News & Events - Headlines
19/01/2012
Memorial for Mike Weaver
A memorial will be held for Society member Mike Weaver at Woodbridge School, Saturday 3rd March. read article...
15/01/2012
2012 Basil Brown Lecture
The 2012 Basil Brown Lecture will be held on Saturday 12th May at the Riverside Theatre in Woodbridge. This year's speaker is Dr Gareth Williams from the British Museum. read article...
26/10/2011
Sutton Hoo Society AGM
The Sutton Hoo Society AGM will take place Friday 24th February 2012 read article...
18/10/2011
International Day Conference 11th September 2011
The Sutton Hoo Society was pleased to host an international panel to discuss Sutton Hoo: a Swedish Perspective. Sunday 11th September 2011 read article...
04/08/2011
In The Steps of St Augustine
A day excursion to the World Heritage Site of Canterbury, October 1st, 2011 read article...
19/02/2011
2011 Basil Brown Lecture
The Anglo-Saxons and their gods. New thoughts on paganism in England and Scandinavia by Professor Martin Carver. 11.00 Saturday 7th May 2011 read article...
01/01/2011
Sutton Hoo Society AGM
The Annual General Meeting of the Sutton Hoo Society, 25th February 2011 read article...
24/09/2010
Society member publishes 'Raedwald' sequel
Society member Pauline Moore has published the sequel to last year's 'Storm Frost' read article...
07/08/2010
BBC digging for stories
BBC2 programme Digging For Britain is looking for stories and discoveries from current excavations. read article...
30/05/2010
Sutton Hoo Society publications
Last few Society publications available at discounted rate read article...
22/05/2010
Society Summer Outing to Wychurst
Society members to visit Wychurst Manor, Kent 12th June read article...
13/04/2010
The Staffordshire Hoard
Dr Leahy to talk to The Society read article...
11/03/2010
New Light in Dark Places one day conference
Recent Discoveries & New Directions in Anglo-Saxon Studies read article...
11/02/2010
Sutton Hoo Society Spring Lecture
SHS Spring Lecture, Wednesday 21 April read article...
02/11/2009
The Sutton Hoo Society Stag Pin
The Stag Pin - logo of the Society available to buy. read article...
01/11/2009
A Celebration Lecture
A celebration lecture to mark the 70th anniversary of the discoveries at Sutton Hoo. read article...
08/05/2009
Society Member publishes 'Raedwald' era novel
15/03/2009
Spring Lecture
Spring Lecture, Wenesday 25 March at Tranmer House read article...
15/02/2009
Back Copies of Saxon
12/12/2008
Member's Discount on Tom Williamson's new book
25/10/2008
2008 SOCIETY CONFERENCE REPORT
Arts and Crafts in the Mead Hall The Roots of English Culture - 170 delegates attended the sixth Society Conference at the Seckford Theatre, Woodbridge School on 25th October. read article...
News & Events - Articles
19/01/2012
Memorial for Mike Weaver
A memorial will be held for Society member Mike Weaver at Woodbridge School, Saturday 3rd March.
The next issue of Saxon will include an obituary written by Mark Mitchels about Mike Weaver, who was a founder member of the Sutton Hoo Society.
There will be a 'memorial event' for Mike (arranged by Mike's daughters and Mark Mitchels) in the Sports Dome at Woodbridge School at 5.30pm on Saturday, 3rd March.
Tea will be available from 4.30pm and a creche provided for young children.
The event will conclude by 7.00pm and the Seckford Theatre bar will be open after that.
The event is for all who knew Mike, in the town (he was Mayor), in Woodbridge School where he was Head of History, at the Tide Mill, in the Sutton Hoo Society, etc.
If you require disabled parking, please contact the school: rwoodmansee@woodbridge.suffol.sch.uk
15/01/2012
2012 Basil Brown Lecture
The 2012 Basil Brown Lecture will be held on Saturday 12th May at the Riverside Theatre in Woodbridge. This year's speaker is Dr Gareth Williams from the British Museum.
2012 Basil Brown Lecture
Hosted by
The Sutton Hoo Society
Coins, Hoards and Precious Metals in the Age of Sutton Hoo
By
Dr Gareth Williams
Saturday 12th May 2012, 11am
At
The Riverside Theatre, Woodbridge, Suffolk
The Basil Brown Lecture, hosted by the Sutton Hoo Society, is on the 12th May 2012 at the Riverside Theatre, Woodbridge 10.30am for an 11am start.
Our speaker this year is Dr Gareth Williams, Curator of Early Medieval Coinage in the Department of Coins and Medals in the British Museum.
Gareth has recently written a booklet in a BM series about some of the most important artefacts they possess called 'Treasures from Sutton Hoo'.
Gareth will present his talk to us on the wider aspect of gold, silver, coins and hoards found across Europe and what these finds can tell us about the peoples making high status burials such as those found at Sutton Hoo.
Tickets are priced at £7.00 for members and £8.00 for non-members.
Tickets are available from;
Jonathan Abson
66 Bucklesham Road
Ipswich
Suffolk
IP3 8TP
Please include a stamped, self-addressed envelope, a cheque payable to The Sutton Hoo Society and a note of how many tickets are required.
Tickets are also available at the Riverside Theatre Box Office. Contact them on 01394 382174
26/10/2011
Sutton Hoo Society AGM
The Sutton Hoo Society AGM will take place Friday 24th February 2012
SHS AGM Friday 24th February 2012 at Sutton Hoo Kings River restaurant (National Trust visitor centre), starting at 7.30pm.
Our speaker for the AGM lecture is Mark Michels a local author who was an early member of the SHS and a tour guide. We are asking him to develop a talk from his recent book 'Treasure Hoards of Suffolk'.
18/10/2011
International Day Conference 11th September 2011
The Sutton Hoo Society was pleased to host an international panel to discuss Sutton Hoo: a Swedish Perspective.
Sunday 11th September 2011
- Professor Neil Price, University of Aberdeen
- Dr John Ljungkvist, University of Uppsala
- Professor Anne-Sophie Graslund, University of Uppsala
- Dr Torun Zachrisson, University of Stockholm
- Professor Frands Herschend, University of Uppsala
- Dr Angela Care Evans, formerly curator of Early Anglo-Saxon Metalwork at the British Museum
Tickets priced at £32.50 (£30 for Society members and £27.50 for full time students) includes all refreshments and buffet lunch.
04/08/2011
In The Steps of St Augustine
A day excursion to the World Heritage Site of Canterbury, October 1st, 2011
The Sutton Hoo Society will be travelling to Kent to visit important sites in the history of the Christian conversion of English society.
Highlights are;
- St Martin's Church, founded by Queen Bertha in the 6th Century and the oldest church in the English speaking world
- St Augustine's Palace and Abbey
- Canterbury Cathedral
- Choral Evensong in the Quire
Itinerary
The coach will pick up at Sutton Hoo (7.30 am) or Crown Street, Ipswich (7.50 am). There will be a comfort stop about 21 miles before Canterbury. All three sites are within easy walking distance (c.450 yards). We shall try to cram a great deal into the day, hence the early start and the need to bring your own refreshments.
Cost of £38 includes coach travel, driver's tip, all admissions, donations and fees for talks and tours.
For tickets please send an SAE and cheque made payable to Sutton Hoo Society to;
Robert Allen, 4 Thornley Drive, Ipswich, IP4 3 LR by 16th September
Please remember to include your name and address, cheque and SAE and state how many places you would like to reserve.
19/02/2011
2011 Basil Brown Lecture
The Anglo-Saxons and their gods.
New thoughts on paganism in England and Scandinavia by Professor Martin Carver.
11.00 Saturday 7th May 2011
2011 Basil Brown Lecture
By Professor Martin Carver
At The Riverside Theatre, Woodbridge, Suffolk
11.00 Saturday 7th May 2011
The Anglo-Saxons and their gods. New thoughts on paganism in England and Scandinavia
Were the creators of the Sutton Hoo ship burial pagans or Christians or neither? This complex tableau, its lavishly ornamented objects and its neighbouring rituals, seem to make references to Rome, Britain, France and Scandinavia without showing where their true allegiance lies. Martin Carver takes us on a tour of recent discoveries and fresh interpretations from Anglo-Saxon England and its neighbours, focusing on burial, votive deposits, landscapes and temples to try and find new ways into the Anglo-Saxon mind. What did they believe and how did they express it? The evidence points to a period in which there were many ideas about the other world and the relative freedom to express them. Not paganism, then or even Christianity but schools of thought that used similar vocabulary but varied widely over the North Sea and the Baltic. In this sense the intellectuals who created Sutton Hoo were true originals.
Tickets available from;
Robert Allen
White Gables
Thornley Drive
Ipswich
IP4 3LR
Please make cheques payable to the Sutton Hoo Society and enclose an SAE
Tickets priced at £6.50 for Society members or £7.50 for non-members
01/01/2011
Sutton Hoo Society AGM
The Annual General Meeting of the Sutton Hoo Society, 25th February 2011
The AGM of The Sutton Hoo Society will take place on Friday 25th February at 7.30pm in the Court at Sutton Hoo.
The AGM will be followed by a talk by Chris Fern of Fern Archaeology on Dating Finds from the 2000 Cemetery.
Admission £5.00; members free.
24/09/2010
Society member publishes 'Raedwald' sequel
Society member Pauline Moore has published the sequel to last year's 'Storm Frost'
Last year saw the release of Pauline Moore's Storm Frost. The sequel, Brightfire, is now on sale. Brightfire follows the story of Niartha, the heroinne of Storm Frost, and her son Ricberht.
Their relationship with Raedwald, king of the East Angles, and his son Eorpwald are central to this tale of fighting and feasting, rescue and rape, cruelty and kindness, laughter and grief.
Brightfire is available from www.authorhouse.co.uk as well as Amazon, Waterstones, the National Trust shop at Sutton Hoo and local bookshops.
ISBN 978-1-4520-5609-8
07/08/2010
BBC digging for stories
BBC2 programme Digging For Britain is looking for stories and discoveries from current excavations.
Dear all,
I just wanted to send over an update on BBC2s Digging for Britain !
We are still out and about filming exciting archaeology, and so would be really interested to hear of anything currently going on in the field! Have you made any exciting discoveries this year so far that you think we should know about?
We have finished filming for series 1 of Digging for Britain with Dr. Alice Roberts, and have had a fantastic time filming some really exciting archaeological projects all over the British Isles . From huge commercial digs with Oxford/Wessex down in Kent , to small research digs in the middle of Wales …..
We have covered, to name a few excavations …..
· Ancient humans in Norfolk
· Romans on Hadrian’s wall
· A mystery medieval shipwreck
· Anglo Saxon cemetery in Kent
· Iron Age ritual pit deposits
· Roman Coin hoard discovery
· Shakespeare’s house…..and first theatre
This series will be transmitting in early August on BBC2.
We are constantly looking for new stories and have started to develop and film for series 2, and would be very keen to hear from anyone who is currently working on an excavation this year that has perhaps yielded interesting results, unexpected conclusions or just some fascinating archaeology!
Digging for Britain has already started making the news……video clips below!
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/10546960
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-somerset-10722715
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/7853419/Romans-killed-babies-at-brothel.html
We hope that you will be keen to share your research with us, and contribute to what we believe is an excellent series.
If anyone has something they would like to talk to us about, I can be contacted at the number below
0207 467 1404
Many Thanks,
Gemma & the team at Digging for Britain.
Gemma Hagen | Researcher | Digging For Britain
360 Production | Tel: 0207 4671404 | 12 Great Portland St. | London | W1W 8QN |
30/05/2010
Sutton Hoo Society publications
Last few Society publications available at discounted rate
The Society is to stop trading in publications and what we have left are available at a discounted rate.
Currently available to members are:-
Through the Rear-View Mirror (Markham) 30 copies at 5.00 + 3.00 p&p
Anglo-Saxon Sailing Ships (Gifford) 30 copies at 1.00 + 75p p&p
Gold under the Bed (CD) 15 copies at 5.00 + 2.00 p&p
Once these copies have sold the books will continue to be available at the National Trust shop at Sutton Hoo as remaindered stock at their prices.
We also hold copies of "My Life in Archaeology" by Prof. Charles Phillips at a highly reduced rate.
Please contact Mrs. Pauline Moore on 01394 382617, or at
69, Barton Road, WOODBRIDGE, Suffolk, IP12 1JH
for further details or to order at the reduced rate.
22/05/2010
Society Summer Outing to Wychurst
Society members to visit Wychurst Manor, Kent 12th June
On Saturday 12th June 2010 the Sutton Hoo Society Summer Outing will see members visit Wychurst Manor in Kent. It is here that Regia Anglorum have constructed a fortified manor house (properly a Manorial Burgh) from the late Anglo-Saxon period. The ditch-and-bank surround about one acre, at the heart of which is the Longhall, which dominates the enclosure.
This very impressive building is the only one of this kind in Britain, comparing well with others in Scandinavia.
During the afternoon there will be a raid on the site and during this time our visitors will be penned into a roped enclosure - for our own safety! Hopefully Paul Mortimer (King Raedwald) will be there to protect us!
This promises to be an interesting day out for Society members.
13/04/2010
The Staffordshire Hoard
Dr Leahy to talk to The Society
Society members will be able to hear Dr Kevin Leahy talk about his involvement in the finding and recording of the Staffordshire Hoard.
This should be a fascinating insight into this fantastic and eye-opening discovery.
It will be on Saturday 29th May 2010 at 11 am at The Riverside Theatre, Woodbridge.
Tickets are priced at £6.50 for members and £7.50 for non-members. Contact suttonhoo@ntlworld.com for booking details.
http://www.staffordshirehoard.org.uk/
11/03/2010
New Light in Dark Places one day conference
Recent Discoveries & New Directions in Anglo-Saxon Studies
Saturday 8 May 2010, 9.50am - 6.20pm (registration from 9.15)
Kenneth Clark Lecture Theatre, The Courtauld Institute of Art, Somerset House, Strand, London WC2R 0RN
In recent years significant advances have been made in the field of Anglo-Saxon studies. The discovery in July 2009 of the Staffordshire Hoard, comprising over 1600 objects, is the latest in a series of remarkable finds. Bringing together many of the leading scholars in the field, this one-day conference will provide a lively forum for evaluating the current state of research and exploring future research directions. Focusing initially on the hoard and its wider 7th century context, the topic will be expanded to examine art and architecture throughout the Anglo-Saxon period. The conference will be followed by a reception.
To book a place: £15 (£10 concessions and Courtauld staff and students). Please send a cheque made payable to 'Courtauld Institute of Art' to: Research Forum Events Coordinator, The Courtauld Institute of Art Research Forum, Somerset House, Strand, London WC2R 0RN, stating that you wish to book for the 'New Light in Dark Places' conference. For credit card bookings call 020 7848 2785. For further information send an email to ResearchForumEvents@courtauld.ac.uk
http://www.courtauld.ac.uk/researchforum/events/2010/summer/may8_anglosaxonstudiesconf.shtml
www.courtauld.ac.uk/researchforum/events/2010/summer/may8_anglosaxonstudiesconf.shtml
www.courtauld.ac.uk/researchforum/documents/AngloSaxonposter-prog_2_.pdf
11/02/2010
Sutton Hoo Society Spring Lecture
SHS Spring Lecture, Wednesday 21 April
Wednesday 21 April, 19.30
SHS Spring Lecture
Stephen Sherlock discusses his discovery and subsequent excavation of the Northumbrian royal cemetery at Street House, Loftus, Teesside.
Tranmer House, Sutton Hoo
SHS members £3 non-members £4
Please contact suttonhoo@ntlworld.com for booking details
02/11/2009
The Sutton Hoo Society Stag Pin
The Stag Pin - logo of the Society available to buy.
The Stag Pin - logo of The Sutton Hoo Society now available to buy.
These are silver replicas commisioned from Michael Carpenter of Debenham, Suffolk. The whetstone sceptre from the Mound One ship burial at Sutton Hoo is believed to have been crowned with a red stag deer. This stag is the logo of The Sutton Hoo Society and these replica pins are a unique item of jewellery.
Priced at £21 plus post & packing for members please contact suttonhoo@ntlworld.com for purchasing details. Non-members please contact the same address for pricing details.
01/11/2009
A Celebration Lecture
A celebration lecture to mark the 70th anniversary of the discoveries at Sutton Hoo.
08/05/2009
Society Member publishes 'Raedwald' era novel
Pauline Moore, the Society's publication officer, has had her 'Raedwald' era novel 'Storm Frost' published. The story revolves around the tangled relationship between Raedwald, his brother Eni and the novel's heroine Niartha.
It is published by AuthorHouse and available from them at www.authorhouse.co.uk and also online at Amazon as well as in Waterstones and The National Trust shop. Other bookshops should have it. The ISBN is 9781438959955.
Although a work of fiction the author has made use of ancient manuscripts and sources.
15/03/2009
Spring Lecture
Spring Lecture, Wenesday 25 March at Tranmer House
This years Spring Lecture will be presented by Richard Newman on 25 March at Tranmer House. The talk will begin at 7.30pm and is free to Society members with a charge of £4.00 for non-members. Please contact Mike Argent on 01728 747716 to reserve seating as spaces are limited.
Richard is going to talk about Romans and Saxons on the river Alde.
15/02/2009
Back Copies of Saxon
Back copies of the Society newsletter Saxon are available to buy.
Please email suttonhoo@ntlworld.com for details of copies available and costs and postage details. These contain many varied and interesting articles including conference and Spring lecture write ups.
12/12/2008
Member's Discount on Tom Williamson's new book
Tom Williamson's write up of the research into the Sutton Hoo burial ground and the East Anglian landscape sponsored by the Society is now available with a discount to Society members.
To purchase Tom's book use this link: www.oxbowbooks.com/bookinfo.cfm/id/84166
25/10/2008
2008 SOCIETY CONFERENCE REPORT
Arts and Crafts in the Mead Hall
The Roots of English Culture - 170 delegates attended the sixth Society Conference at the Seckford Theatre, Woodbridge School on 25th October.
SPEAKERS’ RESUMES WILL BE ON THE WEBSITE EARLY 2009
170 delegates attended the sixth Society Conference at the Seckford Theatre, Woodbridge School on 25th October. They were treated to exciting and stimulating lectures from five speakers, all experts in their field, who delivered a broad spectrum on the subject of the Anglo-Saxon Hall. Chairmen Martin Carver (pictured left - Photo: Nigel Macbeth) and Angela Evans steered the day with customary engaging style.
The Society’s first conference in 1998 was held in the old school hall, but it became clear that the seating capacity was not going to be adequate for future events. This all changed when the school’s Seckford Theatre opened in 2006, a modern purpose-built theatre incorporating all the technical facilities required for staged performances and conferences.
It was ideal; comfortable and airy, with foyer, dining room and bar. An adjoining room offered space for book stalls, craft stands etc. where delegates browsed and chatted during coffee and lunch break.
Back row (left to right): Stephen Pollington, Neil Price, Earl of Cranbrook (Society President), Angela Evans, Sam Newton.
Front row: King Raedwald (alias Paul Mortimer), Helen Geake, Jenny Walker. (Photo: Nigel Macbeth)
SPEAKERS
Jenny Walker is a PhD student in her final year at the University of York. Recent research and published work has focused on the function and ideology of the Early Medieval Hall. She is presently completing further research that was presented at the Early Medieval Northumbria Conference held in Newcastle.
Jenny discussed the organisation of space and activities within the Hall with an interpretation of its functional and ideological use. Through the presentation of case studies, she considered the meaning and ideology behind this spatial organization and the architecture and construction of the Anglo-Saxon Hall itself.
Neil Price is currently Chair of Archaeology at the University of Aberdeen, having previously held the post of Reader in Archaeology at the University of Uppsala (Sweden). He has written extensively on the Viking Age and has conducted research projects in France, Iceland, Russia and Lapland.
Neil examined how in the Iron Age Scandinavian world, from which the early English took inspiration, the Hall was not only the seat of power and status, but also a highly ritualised space. He moved on to review the archaeological and textual evidence for this, including discussions of sacrifice and ritual dining, offering ceremonies to gods and supernatural beings, and the cultic overtones of hospitality. The concept of funerary halls was also considered, extending their metaphors into the afterlife.
Sam Newton is a freelance lecturer and tutor in Wuffing and Early Medieval Studies, running courses in and around East Anglia. In 2002 he co-founded Wuffing Education which runs study days at Sutton Hoo. He regularly contributes to radio and television, including Channel 4’s Time Team. Sam explored what Old English verse reveals about the significance of the Mead-Hall in Anglo-Saxon culture. He explained current experimental work in Old English music and ended his talk in dramatic fashion with an extract from Beowulf, accompanied on his own replica Sutton Hoo lyre.
Helen Geake is currently Finds Adviser (post-Roman artefacts) for the Portable Antiquities Scheme. She has become a familiar face on Channel 4’s Time Team where she appears regularly. Helen discussed how early Anglo-Saxons used costume to signal gender, age, status and ‘ethnic’ origin. She focused on the public arena of feasting in the Mead Hall, when women in particular may have been highly visible. She went on to explain that costume reconstructions have hitherto come from archaeological evidence of dead people in graves – how different, then, was the everyday dress of the living?
Stephen Pollington has long been involved in the promotion of Old English studies and is the author of several books on the subject. As well as a successful lecturer, he has appeared on radio and television and acted as a consultant for both.Stephen demonstrated how the Mead Hall was one of the central institutions of Anglo-Saxon society, acting as a platform for religious, judicial and social activities. He argued that the most important function of the hall was the part it played in the imagination.
Below: Pictures from the conference.
