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New exhibition at Sutton Hoo telling the story of Anglo-Saxon Rendlesham
Featured image: viewing the exhibition © Suffolk County Council Now Open! Rendlesham Revealed: The Heart of A Kingdom AD 400-800 is a new exhibition now open at the National Trust’s Sutton Hoo 23rd March – 29th October 2023. The exhibition takes visitors on a 400-year journey to reveal how the Anglo-Saxon royal settlement at Rendlesham…
Being Anglo-Saxon: Building the replica Ipswich ware kiln
Featured image: Volunteers building the replica Ipswich ware kiln Here is another instalment of the Being Anglo-Saxon series, following the progress of the Rendlesham Revealed experimental archaeology kiln. Faye Minter tells us all about the building of the kiln structure. In summer 2022, a small group of volunteers started building the structure of the kiln,…
Geophysics training at Lackford, Brecks Fen Edge and Rivers Project.
Featured image: Volunteer conducting a geophysical survey with multi sensor array cart system (MACS) at Lackford (© Suffolk County Council) Last autumn a geophysical survey was carried out over Suffolk Wildlife Trust land at Lackford in the Lark valley, as part of the Brecks Fen Edge and Rivers project . The fields surveyed were known to…
Snape Anglo-Saxon Sword on display in Moyse’s Hall Museum
Featured Image: Sword from Snape boat burial (Grave 47) Suffolk County Council Archaeological Service have loaned the Snape sword to Moyse’s Hall Museum, Bury St Edmunds. The sword will be on display as part of the Conflict exhibition, running until 23rd April 2023. This exhibition examines conflict, warriors and weapons over time. On display are…
Rendlesham behind the scenes: Post-Excavation; revealing the detail
Featured image:: volunteers in the Cotswold Archaeology warehouse processing and recording the excavated material from Rendlesham After four busy months, the post-excavation work has made excellent progress thanks to the hard work of volunteers processing the material excavated last summer as part of the Rendlesham Revealed project. This week, volunteer Jonathan is our guest writer,…
Being Anglo-Saxon: making test bars for the kiln project
Featured image: Volunteers discussing the results of the test bars and pottery making. Another instalment of our Being Anglo-Saxon series following the progress of the Rendlesham Revealed experimental archaeology kiln. Several volunteers made test bars to try to work out the optimum firing temperature of the clay and also to test water absorption. Ruth explains…
Suffolk’s Royal Anglo-Saxon history on show in new exhibition
Featured image: Gilded Horse Harness Mount with garnet and shell decoration, found at Rendlesham (© Suffolk County Council) Rendlesham Revealed: The Heart of A Kingdom AD 400-800 is a new exhibition opening at the National Trust’s Sutton Hoo 23rd March – 29th October 2023, telling the story of an Anglo-Saxon royal settlement in Suffolk, the…
Fieldwalking at Lackford, Brecks Fen Edge and Rivers project
Featured image: volunteers conducting the fieldwalking survey at Lackford (© Suffolk County Council) Last October, 32 local volunteers led by a small team from Cotswold Archaeology (Suffolk Office) took part in several days of fieldwalking and surface finds collection at Lackford, as part of the Brecks Fen Edge and Rivers project . The field being surveyed…
Rendlesham behind the scenes: Post-excavation work continues & Mandy’s star finds
Featured image: Mandy holding a piece of Roman Glass The post-excavation work continues, with volunteers processing the excavated material discovered at Rendlesham in summer 2022, as part of our community archaeology project Rendlesham Revealed. This week volunteer Mandy tells us more about her experience and a few of her star finds from the environmental samples. I…
Being Anglo-Saxon: experimenting with raw local clay and additives
Featured image: four pinch pots made using different proportions of additives mixed in with 150g of clay (credit: Jnanamitra) Another instalment of our Being Anglo-Saxon series following the progress of the Rendlesham Revealed experimental archaeology kiln. This week, volunteer Jnanamitra tells us about her experience with clay processing using additives Raw local clay processing I…
Rendlesham behind the scenes: starting the second year of post-excavation processing
Featured image: Animal bone and oyster shell washed and drying after being excavated. (Photo by Graham Allen) Following the second season of excavations at Rendlesham in summer 2022, our volunteers have started the post-excavation work on the excavated material at the Cotswold Archaeology warehouse in Needham Market, as part of our community archaeology project Rendlesham…
Being Anglo-Saxon: experimenting with raw clay and pottery making
Featured image: replica Ipswich ware pottery vessel being made by a volunteer Here is the next instalment of our Being Anglo-Saxon series following the progress of the Rendlesham Revealed experimental archaeology kiln. After the clay was delivered, our volunteers started experimenting with different clay processing and pottery making methods. This week, volunteer Louise tells us…
Walking with Constable – an interdisciplinary project by the Fitzwilliam Museum
Featured image: Frontispiece. East Berholt (P.232-1954) (Source The Fitzwilliam Museum) The Fitzwilliam Museum are running a project called ‘Walking with Constable’, which aims to shed new light on the paintings and drawings in their collection by getting outside and walking in the landscape. Constable used many East Anglian scenes in his painting, particularly of the…
Being Anglo-Saxon: an experimental archaeology kiln project begins
Featured image: Ipswich ware pottery vessels and fragments, previously excavated from Suffolk As part of the Rendlesham Revealed project, Suffolk County Council Archaeological Service are working with volunteers to build and fire an Anglo-Saxon Ipswich ware kiln to make replica Ipswich ware pots. This article is the first of the “Being Anglo-Saxon” series. This experimental…
Our Favourite Archaeology in Suffolk – The Great Churchyard, Bury St Edmunds
Featured Image: View of the Great Churchyard looking west, the Chapel of the Charnel ruins are on the right, St Mary’s Church to the left. We have recently welcomed Louisa to the SCCAS team, so we asked her to share with us her favourite archaeological site in Suffolk. Louisa has a background in commercial archaeology…
Suffolk Mind volunteers help unearth the Anglo Saxon royal settlement in Rendlesham
Featured image: Nev Midwinter, 47, from Thetford, excavating at Rendlesham, with supervision from Cotswold Archaeology (Credit: Suffolk Mind) Volunteers from Suffolk Mind have been unearthing the fascinating history of the Anglo-Saxon royal settlement buried beneath the Suffolk countryside, as part of the ‘Rendlesham Revealed’ community archaeology project. Joining the army of volunteers excavating on-site were…
Our Favourite Archaeology in Suffolk – Clare Castle Country Park
Featured Image: view of the Castle motte and Keep ruins, and to the left is the station goods shed. We have recently welcomed Andrew to the team at the Archaeological Service, so we asked him to share with us his favourite archaeological site in Suffolk. Andrew joined the team in September 2022 as Archaeology Officer-…
Royal Hall of the East Anglian Kings found in Suffolk
Featured image: Drone photograph of the excavations at Rendlesham, showing the excavated hall and boundary ditch (right hand trench) and associated rubbish dump (left hand trench). (© Suffolk County Council; photo by Jim Pullen) The second season of Rendlesham Revealed excavations are now complete and have unearthed some exciting discoveries. Evidence of a 1,400 year-old…
The Final Week at Rendlesham 2022 (Week 7)
Featured image: children from Wickham Market primary school excavating animal bone from the rubbish dump. During the seventh and final week of the Rendlesham Revealed excavations the volunteers finished digging and recording the archaeology before cleaning it for final photographs. We also continued processing the finds and completing the fieldwalking. Over three days, we welcomed…
The Excavations at Rendlesham 2022 (Week 6)
Featured image: On-site with Rendlesham Primary School and Kendra the Anglo-Saxon forager Week 6 was a busy one and our volunteers included local school children and a third group of volunteers from Suffolk Mind, as well as members of the general public. Everyone worked together with much enthusiasm to continue to excavate and record the…
The Excavations at Rendlesham 2022 (Week 5)
Featured image: metal detecting on site at Rendlesham © Katie Everard / Suffolk County Council Work continues at Rendlesham, with volunteers excavating, recording and sampling the archaeological features, as well as a new geophysical survey taking place on a nearby field. Alan, one of our very experienced metal detector users, came to site to metal…
The Excavations at Rendlesham 2022 (Week 4)
Featured image: Young people from Suffolk Young Carers join the volunteers on-site © Katie Everard / Suffolk County Council The volunteers continue to make excellent progress excavating and recording the archaeology. This week our team included eight volunteers from Suffolk Family Carers aged 12-14. Throughout the week, they all learnt how to excavate the archaeology,…
The Excavations at Rendlesham 2022 (Week 3)
Featured image: A volunteer mentor and Matt recording a post hole The volunteers continue to work hard excavating the archaeological features. This week the volunteers have made a start on the excavation of the remains of the large timber hall. Only the foundation trenches for the walls and post holes now survive, and these are…
The Excavations at Rendlesham 2022 (Week 2)
Featured image: Volunteers cleaning the trenches and excavating a boundary ditch © Darren Olley/Suffolk County Council The trenches are now open and we have welcomed our first volunteers to site. Before we can start to excavate the archaeological features, they needed “cleaning”. This involved our volunteers hoeing the surface of the open trench to remove…
Returning to The Excavations at Rendlesham 2022 (Week 1)
Featured image: Opening the trenches with the machine and using a GPS device to map out the pre-excavation plan We’re back at Rendlesham this summer for a second season of fieldwork, as part of the Rendlesham Revealed community archaeology project funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund. This year throughout the summer we will be…
Runic Objects from Staunch Meadow, Brandon featured in new exhibition
Featured image: Exhibition at Thetford Ancient House Museum For the first time since their excavation in the 1980s objects from the Anglo-Saxon site at Staunch Meadow, Brandon will be displayed at Ancient House Museum, Thetford. Our Archives Officer Julie tells us more about the site. The Middle Saxon site at Staunch Meadow, Brandon is sited…
Geophysical Survey in the Deben Valley 2021
Featured image: volunteer conducting a magnetometry survey Over the course of several weeks in 2021, 13 volunteers from the Suffolk Archaeological Field Group conducted a magnetometry survey on a ploughed field in the Deben Valley, as part of the Rendlesham Revealed project. The aim of the survey was to look at a new area in…
Fieldwalking Survey at Rendlesham 2021
Featured image: Professor Williamson fieldwalking with Rendlesham Primary School Tom Williamson is a professor of Landscape History at University of East Anglia, and he is one of the academic advisors for the Rendlesham Revealed project. As an expert in fieldwalking, Tom is also leading the fieldwalking surveys taking place in the Deben valley. Tom is…
Soil Micromorphology from Rendlesham – Excavations 2021
Featured image: Professor French taking soil samples. Professor Charles French is a professor of geoarchaeology at University of Cambridge, and the specialist advisor in environmental sampling for the Rendlesham Revealed project. Charly has completed the initial analysis of the environmental sampling taken from the Rendlesham excavations last summer. Charly is our guest writer this week…
The Second Season of Excavation at Freston
In 2021, the Freston Archaeological Research Mission returned for their second season of excavation to investigate the Early Neolithic causewayed enclosure at Freston. Dr Tristan Carter, our guest writer for this week, tells us all about it. After a year’s pandemic-enforced break, the Freston Archaeological Research Mission [FARM] returned to the field in the summer…
Pottery from Rendlesham – Excavations 2021
Sue Anderson, a freelance specialist is the Rendlesham Revealed project specialist for pottery and has completed the initial analysis of the pottery excavated from Rendlesham last summer. Sue is our guest writer this week to tell us more. The identification and recording of the pottery from the site involves dividing sherds into ‘fabrics’ – the…
Glass artefacts from Rendlesham – Excavations 2021
Featured image: identifying a glass fragment using an eye-glass. Dr Rose Broadley is the Rendlesham Revealed project specialist for glass artefacts and has completed the initial analysis of the glass excavated from Rendlesham last summer. Rose is our guest writer this week to tell us more. My first step after receiving the glass finds from Rendlesham was…
Metal Objects from Rendlesham – Excavations 2021
Faye Minter is the Rendlesham Revealed project specialist for metal objects and has completed the initial analysis of the artefacts excavated from Rendlesham last summer. Faye is our guest writer this week to tell us more. Eighty-three metal objects were uncovered during the excavations at Rendlesham last summer. The variety of metal objects recovered is…
Animal Bone from Rendlesham – Excavations 2021
Featured image: Dr Charlotte Scull working with a reference collection Following 6-weeks of excavations at Rendlesham last summer, the specialists have been analysing the material and we are now beginning to see some results. Over 2,000 fragments of animal bone have been examined by Dr Charlotte Scull, the project’s specialist zooarchaeologist. Charlotte is our guest…
The Results – Geophysics at West Stow 2021
Featured image: volunteers reviewing the geophysical survey results after collecting the data in the field. In October 2021, 12 volunteers were trained to carry out a geophysical survey in the areas surrounding West Stow Anglo-Saxon Village and Country Park. The training was led by Phase Site Investigations who have now completed the data analysis, which…
Rendlesham behind the scenes: post-excavation update
Our volunteers have completed the post excavation processing work ready for the relevant specialists to analyse. The finds are all washed, marked and quantified and the site information is all recorded onto the site database. There’s been a spectacular amount of material excavated from the trenches and it has taken almost 4 months to process…
Rare 4,500 year old axe turns up at event in Lowestoft
Featured image: copyright Mick Howes Roman coins and a flint axe, discovered in Suffolk by members of the public, were the star finds at a recent archaeology event. The event, hosted by the Suffolk County Council Archaeological Service at Lowestoft Library on 25 March 2022, saw dozens of local residents bring their discoveries to find…
Discovering the lost stones of Bury St Edmunds
Featured image: Head of a king in the herb garden © Ron Baxter Built in the 11th century, the Abbey at Bury St Edmunds was one of the most influential in medieval Europe until its suppression in 1539. The extensive remains still survive today. Since 2005, the Abbey’s stonework has been a focus of research…
Finds Day, Ipswich Museum – February 2022
At the end of last month, our Finds Recording Team held a ‘Finds Day’ at Ipswich Museum. This was the first Finds Day we have been able to host since 2020 and it was terrific to be out and about in the county meeting people again! Finds Days are a great opportunity for members of…
GPS Training, Rendlesham Revealed
Featured image: volunteers using the GPS in the field Last month, several volunteers were trained to use a GPS (Global Positioning System) device to set out a survey grid in south-east Suffolk, as part of the Rendlesham Revealed project funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund. A GPS is a very useful specialised device for…
West Suffolk Prehistoric Landscapes Project
Featured image: Volunteer being trained in geophysical survey ©Past to Present Archaeology Recently, Past to Present Archaeology began a new research project to study the Bronze Age communities of Western Suffolk. Last summer, volunteers started the archaeological investigations near Bury St Edmunds. Rupert Birtwistle, our guest writer for this week and the project’s Director, tells…
Reconstructing the Sutton Hoo Ship
Featured image: Constructing the ship © Sutton Hoo Ship’s Company Over the past 6 years, volunteers at the Sutton Hoo Ship’s Company have been working on an experimental archaeology project to build a replica of the famous ship excavated at Sutton Hoo. David Keeble, our guest writer for this week and Volunteer Coordinator at the…
Rendlesham behind the scenes: finishing off the post-excavation processing
Featured image: volunteer counting and weighing finds by category. Here is another update on the post-excavation work, as part of the Rendlesham Revealed project. As the post-excavation work continued throughout December, the tasks were shared amongst our volunteers so that everyone had a chance to learn some new skills. Some of our volunteers have never…
Rendlesham behind the scenes: starting post-excavation processing
Featured image: Processing environmental samples to extract finds or ecofacts. Having finished the first season of excavations at Rendlesham this summer, our volunteers have started the post-excavation work on the excavated material at the Cotswold Archaeology warehouse in Needham Market, as part of our community archaeology project Rendlesham Revealed. The post-excavation process involves several different…
Soil Samples from Rendlesham. What happens next?
Featured image: a soil sample after being processed into a thin section and analysed through a digital microscope. Volunteers from Suffolk Mind visited the McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research at University of Cambridge to find out more about how archaeological samples are processed there, as part of our community archaeology project Rendlesham Revealed. A geoarchaeology…
Geophysics Training, West Stow
Featured image: volunteers being trained how to conduct a survey using a hand-held bartington fluxgate gradiometer Volunteers were trained to undertake a geophysical survey to investigate archaeology in the Lark Valley, as part of the Brecks Fen Edge and Rivers Landscape Partnership project, funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund In October, a geophysical survey…
Investigating Archaeology in the Lark Valley
Featured image: aerial view of the reconstructed Anglo-Saxon buildings at West Stow near to the River Lark The Archaeological Service are investigating the hidden archaeology in the Lark Valley in West Suffolk as part of the Brecks Fen Edge and Rivers Landscape Partnership project, funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund. The Lark Valley is…
New discoveries of Suffolk’s Anglo-Saxon past unearthed in the Deben Valley
Featured image: volunteers from Suffolk Young Carers excavating the cellar of an Anglo-Saxon hut. Archaeological excavation near Rendlesham is adding to Suffolk’s rich history, with archaeologists uncovering evidence of settlement and community 1,400 years ago at the time of the earliest East Anglian kings. The discoveries have come as part of the community archaeology project…
Week 6 (2021) – The Excavations at Rendlesham
Featured image: volunteers excavating and Cotswold Archaeology recording the archaeological features. We have just finished the sixth and final week of the Rendlesham Revealed excavations. It was a busy week for the volunteers, finishing off digging and recording the archaeology, processing the finds and completing the fieldwalking. Joining the team for one of the days…
Week 5 (2021) – The Excavations at Rendlesham
Featured image: volunteers from Rendlesham Primary School learning how to clean the finds During week 5 of the Rendlesham Revealed excavations, our hard-working volunteers continued to excavate and record the archaeology across the site. We have made excellent progress and have taken more samples for environmental analysis. Interesting finds this week included a spindle whorl…
Week 4 (2021) – The Excavations at Rendlesham
Featured image: volunteers excavating a sunken-featured building Throughout week 4 our volunteers continued excavating, recording and sampling the archaeological features and washing, marking and bagging up the finds. For the latter half of the week, we were joined by volunteers from Suffolk Mind. More Anglo-Saxon pit-like features, are in the process of being excavated, several…
Week 3 (2021) – The Excavations at Rendlesham
Featured image: animal bone and pottery which have been excavated from Rendlesham In week 3 our volunteers worked hard to continue excavating the archaeological features. They included 8 young volunteers from Suffolk Family Carers, aged 14-17. Throughout the week they all learnt how to excavate the archaeology, wash and process the finds. We also gridded…
Week 2 (2021) – The Excavations at Rendlesham
Featured image: Volunteers excavating quadrants of a possible Anglo-Saxon hut. During week 2, we finished opening the remaining trenches with the machine. Before we could excavate the archaeological features, the trenches needed “cleaning”, this involved tidying the edges so they were neat and hoeing to remove any loose soil so that the features could be…
Week 1 (2021) – The Excavations at Rendlesham
Featured image: Volunteers hand-digging a 2.5sqm test pit and sieving the soil for objects. The archaeological excavations at Rendlesham are now underway as we draw a close to the first week. With help from our very hard working volunteers we have made excellent progress. During the first week, we have been setting up the site,…
Uncovering Anglo-Saxon Rendlesham 2021
After lots of planning, we are excited that the first season of archaeological investigations are starting this summer at Rendlesham, as part of the Rendlesham Revealed project, funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund. This August and September, archaeological excavations will focus on the wider Anglo-Saxon settlement at Rendlesham, with support from Cotswold Archaeology and…
Our Favourite Archaeology in Suffolk – West Stow
Featured Image: View of the Anglo-Saxon village. Source: West Stow Anglo-Saxon Village and Museum Our final post on our blog series showcasing some of our favourite archaeology in Suffolk. This week as we end the series, we explore the fascinating Anglo-Saxon Village and Country Park at West Stow with Faye. Faye is a Senior Archaeological…
Our Favourite Archaeology in Suffolk – Bellcage at East Bergholt
Featured Image: Bellcage located in the Churchyard. Source: Copyright Historic England We continue with our blog series showcasing some of our favourite archaeology in Suffolk. This week, we visit a unique bellcage in East Bergholt with Abby. Abby is a Senior Archaeological Officer and has been with the team since 2008. She is currently on…
Our Favourite Archaeology in Suffolk – Gardens and parkland at Ickworth House
Featured Image: Ickworth gardens and parkland. Source: National Trust We continue with our blog series showcasing some of our favourite archaeology in Suffolk. This week, we explore the beautiful Ickworth gardens, parkland and house with Grace. Grace is the Archaeological Officer (HER) and has been a part of the SCCAS team since 2016. Day to…
Our Favourite Archaeology in Suffolk – Dunwich
Featured Image: Aerial View of Dunwich. Source: Dunwich Museum We continue with our blog series showcasing some of our favourite archaeology in Suffolk. Each week you’ll meet a member of the team who will share with you their favourite archaeological site to visit or favourite find. This week, we explore the lost town of Dunwich…
Geoarchaeology Fieldwork at Rendlesham, 2021
What was the environment like in the past? Was the course of the river Deben different and was it navigable all the way up to Rendlesham? These are very good questions and ones that we are hoping to answer as part of our community archaeology project Rendlesham Revealed. In June/July 2021, we conducted an auger…
Our Favourite Archaeology in Suffolk – Neolithic polished axehead
We continue with our blog series showcasing some of our favourite archaeology in Suffolk. Each week you’ll meet a member of the team who will share with you their favourite archaeological site to visit or favourite find. This week, Phils shares his favourite find. Phil is a Finds Recording Officer and has been part of…
Our Favourite Archaeology in Suffolk – Orford
Featured Image: Aerial view of Orford Castle. Source: English Heritage Julie is the Archaeological Officer (Archives) and has been a part of the SCCAS team since 2015. Day to day she curates Suffolk’s archaeological archives, which includes all the finds and documentation resulting from archaeological fieldwork in Suffolk. My favourite place in Suffolk has probably…
Our Favourite Archaeology in Suffolk – Wickham Market Iron Age hoard
Anna is a Finds Recording Officer and has been part of the Suffolk Finds Recording Team for the past 6 years. Her role is to record archaeological objects found by members of the public onto the Portable Antiquities Scheme database and to administer the reporting of Treasure. My favourite Suffolk find is the Wickham Market…
Our Favourite Archaeology in Suffolk – Abbey ruins in Bury St Edmunds
Greg is an Assistant Historic Environment Record Officer and has been part of the team for the past 6 years. Day-to-day they carry out HER searches and take part in project work. My favourite site is the ruins of the Abbey in Bury St Edmunds. It represents a tangible connection to the history of the…
Our Favourite Archaeology in Suffolk – Ipswich Museum and Christchurch Mansion
Featured Image: Christchurch Mansion Source: Ipswich Borough Council We continue with our blog series showcasing some of our favourite archaeology in Suffolk. Each week you’ll meet a member of the team who will share with you their favourite archaeological site to visit or favourite find. This week, Lisa takes us to two museums in Ipswich:…
Our Favourite Archaeology in Suffolk – Beeches Pit
Featured Image: Excavations at Beeches Pit by the University of Liverpool, 1996. Source: John Gowlett, University of Liverpool We continue with our new blog series showcasing some of our favourite archaeology in Suffolk. Each week you’ll meet a member of the team who will share with you their favourite archaeological site to visit or favourite…
Our Favourite Archaeology in Suffolk – Framlingham Castle
Welcome to our new blog series showcasing some of our favourite archaeology in Suffolk. Each week you’ll meet a member of the team who will share with you their favourite archaeological site to visit or favourite find. We continue this week with Rachael who is taking us to Framlingham Castle. Rachael has worked for the…
Our Favourite Archaeology in Suffolk – Orford Ness
Welcome to our new blog series showcasing some of our favourite archaeology in Suffolk. Each week you’ll meet a member of the team who will share with you their favourite archaeological site to visit or favourite find. To start the series is James telling us about Orford Ness. James has worked at Suffolk County Council…
Investigating the Anglo-Saxon Cemetery at Lackford
A new display at West Stow Anglo-Saxon Village and Museum presents the results of latest research on Suffolk’s largest Anglo-Saxon cemetery, first discovered in 1945 at Lackford. West Stow is the site of an early Anglo-Saxon village and is well-known for its reconstructed buildings, giving visitors an immersive experience of Anglo-Saxon life. Archaeologists believe that…
Walk in the footsteps of Anglo-Saxon Kings on new Suffolk countryside trail
A seven-mile walking trail just steps away from the county’s famous Sutton Hoo site, has been created in Suffolk’s Deben Valley revealing the hidden archaeological secrets of the area. Download the guide at heritage.suffolk.gov.uk/rendlesham Walkers will be transported back 1,500 years and experience the landscape once home to a long-lost Anglo-Saxon settlement at Rendlesham where…
New publication on the animal bone from Ipswich
A new publication, Provisioning Ipswich: Animal remains from the Saxon and medieval town, by Pam Crabtree, has just been published by East Anglian Archaeology. Ipswich began as a small town in the 7th century and soon expanded from the 8th century into an important urban centre and international port, with craft production and international trade.…
Recent Scientific Research on the Anglo-Saxon Burials at Staunch Meadow, Brandon
Featured image: Excavation west view of Church next to Cemetery 1. Brandon sits on the edge of fenland and Staunch Meadow occupies an island of windblown sand within the floodplain of the Little Ouse. Excavations during the 1980s revealed evidence of a settlement dating from the mid 7th to the late 9th centuries AD. The…
Hitcham: A Landscape, Social and Ecclesiastical History of a Suffolk Clayland Parish
We’re looking forward to reading this new book, which explores the parish of Hitcham, its wider landscape and the architectural and ecclesiastical history of its church. The author, Edward Martin, is our guest this week to tell us more about it. Produced as a contribution towards a National Lottery Heritage Fund project for the restoration…
Research Dig at Freston’s Neolithic Causewayed Enclosure
In 2019, a team from the Freston Archaeological Research Mission investigated the Neolithic causewayed enclosure at Freston. They wanted to know more about the date of the site, what was happening there and what the local environment was like in the past. Dr Tristan Carter, our guest writer for this week, tells us all about…
Antler and Bone working of Anglo-Saxon Ipswich
A new publication, funded by Historic England, is underway led by the Archaeological Service and written by authors Ian Riddler and Nicola Trzaska-Nartowski. Ipswich has one of the largest and finest assemblages of antler and bone yet recovered from this country. Between 1974-1994 Suffolk County Council Archaeological Service (SCCAS) excavations in the historic core of…
From Rise to Ruins – Abbey of St Edmund Millennium 1020-2020
Celebrating the 1000th anniversary of the Abbey of St Edmund – Join the experts to discover more about the abbey’s remarkable history with a new series of online talks starting this November. 2020 marks the 1000th anniversary of the re-foundation of the religious community at Bury St Edmunds as a Benedictine abbey, under the patronage…
The People Behind our Understanding of Suffolk’s Prehistoric Archaeology
Whilst working on the Palaeolithic and Mesolithic Enhancement Project, our colleague Dr Hannah Cutler delved into the invaluable works from some of East Anglia’s most pioneering and influential figures in prehistoric archaeology in Suffolk. Here are just a few of the many key archaeologists Hannah has come across the most during her project. Nina Layard…
Geophysical Survey at Rendlesham
A geophysical survey was undertaken by volunteers to investigate the archaeology at Rendlesham, where there is a large Anglo-Saxon settlement – the aim was to see whether this activity extended into this new area. During a very cold week in January 2019, local volunteers joined the Archaeological Service in Rendlesham to learn how to conduct…
Fieldwalking Survey at Rendlesham
In 2019, the Archaeological Service and University of East Anglia conducted a fieldwalking survey with help from the local primary school to investigate the archaeology at Rendlesham. In April 2019, the Year 5 students at Rendlesham Primary School were asked to help the Archaeological Service with their archaeological investigations by taking part in a fieldwalking…
Conserving Roman Armour
The Archaeological Service worked with University College London to conserve this rare Roman armour, which was found by a local metal detectorist in 2019. This unusual copper-alloy Roman armour was found by metal detecting in south-east Suffolk – the finder left the object in-situ and called the Archaeological Service’s Finds Recording Team to help excavate…
Pottery Type-Series for Suffolk and Norfolk
The Archaeological Service are working on a project, funded by Historic England, to create a type-series for the Anglo-Saxon, Medieval and later pottery of Suffolk and Norfolk. A fabric and form type-series was created by local pottery specialist Sue Anderson. Analysis of existing data has allowed for fabric groups to be identified and samples to…
Investigating Suffolk’s largest Anglo-Saxon Cemetery, Lackford
Lackford has one of the largest Anglo-Saxon cemeteries in the region – the Archaeological Service are working on a project, funded by Historic England, to complete the analysis and publication of this important site at Lackford. The Anglo-Saxon cemetery at Lackford in north-west Suffolk, is one of the largest known in East Anglia. Excavations in…
Palaeolithic and Mesolithic Historic Environment Record Enhancement
The team in the Historic Environment Record (HER) are working on a project, funded by Historic England, to enhance the database with Palaeolithic and Mesolithic sites and find spots across Suffolk. Suffolk is one of the most important counties in England for Early Prehistoric archaeological remains (Palaeolithic and Mesolithic, 1 million years ago – 4000BC).…
Rendlesham Revealed: Anglo-Saxon Life in South-East Sufolk
A new community archaeology project, funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund, to uncover the hidden archaeology in the Deben valley in south-east Suffolk. The presence of an Anglo-Saxon royal settlement in the parish of Rendlesham was first recorded by The Venerable Bede, a Northumbrian monk writing in the 8th century AD. However, the exact…
Ipswich Urban Archaeological Database
The modern town of Ipswich is built on over 1,000 years of urban activity. The team in the Historic Environment Record (HER) have recently completed a project, funded by Historic England, to enhance the archaeological records in Ipswich. The Ipswich Urban Archaeology Database (UAD) project has collated and enhanced information relating to archaeological evidence of…
Farmsteads in the Suffolk Countryside
The team in the Historic Environment Record (HER) are working on a project, funded by Historic England, to record all the lost and existing farmsteads in Suffolk. Farming has been a major factor in the development of Suffolk’s landscape, both physically and socially throughout time. The farm buildings can help us to understand the agricultural…
The Mystery of the Mildenhall Hoard
A joint project since 2015 with the British Museum to investigate the find spot of the famous Mildenhall Hoard. (Image: © Mildenhall and District Museum) Discovered in 1942 at West Row, this hoard of 34 late Roman silver dining vessels remains the largest of its kind ever discovered in Britain. The exact find spot of…
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