Overview

The village of Exning in the most westerly part of Suffolk is a small settlement appended to the north-west of the larger town of Newmarket. Despite its modern inferiority to Newmarket, it is understood to have been an important location in the Anglo-Saxon period. Statements in the Liber Eliensis or 'Book of Ely' suggest that St Æthelthryth, or Etheldreda, the daughter of King Anna of East Anglia, who would become Abbess of Ely, was born here. This volume describes the archaeological excavation of the site and the 7th century Anglo-Saxon cemetery that was recorded here. Grave goods present with several of the burials in the cemetery were indicative of high status. Of further note is the similarity of the richest grave at this site with a grave recorded at a cemetery on the Isle of Ely which is considered to have had links with the religious community there.

Full Product Details

Author:   Andrew A. S. Newton
Publisher:   BAR Publishing
Imprint:   BAR Publishing
Weight:   0.829kg
ISBN:  

9781407356921

ISBN 10:   1407356925
Pages:   208
Publication Date:   28 May 2020
Audience:   Professional and scholarly ,  Professional & Vocational
Format:   Paperback
Publisher's Status:   Active
Availability:   Available To Order  
We have confirmation that this item is in stock with the supplier. It will be ordered in for you and dispatched immediately.

Table of Contents

List of Figures List of Plates List of Graphs List of Tables List of Contributors 1. Introduction 2. A note on terminology 3. The Results of the Excavation Introduction Phase 1. Possible Prehistoric features Phase 2. Romano-British Phase 3. Anglo-Saxon 4. Dating and cemetery chronology Results 5. The Burials Skeleton 1; Grave 1 F2037 Skeleton 2; Grave 2 F2035 Skeleton 3; Grave 3 F2039 Skeleton 4; Grave 4 F2041 Skeleton 5; Grave 5 F2055 Skeleton 6; Grave 6 F2053 Skeleton 7; Grave 7 F2059 Skeleton 8; Grave 8 F2061 Skeletons 9a & 9b; Grave 9 F2063 Skeleton 10; Grave 10 F2069 Skeleton 11; Grave 11 F2073 Skeleton 12; Grave 12 F2075 Skeleton 13; Grave 13 F2077 Skeleton 14; Grave 14 F2079 Skeleton 15; Grave 15 F2081 Skeleton 16; Grave 16 F2083 Skeleton 17; Grave 17 F2085 Skeleton 18; Grave 18 F2089 Skeleton 19; Grave 19 F2087 Skeleton 20; Grave 20 F2091 6. Cemetery layout 7. Grave orientation 8. Grave structures and morphology Construction and dimensions of graves Coffins and other grave furniture 9. Burial position 10. The Cemetery population Methodology for Human Skeletal Remains analysis Demography Life expectancy Metrical and morphological analysis Stature Cranial indices Non-metric traits Dental analysis Pathology Congenital and developmental anomalies Arthropathies and degenerative disease Trauma and stress indicators Deficiency disease Infections Neoplasm Miscellaneous lesions Stable Isotope Analysis Introduction Materials and methods Results Section 1. Population diet Migration Section 2: Individual bone collagen and dentine collage profiles Lifestyle 11. The Grave Goods Catherine Hills, Ian Riddler, Sam Lucy, Penelope Walton Rogers Weapons Spearhead Seax Organic remains of the seax handle and sheath (Penelope Walton Rogers) Horse harness fittings Pendant Copper alloy gilded disc Gold and silver jewellery Cabochon Pendants Gold and silver beads Copper alloy and silver dress fasteners and jewellery Copper alloy safety pin brooch (Catherine Hills) Copper alloy bracelet (Catherine Hills) Copper alloy buckle (Catherine Hills) Iron buckles (Sam Lucy) Silver rings (Catherine Hills) Glass beads (Catherine Hills) Amulet (Ian Riddler) Glass vessels Piece of blue glass (Catherine Hills) Palm cup (Catherine Hills) Two fragments of pale blue translucent glass (Catherine Hills) Glass fragment (Catherine Hills) Weaving and textile equipment Iron woolcomb spikes (Penelope Walton Rogers and Margrethe Felter) Pin-beaters (Ian Riddler) Other grave-goods The Knives (Ian Riddler) Organic remains with the knives (Penelope Walton Rogers) Knife handles Knife sheaths Spatulate Implement (Ian Riddler) Comb (Ian Riddler) Bell (Sam Lucy) Gaming Pieces (Ian Riddler) Costume and textiles Penelope Walton Rogers 12. Pottery from the graves Peter Thompson 13. Faunal Remains from the graves Julia E. M. Cussans Animal bone Shell 14. Wealth, status and roles in society 15. Religion, beliefs and symbolism Grave-goods and religious symbolism Further meaning and symbolism of grave-goods Beliefs, symbolism and the history of the site 16. Anglo-Saxon burial evidence in the surrounding area 17. Exning, Ely, and Æthelthryth Bibliography Appendix 1. Catalogue of Human Skeletal Remains Notes Articulated skeletons Sk. 1: Male, c.25-30 years Sk. 2: Child, c.8-10 years Sk. 3: Child, c.6-7 years Sk. 4: Female, young-middle-aged (c.25-35) Sk. 5: Child, c.2 years Sk. 7: ?Female, young-middle-aged (c.25-35) Sk. 8: Child, c.10-12 years Sk. 9A: Female, middle-aged or older (>35 years) Sk. 9B: Female, young-middle-aged (c.25-35) Sk. 10: Female, middle-aged (c.35-45) Sk. 11: Female, middle-aged (c.35-45) Sk. 12: Child, c.10-11 years Sk. 13: Child, c.7 years Sk. 14: Male, middle-aged or older (>35 years) Sk. 15: Male, c.25-30 years Sk. 16: Male, young-middle-aged (c.25-35) Sk. 17: Male c.16-17 years Sk. 18: Male, c.17-18 years Sk. 19: Child, c.15 years Sk. 20: Male, c.18-20 years Skeleton Diagrams Measurements Non-metric traits

Reviews

{\rtf1\fbidis\ansi\ansicpg1252\deff0\deflang2057{\fonttbl{\f0\fswiss\fprq2\fcharset0 Calibri;}{\f1\fnil\fcharset0 Verdana;}} \viewkind4\uc1\pard\ltrpar\f0\fs22\lquote The evidence presented in this book is new and of great value to early medieval scholars, burial archaeologists, and those working at the intersection of early medieval history and archaeology. It makes a substantial contribution to our knowledge of burial practices in this period and in this area of England.\rquote Dr Ruth Nugent, University of Liverpool\par \f1\fs17\par }

{\rtf1\fbidis\ansi\ansicpg1252\deff0\deflang2057{\fonttbl{\f0\fswiss\fprq2\fcharset0 Calibri;}{\f1\fnil\fcharset0 Verdana;}} \viewkind4\uc1\pard\ltrpar\lang1033\f0\fs22\lquote This is a good example of a report well done, packed full of useful information, discussion and the data underpinning it. The quality of the illustrations is excellent and there is an unusually high number of colour photographs throughout, including some high magnification images of the organic remains.\rquote Matt Bunker, Wulfheodenas, August 2020\lang2057\par \par \lquote The evidence presented in this book is new and of great value to early medieval scholars, burial archaeologists, and those working at the intersection of early medieval history and archaeology. It makes a substantial contribution to our knowledge of burial practices in this period and in this area of England.\rquote Dr Ruth Nugent, University of Liverpool\par \f1\fs17\par }

Author Information

Andrew A. S. Newton studied archaeology at the University of Bradford , carrying out an MPhil on the relationship between politics and archaeology at the same institution. He has worked for Archaeological Solutions since 2005, contributing to numerous post-excavation projects in East Anglia and the south-east of England. List of contributors: Steve Allen, Sue Anderson, J. Beaumont, Nicholas J. Cooper, Julia E. M. Cussans, Margrethe Felter, Kathren Henry, Catherine Hills, Sam Lucy, Andrew Peachey, Ian Riddler, Peter Thompson, John Summers, Penelope Walton Rogers.

Tab Content 6

Author Website:  

Countries Available

All regions