There are still a very few places available on the EMAS study tour to Orkney

EMAS Study Tour to Orkney

14 – 23 April 2020

Guide: David Beard MA, FSA, FSA Scot

The 2020 EMAS spring study tour will be to Orkney. We will travel by coach from Baker Street, London stopping overnight at Middlesbrough and Inverness and visiting archaeological sites on the way.

We will be based in Kirkwall, and will visit sites on Orkney Mainland and the islands of Egilsay, Rousay and Wyre. The sites that we will visit include Maes Howe, Skara Brae, Midhowe Broch, the Brough of Birsay, Cubbie Roo’s Castle, the Earl’s Palace at Birsay and Kirkwall Cathedral.

Further information...

Ancient Viking Glass Artifact Was A Game Piece Of The Elites

A tiny glass crown is being heralded as a rare archaeological artifact from the first wave of Viking raids in England.

The small worked glass artifact was unearthed at an excavation site on the Holy Island of Lindisfarne , a tidal island situated off the northeast coast of England in Northumberland. Crafted from swirling blue and white glass with white glass bobbles, a report in The Times says archaeologists believe the crown was a gaming piece from the strategy board game  hnefatafl (king’s table) played in Britain, Ireland, and Scandinavia before the arrival of chess in the 12th century.

A Glass Artifact With Elite Origins
The relic, which is no bigger than a grape, is described as being “of exquisite workmanship” showing influence from across the North Sea and if it is indeed a hnefatafl gaming piece it is a rare archaeological treasure linking the English island with the Vikings at the beginning of a turbulent period in English and Scandinavian history.

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Board-game piece from period of first Viking raid found on Lindisfarne

The piece of worked glass unearthed during an excavation on Lindisfarne. 

Photograph: Jeff Veitch

Small glass ‘crown’ thought to be rare archaeological link to first Norse raiders

It is not large – the shape and size of a chocolate sweet – and might easily have been discarded as a pebble by a less careful hand.

But a tiny piece of worked glass unearthed during an excavation on Lindisfarne has been revealed to be a rare archaeological treasure linking the Northumbrian island with the Vikings, from the very beginning of one of the most turbulent periods in English history.

Archaeologists believe the object, made from swirling blue and white glass with a small “crown” of white glass droplets, is a gaming piece from the Viking board game Hnefatafl, or a local version of the game.

Whether dropped on the island by a Norse raider or owned by a high-status local imitating their customs, the gaming piece offers a rare tangible link between Lindisfarne’s Anglo-Saxon monastery and the culture that eventually overwhelmed it.

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1,300-Year-Old Saxon Coin Found by Treasure Hunter Rewrites English History

An English metal detectorist has found a rare coin proving old London did not fall to the West Saxons until later than currently thought.

Buried about four inches deep, Andy Hall, 55, found the 1,300-year-old coin in January of 2016 on Wiltshire farmland at Coombe Bisset, to the southwest of Salisbury in  England. While the artifact’s authenticity had been doubted, with even the finder suspecting that it may have been a contemporary forgery, or what he calls a “19th century fantasy piece,” scientific tests on the silver coin have confirmed it is “95% per cent silver,” which is consistent with coins of the time.

Dating of The Fall Of London Challenged
The controversy arises because the rare silver piece depicts the face of the Saxon king Ludica of Mercia who ruled for just one year from 826–827 AD. This little known Saxon king, Ludica, who ruled the kingdom that included London, or 'Lundenwic' as it was called at the time, challenges the mainstream historical theory that London had fallen to the Wessex King Ecgberht after the Battle of Ellendun in 825 AD.

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The ghostly treasure ship of Sutton Hoo

Silver bowl from Sutton Hoo. Seventh century, British Museum, London

PHOTOGRAPH BY ULLSTEIN BILD, CORDON PRESS

In 1939 a series of mounds at Sutton Hoo in England revealed their astounding contents: the remains of an Anglo-Saxon funerary ship and a huge cache of seventh-century royal treasure.

IN SOUTHERN ENGLAND near the Suffolk coast lies a stretch of sandy heathland dotted by mysterious mounds of earth. Inspiring strange tales and superstitions among local people, these barrows charmed newlyweds Frank and Edith Pretty, who purchased the property, known as Sutton Hoo, in 1926.

The couple made their home at Sutton Hoo for nearly nine years until Frank’s untimely death in late 1934. Edith continued to live there, and she grew increasingly curious about the barrows on her property. A lifelong fascination with the occult had led her, like many wealthy women of her time, to consult spiritualists in London. Some say that after her husband’s death, her interest in spiritualism grew and even expanded to include the barrows on her property. Disputed accounts even describe Edith as having a vision of a ghostly procession passing through the mounds near her house. Whatever the true cause, she decided in 1937 to have the land excavated and approached a museum in nearby Ipswich to discuss it.

What lies beneath
Self-taught archaeologist Basil Brown worked as an excavation assistant at the museum and took on Edith’s project. His decision to take the job not only would change his life but also radically alter, and deepen, the understanding scholars had of the early Anglo-Saxon period in England following the collapse of Roman rule.

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'Lost' Anglo-Saxon monastery discovered. It might be where England's first king was coronated.

The Abbey at Bath has a spectacular facade.

(Image: © Wessex Archaeology)

Edgar the Peaceful may have been coronated here more than 1,000 years ago.

Newly unearthed remains may come from the monastery where England's first king, Edgar the Peaceful, was coronated more than 1,000 years ago, according to Wessex Archaeology, an archaeological company and charity in England. 

The so-called smoking gun emerged during an excavation at the famous Bath Abbey, ahead of planned renovations there. During the excavation, archaeologists were surprised to find hints of Anglo-Saxon architecture in two structures next to the abbey.

These are the first known Anglo-Saxon structures in all of Bath, a city that was founded by the Roman Empire and that is known for its thermal hot springs. The two apsidal (semicircular) structures, or apses, were found below street level, underneath what once made up the cloisters of the 12th-century cathedral built over Romano-British deposits. The cathedral is just south of the abbey church.

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'Anglo-Saxon' skeletons found on Buckingham care home site

The site where the bodies were discovered is next to the cemetery in Buckingham

A number of "unusual burials" including skeletons with hands tied behind their backs have been discovered on the site of a planned care home.

The bodies were uncovered during excavations ahead of work at West End Farm, on Brackley Road in Buckingham.

It is believed about 40 bodies were found in December as first reported in the MK Citizen.

Historian Ed Grimsdale said he believed they were Anglo-Saxon and it could be "one of the biggest finds" of its kind.

Buckinghamshire County Archaeology Service said it was waiting for results of the post-excavation analysis.

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Anglo-Saxon Abbey where Lusty King Edgar was Crowned, Found!

Excavations of the possible Anglo-Saxon abbey at Bath Abbey. ( Wessex Archaeology )

Bath Abbey was always thought of as having been located upon a much earlier Anglo-Saxon monastery, but no evidence was ever found to support this idea. However, two structures were discovered during primary renovation works as part of Bath Abbey’s £19.3 million (25.2 million USD) Footprint project and a team of archaeologists from Wessex Archaeology discovered to the south of the modern-day Abbey what a Daily Mail article describes as “Semi-circular relics dating to between the 8th and 10th century AD.”

Plaster samples taken from the remains tested positive for charcoal and they were sent to Queen's University, Belfast for radiocarbon dating, which determined they were from “AD 780-970 and AD 670-770”. These results are why the researchers believe they might have found the site of King Edgar's coronation - Bath's lost Anglo-Saxon monastery . And speaking of the discovery to the Daily Mail the Reverend Canon Guy Bridgewater at Bath Abbey said this is a “really exciting find.”

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Lincoln Cathedral: Medieval priest's items 'rare find'

The priest was buried alongside a pewter chalice and paten, which is a plate made of gold or silver

Image copyrightALLEN ARCHAEOLOGY

Archaeologists have described the discovery of the remains of a medieval priest buried alongside "key symbols of his work" as a significant "rare find".

The find was one of more than 50 burials unearthed during renovation works at Lincoln Cathedral.

Archaeologist Natasha Powers said the priest was buried with a pewter chalice and paten - a gold or silver plate.

He believed his tools would provide proof on Judgement Day that he had performed his duties, she said.

Ms Powers said since work started in 2016 they had discovered "significant evidence" of Lincoln's medieval, Saxon and Roman past.

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Archaeologists search for the grave of St. Edmund under tennis courts

Travellight - Shutterstock

Renovation of the Abbey Gardens tennis courts has led to an effort to study the historical site.

Amidst the celebration of the 1,000th anniversary of the foundation of the Abbey of St. Edmund in the town of Bury St. Edmund’s, an archaeological study of the grounds has led to excitement about the possible discovery of the resting place of St. Edmund, the first patron saint of England.
Aleteia’s own John Burger explains why we know so little about St. Edmund’s final resting place:

England’s former patron saint, who ruled the Anglo-Saxon realm of East Anglia between 855 and 869, is thought to have been captured and killed by Danish or Viking raiders in 869. According to the East Anglian Daily Times, his remains were kept in a shrine in Bury. But the Benedictine Abbey there was dissolved during King Henry VIII’s reign, and Edmund’s remains were lost.

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Melton Mowbray building site bones date back to 7th Century

The bones were discovered on a building site in Melton Mowbray

NEMM.CO.UK

Human bones found on a building site have been found to date back to the 7th Century.

Police were called and construction was stopped when the remains were discovered off Scalford Road in Melton Mowbray, Leicestershire, in October.

A forensic examination was carried out to determine how long the bones had been in the ground.

Carbon dating has dated them to 635 to 685 AD. They have now been handed over to an archaeology firm.

The bones were found at a site during the construction of a new retirement village.

Leicestershire Police said the bones are being passed to Cotswold Archaeology Ltd "for further research to be carried out into the finding".

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New archaeological discoveries reveal birch bark tar was used in medieval England

Skeleton from grave 293, Anglo-Saxon child burial

[Credit: Oxford Archaeology East]

Scientists from the University of Bristol and the British Museum, in collaboration with Oxford Archaeology East and Canterbury Archaeological Trust, have, for the first time, identified the use of birch bark tar in medieval England - the use of which was previously thought to be limited to prehistory.

Birch bark tar is a manufactured product with a history of production and use that reaches back to the Palaeolithic. It is very sticky, and is water resistant, and also has biocidal properties mean that it has a wide range of applications, for example, as a multipurpose adhesive, sealant and in medicine.

Archaeological evidence for birch bark tar covers a broad geographic range from the UK to the Baltic and from the Mediterranean to Scandinavia.

In the east and north of this range there is continuity of use to modern times but in western Europe and the British Isles the use of birch bark tar has generally been viewed as limited to prehistory, with gradual displacement by pine tars during the Roman period.

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Tintagel Castle: Arthurian Legend Mixes with True History

Tintagel Castle is a site of castle ruins located on Tintagel Island; a peninsula connected to the North Cornwall coast in England by a narrow strip of land. This castle was an important stronghold from around the end of Roman rule in Britain, i.e. the 4th century AD or the 5th century AD until the end of the 7th century AD. Tintagel Castle is best known for the claim that it was the place where the legendary King Arthur was conceived, but the real history of the site is also exciting.

Signs of the Romans at Tintagel Castle
The site where Tintagel Castle stands today is likely to have been occupied during the Roman era, as artifacts dating to this period have been found on the peninsula. Having said that, as structures dating to the Roman period have yet to be discovered, it is not entirely clear if Tintagel Island was inhabited during the Roman period.

It may be said with more certainty that the site was occupied between the end of the Roman period and the 7th century AD. In 2016, geophysical surveys revealed the existence of walls and layers of buildings at the site. Excavations yielded walls, said to belong to a palace, a meter in thickness.

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Archaeological Study Tour to Orkney

EMAS Study Tour to Orkney

14 – 23 April 2020

There are still a few places left on the EMAS Archaeological Society Study Tour to Orkney.

However, hotel places are very limited, so an early reply is advised.

You can find further details on the EMAS website.

Further details...

Metal detectorist makes pretty penny after ancient coins he found in Suffolk field sell for £90,000 at auction

Builder and metal detectorist Don Crawley holds a collection of Anglo Saxon silver pennies which form part of a hoard of 99. ( PA )

An "amazed"  builder and metal detectorist made a pretty penny after a haul of old coins which he found in a Suffolk field sold for £90,000 at auction. 

Don Crawley was taking his metal detector  for a spin in Suffolk when he discovered 99 silver coins at the site of a forgotten Saxon church. 

The 50-year-old, from Bucklesham, was visiting a farmer’s field for the first time when he made the discovery in 2017.

Auctioneers Dix Noonan Webb said the unnamed landowner did not want to reveal further details of the location of the find.

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1,400-Year-Old Skeletons Reveal Location of Anglo-Saxon Enlightenment

Detailed isotope analysis was done on the Bamburgh skeletons. 

(Bamburgh bones / Facebook)

110 Anglo-Saxon skeletons dating to 1,400 years ago have been found under dunes in Bamburgh, England.

Dating to about the 7th-century or Early Middle Ages, the team of researchers say the skeletons belong to people of “high social standing” within the royal court. The hoard of human remains was originally discovered between 1998 and 2007 at the ‘Bowl Hole’ cemetery site which is thought to have been the burial ground for the medieval royal court of the Northumbrian palace, now located beneath dunes just south of Bamburgh Castle , in Northumberland, England.

Over the past two decades scientists from England’s Durham University have been studying the remains of 110 Anglo-Saxons buried near the famous Northumberland castle. According to a report in The Daily Mail while the greater part of Britain was experiencing the Dark Ages , travelers from all across Europe visited Bamburgh and it had its own “local enlightenment”, according to the team of university researchers.

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It Cleans Up Nicely: Scottish Viking Hoard Reveals New Secrets

Around the time the Irish were stamping out the Viking presence in their country, local lore says the Scots and Vikings also fought a battle near Galloway, Scotland. In 2014, a metal detectorist took that legend, swept the area, and discovered a hoard of more than 100 “strange and wonderful objects” that are at least 1,000 years old. Now those Viking hoard relics have been cleaned up and experts say “the richest collection of rare and unique Viking-age objects ever found in Britain or Ireland” is providing new and valuable information.

Extensive Conservation work on the Viking Hoard
Dr. Martin Goldberg, principal curator of archaeology and history at the National Museum of Scotland in Edinburgh, told The Scotsman that conservation work has “completely transformed” the appearance of some of the artifacts. It is also providing researchers with “a better understanding now of the international range of hoard.” He says:

“There were always clues about the origins of some of the material and the amazing trajectories that brought them across Europe and Asia to be buried in Galloway. But we are learning more about the specifics about where things have come from and how old various things might be and for how long the hoard may have been accumulated for. We’re sticking to AD 900 for the burial but some objects are looking like they are several centuries older.”

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Remarkable remains of Anglo Saxon woman and jewels found in grounds of Canterbury Christ Church University

The skeleton of the Anglo Saxon woman (21999128)

The remarkable remains of a young Anglo-Saxon woman, buried with lavish jewels and a knife, have been discovered on a university campus in Canterbury.

They were unearthed by archaeologists working in the grounds of Christ Church University at the site of its new £65 million STEM building, which is due to open in September next year.

The woman, believed to have been in her twenties, was found buried with a silver, garnet-inlaid, Kentish disc brooch.

She was also wearing a necklace of amber and glass beads, a belt fastened with a copper alloy buckle, a copper alloy bracelet and was equipped with an iron knife.

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Viking treasure thieves who stole hoard worth £12m with metal detectors are jailed

Metal detectorists George Powell and Layton Davies have been jailed at Worcester Crown Court for stealing a Viking treasure hoard, worth up to £12 million.

The pair failed to declare the "invaluable" and "emblematic" collection of buried coins and jewellery, which date back 1,100 years.

Powell, 38, who was described as having the "leading" role, was jailed for 10 years while Davies, 51, a former caretaker, received eight-and-a-half years behind bars.


The items, many of which were Anglo Saxon but are typical of a Viking burial hoard, were dug up on Herefordshire farmland on June 2, 2015.

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Metal detectorists convicted of trying to sell £3m Viking treasure hoard on black market

A pair of metal detectorists have been convicted of stealing a hoard of Viking coins and jewellery potentially worth £3m – much of which is still missing.

George Powell and Layton Davies covered up their once-in-a-lifetime discovery of a collection dating to King Alfred the Great’s reign 1,100 years ago, and planned to sell it off in small batches.

Prosecutors said the items, many of which were Anglo Saxon but were typical of a Viking burial hoard, were dug up at Eye Court Farm near Leominster, Herefordshire, on 2 June, 2015.

Contained in the hoard was a ninth century gold ring, a dragon’s head bracelet, a silver ingot, a crystal rock pendant dating to the fifth century and up to 300 coins. Only 31 coins have been tracked down.

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