digging up Anglo-Saxon villages. Soon after, she started excavating at West Stow.
Stanley West took over the main excavation in 1965. For the next seven years, his team dug up a large area of the village. They had site supervisors, laborers, and about 30 volunteers from universities and the local area. They used new techniques, like "flotation," to find tiny seeds and plant remains.
Rebuilding the Village: 1977–Today
After the excavation finished, the local council decided not to turn the area into a rubbish dump. Instead, they formed the West Stow Saxon Village Trust. This group decided to rebuild some of the Anglo-Saxon buildings. This was a special project called "experimental archaeology." It meant they only used building techniques and tools that Anglo-Saxons would have had. This helped them learn more about how these ancient people built their homes.
One of the halls found at West Stow was also used as a model for a reconstruction at the Bishops Wood Environmental Centre in Worcestershire. This "Saxon Hall" was used to teach schoolchildren about early medieval life. Sadly, it burned down in 2008 but was rebuilt over the next two years.
West Stow Anglo-Saxon Village has also been used for filming! The fan-made short film Born of Hope (2009), based on The Lord of the Rings, was largely filmed here. The 1999 ITV sitcom Dark Ages was also filmed at the village.
Images for kids
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The village.
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The Oldest House, built in 1974.
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The Sunken House, built in 1976.
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The interior of the Sunken House, built in 1976.
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The Weaving House, built in 1984.
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The interior of the Weaving House, built in 1984.
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The interior of the Living House, built in 1987.
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The Farmer's House, built in 2007. It has an experimental wooden-slate roof.
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The interior of the Farmer's House, built in 2007.
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The Workshop, built in 1991.
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The interior of the Workshop, built in 1991.
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The craft building.
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The information hut.
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The information centre at West Stow.
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One of the reconstructed Anglo Saxon houses at West Stow
See also
