Welcome to the Sutton Hoo Room



Burial site of a 7th century Anglo-Saxon king, found near Woodbridge, in Suffolk. (Campbell 32).

Sutton Hoo is an estate near Woodbridge, Suffolk, England, that is the site of an early grave of an Anglo-Saxon king. According to Encyclopedia Britannica, "The burial, one of the richest Germanic burials found in Europe, contained a ship fully equipped for the afterlife (but with no body) and threw light on the wealth and contacts of early Anglo-Saxon kings; its discovery, in 1939, was unusual because ship burial was rare in England" (Brtannica).

In the burial site there were 41 items of solid gold, now held in the British Museum. The ship also contained 37 coins, three unstruck coin blanks, and two small ingots, all of gold. According to the Voyage to the Other World, "The gold coins and jewelry, the silver utensils, preserved in the sand, of an exceptionally large ship, as well as other valuable items, were intended to accompany a powerful individual on his final journey" (Schoenfeld 15). The Sutton Hoo ship further displays both master craftsmanship and major technical innovations such as a fixed steering position and shorter and narrower planks for more flexibility.

Sutton Hoo played an important role in the recording of Beowulf. According to the Voyage to the other World, "Beowulf and Sutton Hoo are related in the rather simple way, that the description of Heorot in Beowulfmay fit some early Anglo-Saxon buildings for which evidence still survives elsewhere in England" (Creed 67).



Here are some pictures of the priceless objects fund in the Sutton Hoo burial ship



Iron Hement

Shield mount

Anglo-Saxon Necklace

Anglo-Saxon ring

Boar Crest

Reconstructed helmet



Here are some sites of interest

  • Internet Resoucres for the Anglo-Saxon World
  • Ango-Saxon England
  • Sutton Hoo Games
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