Ancient Monuments Laboratory
Report 9/96
THE ANGLO-SAXON CEMETERY AT
SNAPE, SUFFOLK: SCIENTIFIC
ANALYSES OF THE ARTEFACTS AND
OTHER MATERIALS
H M Appleyard
E Cameron
A Cselik
E Crowfoot
M G Edwards
VFell
RM 0 Gale
S Hardman
R Hedges
K Van Klinken
M Robinson
P Walton Rogers
MWard
K Wardley
J Watson
Compiled by V Fell
AML reports are interim reports which make available the results of specialist
investigations in advance of full publication. They are not subject to external
refereeing and their conclusions may sometimes have to be modified in the light of
archaeological information that was not available at the time of the investigation.
Readers are therefore asked to consult the author before citing the report in any
publication and to consult the final excavation report when available.
Opinions expressed in AML reports are those of the author and are not necessarily
those of the Historic Buildings and Monuments Commission for England.
Ancient Monuments Laboratory Report 9/96
THE ANGLO-SAXON CEMETERY AT SNAPE,
SUFFOLK: SCIENTIFIC ANALYSES OF THE
ARTEFACTS AND OTHER MATERIALS
H M Appleyard
E Cameron
A Cselik
E Crowfoot
M G Edwards
V Fell
R M 0 Gale
S Hardman
R Hedges
E Van Klinken
M Robinson
P Walton Rogers
MWard
K Wardley
J Watson
Compiled by V Fell
Summary
Sixteen papers examine a variety of materials, the majority of which are organic
and are associated with artefacts. Chapters are: The conservation programme
(Vanessa Fell, Esther Cameron and Karen Wardley); Remarkable preservation
(Esther Cameron and Vanessa Fell, with Robert Hedges and Kurt van Klinken);
Textile analysis using FT-IR microscopy (Susan Hardman); Textiles (Elizabeth
Crowfoot); Fibre identifications (H.M.Appleyard); Tests for dye in textile
samples (Penelope Walton Rogers); Mineral preserved organic material associated
with the metalwork (Jacqui Watson); Charcoal identifications (Rowena Gale);
Knife sheaths and sword scabbard (Esther Cameron); Identification of leather
(Glynis Edwards and Vanessa Fell); Identification of hairs (Anna Cselik);
Feathers (Esther Cameron); Plant and insect remains preserved by metal corrosion
products (Mark Robinson); X-ray diffraction analysis (Malcolm Ward); X-ray
fluorescence analysis (Vanessa Fell).
Authors' addresses :-
H M Appleyard
14 Greenacres
Shelf
Halifax
W YORKS
HX37QT
E Cameron
INSTITUTE OF ARCHAEOLOGY (OXFORD)
University of Oxford
36 Beaumont Street
Oxford
OXON
OXl 2PG
© Historic Buildings and Monuments Commission for England
Ancient Monuments Laboratory Report 9/96
Ms A Cselik
ENGLISH HERITAGE
23 Savile Row
London
WlX lAB
Miss E Crowfoot
Riverview
Big Row
Geldeston Beccles
SUFF
NR34 OLB
Ms M G Edwards
ENGLISH HERITAGE
23 Savile Row
London
WlX lAB
Ms V Fell
INSTITUTE OF ARCHAEOLOGY (OXFORD)
University of Oxford
36 Beaumont Street
Oxford
OXON
OX12PG
R M 0 Gale
Folly Cottage
Chute Cadley
Andover
RANTS
SPll 9EB
S Hardman
UNIVERSITY OF WALES
PO Box 912
Cardiff
CF13TB
© Historic Buildings and Monuments Commission for England
Ancient Monuments Laboratory Report 9/96
Dr R Hedges
THE RESEARCH LABORATORY FOR ARCHAEOLOGY
University of Oxford
6 Keble Road
Oxford
OXON
OX13QJ
Mr K Van Klinken
THE RESEARCH LABORATORY FOR ARCHAEOLOGY
University of Oxford
6 Keble Road
Oxford
OXON
OXl 3QJ
Dr M Robinson
THE OXFORD UNIVERSITY MUSEUM
University of Oxford
Parks Road
Oxford
OXON
OX13PW
P Walton Rogers
Textile Research Associates
12 Bootham Terrace
York
NYORKS
Y037DH
MrMWard
ENGLISH HERITAGE
23 Savile Row
London
WlX lAB
© Historic Buildings and Monuments Commission for England
Ancient Monuments Laboratory Report 9/96
Ms K Wardley
MUSEUM OF ARCHAEOLOGY (SOUTHAMPTON)
Tower House
Town Quay
Southampton
RANTS
Ms J Watson
ENGLISH HERITAGE
23 Savile Row
London
WlX lAB
© Historic Buildings and Monuments Commission for England
ANCIENT MONUMENTS LABORATORY REPORTS SERIES
The Anglo-Saxon cemetery at Snape, Suffolk:
scientific analyses of the artifacts and other materials
Contents
page
I
1 Introduction
Vanessa Fell
2 The conservation programme
Vanessa Fell, Esther Cameron
and Karen Wardley
3
Esther Cameron and Vanessa
Fell, with Robert Hedges
and Kurt van Klinken
7
Susan Hardman
16
5 Textiles
Elisabeth Crowfoot
19
6 Fibre identifications
H.M. Appleyard
36
7 Tests for dye in textile samples
Penelope Walton Rogers
39
Jacqui Watson
45
9 Charcoal identifications
Rowena Gale
62
10
Knife sheaths and sword scabbard
Esther Cameron
77
11
Identification of leather
Glynis Edwards and
Vanessa Fell
85
12 Identification of hairs
Anna Cselik
86
13
Esther Cameron
87
14 Plant and insect remains preserved
by metal corrosion products
Mark Robinson
88
15 X -ray diffraction analysis
Malcolm Ward
90
16 X -ray fluorescence analysis
Vanessa Fell
93
3 Remarkable preservation
4
Textile analysis using FT-IR
microscopy
8 Mineral preserved organic material
associated with the metalwork
17
Feathers
Concordance lists of grave numbers
95
ANCIENT MONUMENTS LABORATORY REPORTS SERIES
1. Introduction
Vanessa Fell
The existance of an Anglo-Saxon cemetery at Snape (TM 402593) was known
at least as early as 1826. In 1862, a robbed ship burial of mid-sixth century
date was excavated together with some forty pagan cremation urns. In 1970,
several other burials were located during trenching. Following a resistivity
survey in1982-5, the site was excavated in part (1985-1992) under the
direction of William Filmer-Sankey for Snape Historical Trust, with the
principal aims of establishing the size and character of the cemetery and to
propose a management strategy for the Scheduled Area.
Very little artifactual material survives from the early discoveries and
the 1862 excavation. Conservation and analysis of finds from the 1985-92
excavations began in 1985 and continued as the finds became available for
examination, with those from the 1991-2 excavations being submitted to more
rigorous assessment of research potential according to the requirements of
Management of Archaeological Projects, 2 (English Heritage 1991). In
February 1993, a revised assessment report and updated project design for the
final publication programme was accepted by English Heritage (Filmer-Sankey
et al 1993).
This AML Report collates many of the individual results from the
various scientific analyses of the artifactual and related materials from the
1985-92 excavations. The analyses have concentrated on the organic materials
since these had survived extensively whereas metallic artifacts are severely
corroded. Some of the analyses were started in 1985 as on-going programmes
(eg textiles). Additional analyses and specialists became involved in the later
stages of the post-excavation and investigative conservation programmes, when
the potential of analysis became clear (eg plant and insect remains).
In general, the various contributions which form this AML Report are
the texts as submitted for inclusion (in part or whole) in the site publication
report. Some of the contributions will be subsumed within the site publication
catalogue and therefore this AML Report will enable easier access to data
relevant to individual specialisms.
The grave numbers used in this report are those which were designated
during excavation and analysis, and employed in the archive. The site
publication will employ a different sequence of grave numbers; these are shown
in the concordance lists (Chapter 17). Individual items are usually identified
by grave number/small find number, or sometimes by OP, if, or SF. These
minor inconsistencies between the individual contributions have been retained
since they do not substantially affect the reader's understanding of the text.
1
References
English Heritage, 1991
Management of Archaeological Projects 2, London
Snape Anglo-Saxon
cemetery (SNP 007): Combined assessment report and updated project
design, unpublished report, Snape Historical Trust.
Filmer-Sankey, W, Fell, V, and Pestell, T, 1993
2
ANCIENT MONUMENTS LABORATORY REPORTS SERIES
2. The conservation programme
Vanessa Fell, Esther Cameron and Karen Wardley
Aims
The artifact conservation programme was guided by the academic objectives of
the overall project and focussed on aspects of early medieval technology,
principally of organic materials owing to their extensive survival. The primary
aims were:
• Investigative conservation and scientific analysis to facilitate description,
interpretation, and illustration of individual fmds and their components for
cataloguing and specialist purposes.
• To analyse the construction of individual artifacts and their components
made of organic materials.
• To analyse the use of organic materials within graves in relation to burial
rite.
Of the finds which had been excavated prior to 1972, a few had survived and
were available for re-analysis. Those from excavations since 1985 were
examined according to standard investigative conservation methods (outlined
below). Additional analyses were necessary to fulfil the aims stated above.
Condition of the artifacts
The artifact assemblage is unusual in the range and quantity of organic
materials which have survived. The condition of these are described later
(Chapter 3), where possible reasons for their survival are also discussed.
The metal artifacts are severely corroded as may be expected in
extremely acid deposits. Objects of iron are fragile and totally mineralised, in
some cases to partially hollow forms. Conversely, some copper alloy artifacts
are only superficially corroded and retain metallic cores. However, those of
small cross-section, such as sheet metal items, are in general totally corroded,
sometimes to the extent that severe decuprification has occurred (0087/0251,
0329/0954, 1800/2078, 1878/2087' 2063/2344, 2171/2097' 2183/2325 &
2327). Characteristically, the latter have translucent smooth surfaces which are
coloured white to beige or grey and sometimes tinged with pale green. They
comprise powdery corrosion products and are so fragile that they collapse when
3
supporting soil is removed (eg Fig 2: 1). Analysis by X-ray fluorescence of six
artifacts with this appearance indicated in each a strong presence of tin, with
some copper and traces of lead. X-ray diffraction analysis of samples from
three of the artifacts (0087/0251, 2063/2344, 2183/2327) confrrmed the
principal component in each to be stannic oxide (cassiterite, Sn02). Those
analysed would therefore originally have been bronzes from which copper had
been leached during burial in the extreme acid conditions (Justine Bayley, pers
comm). This degree of corrosion, though rare, has been recognised in artifacts
from similarly acid environments (eg Campbell et al1975, 35-7, 70-1, pis IXXI; Bruce-Mitford 1978, 111, 113, 230, 308-9; 1983, 314.).
There are a few copper alloy artifacts with silver platings and also the
cremated remains of silver artifacts which have survived in the metallic
condition with slight surface corrosion.
Beads- in amber, glass, and stone- were generally recovered intact
and appeared stable and have remained so except for some of the amber beads
which have crizzled and fractured since initial examination.
Methods of examination and analysis
In order to minimize damage to artifacts, single items and groups were
removed from site encapsulated within soil blocks, with orientation markers
incorporated. These were x-rayed to assist identitication, assessment, and
location of the artifacts within the blocks. The artifacts were excavated from
the soil blocks using hand tools, such as tine brushes, with the aid of a
binocular microscope.
Standard techniques were employed during investigative conservation of
artifacts under the principle of minimum intervention. The integrity of
complex individual items and groups was retained where possible, since this
was deemed to be essential to their interpretation. For example, remains of
organic containers and grave wrappings, sometimes present as multiple layers
on metal artifacts, were usually left in situ. Examination methods included:
• Optical microscopy (XlO - X80) of artifacts and of deposits such as soil
stains, for the examination of surface detail and for the detection and
identification of organic materials including associated macroflora and fauna
remains.
• Scanning electron microscopy to identifY certain organic materials.
• X-radiography to clarifY technological detail such as pattern-welding in the
sword (Grave 1800), weld lines in the knife blades (eg Fig 2:2), and the extent
of knife sheaths and handles. Tomography of a central section of the sword
blade to view the pattern-welded structure. Stereo-radiography of the lyre
fragments (Grave 2183) to examine construction.
• X-ray fluorescence analysis of metalwork to determine metal species where
these were uncertain, including non-ferrous metal platings, plus other materials.
4
• X-ray diffraction analysis of corrosion products from decuprified copper
alloys, plus a probable meerschaum bead (Grave 0842).
References
Campbell, H S, Tylecote, R F, Biek, L, and Hedges, REM, 1975 Scientific
examination of dagger and slag fragments, in H Miles, Barrows on the
St Austell Granite, Cornwall, Cornish Archaeology 14, 5-81
Bruce-Mitford, R, 1978
The Sutton Hoo Ship-Burial, 2, London
Bruce-Mitford, R, 1983
The Sutton Hoo Ship-Burial, 3, London
Acknowledgements
We would like to thank Jacqui Watson (English Heritage) for wood species and
antler identifications, and for inspired interpretations of some of the more
complex items, Justine Bayley (English Heritage) for advice on non-ferrous
alloys and other materials, Malcolm Ward (English Heritage) for X-ray
diffraction analyses, and Wendy Hills (John Radcliffe Infirmary, Oxford) for
tomography.
5
Fig 2:1 Grave 1800, buckle loop and
back-plate (2078) : bronze decuprified
by acid burial environment.
Scale: loop length, 17mm.
Fig 2 :2 Grave 0330. X-radiograph of
knife and sheath, showing weld-line
in knife blade, plus the handle/blade
junction (arrowed)
6
ANCIENT MONUMENTS LABORATORY REPORTS SERIES
3. Remarkable preservation
Esther Cameron and Vanessa Fell
with contributions by
Susan Hardman, Robert Hedges and Kurt van Klinken
Little skeletal material survives from inhumations at Snape where shapes of
bodies are preserved as darkly-stained cohesive lumps of sand, similar to those
at the nearby site of Sutton Hoo (Bethell and Carver, 1987; Bethell and Smith,
1989). Yet inspite of this apparent dearth of organic survival, samples of
bone, hom, leather, textile, and wood recovered in the course of excavation
have been made the subject of a study (here described) on account of their
remarkable preservation.
Organic materials endure burial only under conditions which prevent
biological activity. This occurs through waterlogging, charring, mineralisation
and by contact with biocidal agents such as metals, in particular copper (Biek
1963, 125).
At Snape, preservation of organic materials in the vicinity of metal
artifacts is common, but there are several occurrences where they have
survived without apparent contact with biocidal agents, or through any of the
other conditions mentioned above. Most notable are two horns from Grave
0328 (Fig 3:1) and a spread of textile from Grave 2170 (Fig 3:2). Further
textile examples are from Graves 0338, 0420, 0421, 0841, 2063, as well as the
bundle of red hair and textile found during the excavation of the ship burial in
1862 (Bruce-Mitford 1974, 117), although it is now lost.
In order to look for evidence which might help to explain why these
materials had survived and to investigate aspects of their physical and chemical
change during burial, samples were analysed in various ways:
• The physical condition of four samples each of bone, hom, leather, animal
fibre, and wood was examined by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The
microscope (Cambridge Sl50, Department of Plant Sciences, Oxford) was
operated by the authors at magnifications ranging from X50 to XlOOO.
• Chemical composition in respect of stable isotope and carbon/nitrogen (C/N)
ratios of sample duplicates was determined on four each of hom, leather,
animal fibre, and wood in order to assess the degree of organic survival. Five
control soil samples were also analysed. Results of this work, by the Research
Laboratory for Archaeology and History of Art, University of Oxford, are
available in the site archive.
• Fibre analysis of samples from fifteen textiles were investigated by Fourier
7
transform infrared (FT-IR) microscopy for identification of fibres and for
degree of deterioration. A report of the analyses, by Susan Hardman (Dept of
Chemistry, University of Wales, Cardiff), forms Chapter 4 of this report.
Summary of results
Bone and antler
The exceptional survival of the horse skull (1800/1831) is difficult to explain.
Bone and antler did not normally survive except for fragments which had been
partially burnt or were associated with metal artifacts. The morphology of
compact bone (Fig 3 :3) and cancellous bone (Fig 3 :4) appears undegraded.
Although bone weight recovered from individual cremations is low, reasons
other than soil dissolution are proposed for this such as plough damage and
incomplete retrieval from the pyre (Steele and Mays 1993).
Horn
Two hom tips from within the prow of the logboat in Grave 0328 and
apparently not associated with metal artifacts are so well preserved that they
resemble relatively fresh specimens (Figs 3:5, 3:6 and 3:7). A slightly porous
appearance and the presence of hyphae strands indicate a degree of fungal
activity. This might even be of recent occurrence, perhaps caused by the
alteration of soil pH (Filmer-Sankey pers. comm.). By contrast, an o~ject of
hom from the other boat burial (180011951) did not survive and left only a
crumbly, black trace 20 x 30mm, while another drinking horn or cup from
Grave 0330 is only preserved in proximity to its copper alloy rim. All hom
handles from knives appear to be mineralised and C/N ratios of two of them
did not indicate any significant degree of organic survival.
Leather
Leather survives only where it has been in contact with metal artifacts. Grain
patterns are sometimes preserved on leather sheaths and pouches surrounding
iron artifacts (Fig 3 :9). Occasional details of construction such as a seam edge
of a knife sheath survives. Finer details however, such as collagen bundles
characteristic of the internal structure of leather, are almost entirely absent (Fig
3: 8). The C/N ratios of leather preserved near to iron confrrm substantial
mineralisation whereas one sample associated with a copper alloy buckle
(Grave 0087) was appreciably organic.
Animal hairs
Fine hairs protruding from mineralised leathers are flexible and scale patterns
on their outer surfaces are intact (Figs 3: 10 and 3: 11).
Spreads of woollen textile which appeared matted and soft on site became
brittle on drying, but weave pattern and lengths of spun yarn are still preserved
(Fig 3: 12). Examination of their fibre surfaces shows that erosion of the
cuticle cells has exposed the hair cortex (Fig 3: 13). Despite this condition,
FT-IR analysis confirms a high state of organic preservation (Chapter 4, this
report).
8
Wood
Wood survives in the charred condition and in immediate or close proximity to
metalwork. The appearance of wood found near to copper alloy suggests a
degree of organic survival, for example the remains of the lyre (Fig 3:14) and
of the vessel from Grave 2183. Wood found in association with iron is more
friable and degraded, and is preserved through partial mineral replacement
(Figs 3:15 and 3:16). C/N ratios suggest some survival of the organic content
in samples associated with either of the metal types. Evidence for ancient
fungal activity within samples of wood microstructure (Fig 3: 16) is minimal yet
each wood sample shows depletion of hemicellulose (Dr. B. Juniper, pers.
comm.), possibly by the acid environment.
Discussion
The well-drained glacial deposits of sand at Snape have a pH of 4.5 which until
the recent past supported heathland Filmer-Sankey, 1990). It should not be
assumed that this was always so; soil conditions at Snape hold several features
in common with Sutton Hoo where the acid brown earth in which the ship was
bmied is thought to have been under cereal cultivation in the early AngloSaxon period (Bruce-Mitford 1975, 48-77). A thin iron pan which had
developed at Snape is now disturbed by the burrowing of rabbits and by the
recent work of the plough and subsoiler.
With the exclusion of charring - as well as the notable horse head
remains mentioned earlier, and some bone fragments from Grave 0547bone, antler, leather and wood have not survived except where they have been
in contact with or close proximity to copper or iron artifacts. Physical
appearance as well as C/N ratios suggest that the biocidal effects of copper
have been more effective in preservation, though less extensive than
mineralisation by iron salts. On the evidence of soil stains and incomplete
objects, the disappearance of organic materials from elsewhere on site might
suggest a broad variety in the microbial population. Wood-destroying fungi are
known to prefer a low pH whereas bacteria utilising collagen in leather, bone
and antler favour a more neutral range.
The notable class of materials to survive is the keratinous group which
includes hom, woollen textiles and animal hairs. These do not normally
survive burial. Acid has little effect on the protein keratin, but some fungi and
bacteria living in a neutral pH range can hydrolyse it. The survival of this
particular group of materials would at first suggest that the pH of the soil
remained consistently low during most of the period of burial. This
explanation would seem adequate if materials made wholly or largely from
keratin had survived equally, but this is clearly not the case. The horn tips
from Grave 0328 were buried as complete drinking horns, two other objects of
horn (already described) have survived as traces only, while the knife handles
and sword hilt of horn were not in their original state, but mineralised by iron
compounds. From Sutton Hoo, Mound 1, two auroch horn tips were also well
preserved (Bruce-Mitford 1983, flgs 234 and 251), although this might have
been due to their encasement by the decorative metal terminals of the drinking
9
horns. More comparisons are needed (eg Taplow and Broomfield) but the
remarkable survival of horn tips in particular suggest to us that structural
differences between the sheath part and the tip of a horn may render the latter
more resistant to biodeterioration and dissolution.
Animal hair has survived well, including isolated hairs on the surfaces
of leather knife sheaths, and occuring in quantity as spreads of woollen textile.
The interesting contrast between the two - survival of cuticle cells on the
former and their loss from the latter - are further evidence of biological
differentiation. Reasons for this might be due either to a localised pattern of
colonisation among soil microbes away from accumulations of iron corrosion
products in leather knife sheaths, or to a focussing upon textiles as a source of
nutrition. The two sorts of hair (animal pelt and woven yarn) might have been
prepared in different ways which rendered the textiles more prone to
biodeterioration. Similar survival of hair cuticles on finds from the Sutton Hoo
ship burial include otter and beaver pelt-hair, identified partly from scale
patterns on the fibre surfaces (Bruce-Mitford 1983, 723 and fig 652).
However, a scientific description of the condition of woollen textiles from the
ship is still to be published.
Feathers, thought to have filled a pillow in the Sutton Hoo ship burial,
were so well preserved that they were described as a 'white flock-like material'
(Bruce-Mitford 1983, 888). Traces only of mineralised feathers in Grave 1800
at Snape, as well as the absence of hair from the horse skull, and of human
hair from any of the graves, add weight to the argument that, despite the
extreme acidity of the soil, keratinous materials were subject to biodeterioration
and that the survival of the horn tips and woollen textiles cannot at this stage
be adequately explained.
It is evident that more comparative material and a great deal more
scientific analysis will be needed if further study of burial conditions at Snape
and similar sites is to progress. Moreover, if we wish to heighten the
sensitivity with which we reconstruct and interpret fmds then our understanding
of soil processes and agents of decay needs to be more highly developed.
References
Bethell, PH, and Smith, J U, 1989 Trace-element Analysis of an Inhumation
from Sutton Hoo, Using Inductively Coupled Plasma Emission
Spectrometry: An Evaluation of the Technique Applied to Analysis of
Organic Residues, J Archaeol Sci 16, 47-55
Bethell, PH, and Carver, M 0 H, 1987 Detection and enhancement of
decayed inhumations at Sutton Hoo, in A Boddington, A N Garland and
R C Janaway (eds) Death, decay and reconstmction, 10-21, Manchester
Biek, L, 1963
Archaeology and the Microscope, London
Bruce-Mitford, R, 1974 Aspects of Anglo-Saxon Archaeology, London
10
Bruce-Mitford, R, 1975
The Sutton Hoo Ship Burial, 1, London
Bruce-Mitford, R, 1983
The Sutton Hoo Ship Burial, 3, London
Filmer-Sankey, W, 1990 Thirty Tons of Lime later: a note on the effects of
fertilizers on the Anglo-Saxon cemetery, unpublished report in the site
archive.
Steele, J, and Mays, SA, 1993 Cremated Anglo-Saxon human bone from
Snape, Suffolk (excavated 1862-3, 1972, 1985-92), unpublished Ancient
Monuments Laboratory Report 102/93, London (English Heritage)
11
Fig 3:1 Horn tip from the prow of a boat, Grave 0328
Fig 3:2 Part of the textile from Grave 2170
12
Fig 3:3 Fragment of human jaw bone found
near copper alloy brooch, Grave 0842
Fig 3:4 Fragment of horse skull, Grave
1800
Fig 3:5 Sample of modem bovine horn
Fig 3:6 Hom tip, Grave 0328
Fig 3:8 Traces of mineralised collagen bundles
from a leather sheath on a knife, Grave 2170
Figs 3:3-3:8 Scanning electron micrgraphs
13
Fig 3:9 Grain pattem on a mineralised deer skin pouch, Grave 2183. (Scale 1:1)
Fig 3: 10 Hair protruding from a mineralised
bovid skin sheath of a knife, Grave 2170.
Fig 3:11 Scale pattern on a hair shaft from
a mineralised bovid skin she.1th of a knife,
Grave 2170. Scanning electron 1nicrograph
Scanning electron micrograph
14
Fig 3: 12 Woollen textile from the base of
Grave 2170. Scanning electron micrograph
Fig 3:13 Individual fibres from the woollen textile
from Grave 2170, showing loss of outer cuticle
layer. Scanning electron 1nicrograph
Fig 3:14 Fragment of lyre from Grave 2183; wood with copper alloy studs.
Left, shown at about life size, Right, X-radiograph
Fig 3: 15 Partly mineralised wood from
a spcarhaft, Grave 1800. Longitudinal
radial section. Scanning electron
1nicrograph
Fig 3:16 Partly mineralised wood from a
spearhaft, Grave 1800. Transverse section.
Fungal hyphae occupy vessel cavities top
right. Scanning electron Jnicrograph.
15
ANCIENT MONUMENTS LABORATORY REPORTS SERIES
4. Textile analysis using FT-IR microscopy
Susan Hardman
Fibre samples were analysed to investigate the extent of deterioration.
Sample No.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
Grave
O~ject
UWCC No.
2064
2064
2064
2063
0420
1800
1878
2170
2170
0071
0071
1878
1878
0241
0327
2212
2212
2212
2343
1282
1914
2088
2337
2337
0751
0753
1943
1943
0851
0816/7/8
96
97
98
99
100
101
102
103
104
105
106
107
108
109
110
Samples were analysed using Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) microscopy.
This technique allows the IR beam to be focussed on an area as small as 1Ortm
x 10rtm which easily permits a single fibre to be analysed with minimal sample
preparation. Fibre samples were selected for analysis using an optical
microscope at x30 magnification. To prevent diffraction of the IR beam, the
sample was gently flattened with a small roller before being transferred to a
sodium chloride disc on the FT-IR microscope sample stage. Once focussed,
the area for analysis was selected by means of shutters both above and below
the sample plane. The infrared beam was then transmitted through the sample
and onto the detector. Any absorptions by molecules in the sample are
recorded on the plotted spectrum as a decrease in the % transmittance.
The samples from Snape appeared visually well preserved which was
confirmed by the IR spectra. All samples were clearly identified as protein
fibres by the presence of amide bonds at 1660-1650 cm·1 and 1550-1540 cm· 1 .
Indeed all spectra matched closely that of untreated wool [Figs 4:1 and 4:2].
No dyes were detected.
16
Protein fibres such as wool contain disulphide bonds. These occur both
inter and intra molecularly through the wool fibre. In an alkaline environment
these bonds are easily hydrolyzed, however in an acidic environment, they are
more resistant to attack. The acidic environment at Snape reflects this as the
spectra indicate only a small amount of disulphide oxidation. This is observed
at 1040 cm· 1 due to the formation of cysteic acid (-S03·) [Fig 4:3].
Ql
u
c
..,10
.., 0
.,..ID
E
OJ
c
Ill
c..
1- 0
~'1
0
(\J
4000
31500
3000
2000
Wavenumber
Fig 4:1
Wool fibre reference
17
(cm-1)
1500
1000
0
aJ
Ill
()
c
Ill 0
"'ID
"'
....
E
<II
c
IDO
'- 'f
f-
<'!
0
C\J
4000
3600
2600
3000
Wavenumber
Fig 4:2
2000
:1.500
1000
(cm-1)
Fibre from copper alloy brooch with iron pin (Sample 14)
1040
01
enIll
()
co
11lal
1
"'...."'
E
<II
0
c r-l1l
'-
f-
<'!0
ID
0
10
2
.1100.
1200
1000
Wavenumber
Fig 4:3
900
(cm-1)
Wool reference (1) and Sample 14 (2)
18
800
ANCIENT MONUMENTS LABORATORY REPORTS SERIES
5. Textiles
Elisabeth Crowfoot
The places chosen for Anglo-Saxon burial grounds are usually higher positions,
with light dry soil. But though the acidity at Snape has resulted in
deterioration of bones, and the human skeletons are in most cases only
represented by soil shadows, preservation of other organic remains in the
inhumation bmials was exceptionally good by English standards, and this
applies particularly to wood and textile. As in all pre-Christian Anglo-Saxon
cemeteries the Germanic funeral customs have continued; the dead were
obviously interred fully clothed, and textile evidence is preserved by corrosion
on metal grave-goods with which these less durable possessions came in contact
- scraps from clothing or wrappings, on brooches, buckles, wrist-clasps,
knives and weapons. Much of this material is mineralised, surviving as
'replacements' in which the characteristics of spin and weave can still be
clearly identified, but at Snape this evidence also includes a high proportion of
samples in which some of the fibres have escaped mineralisation. The
fragments preserved however are small; none of the burials was immensely
rich, and there was no pile-up of large metal objects under which layers of
valued fabrics could survive, as at Sutton Hoo, under the silver dishes
(Crowfoot 1983, 412).
Apart from the remains of the important boat-burials, an unusual
quantity of wood has also survived, or been noted as soil shadows in situ.
These wood fittings - coffms, biers, and even planks - throw an interesting
new light on burial practices, and they also are sometimes associated with
textile. In Grave 1878 the excavators described an 'intensively organic stain'
with a clearly defmed edge, which they interpret as a chamber, lined with
textile, and samples taken from this area included rather coarse woollen
threads; these, and lumps of crushed textile, some similar, some with
noticeably finer threads from areas overlying the buckle and knife, suggested
that, as no wood survived, the clothed body, covered with a layer of woollen
twill, had lain on a blanket or cloak, large enough to touch the sides of the
grave cavity, when it was lapped over the entire contents of the grave
(187811921 and 1878/1922).
The excavators were fully aware of the interest in evidence obtainable
from textile remains; in 1989 they were able to consolidate an important area
of the contents of Grave 0420 in a block (1296), so that study of the brooches
and surrounding organic matter might be undertaken later under laboratory
conditions. In 1992 textile layers in Graves 2063 and 2170 were examined
during excavation on site. The suggestion of fibres in a noticeably blackened
area in the centre of Grave 2063 perhaps indicated that some garment or object
placed on top of the body was of leather, while on and around the upper
19
surface of the grave-goods there was again enough evidence of a coarse
woollen twill fabric to indicate an all-over covering or wrapping. This practice
was even clearer in Grave 2170, where remains of at least two different heavy
wool weaves, one decorated with stripes could be identified. There was no
suggestion in the placing of these fabrics that they could have been more
intimately connected with any wooden furniture, unlike the results found during
recent study of bed burials from Swallowcliffe and Barrington (Malim,
forthcoming). Evidence of textile overlying Anglo-Saxon burials has been
previously noted, for example at Little Eriswell, Lakenheath, Suffolk,
(Hutchinson 1966, 12) where grave 33 is noted as having 'heavy fabrics over
the entire body', but in view of urgent war-time excavation before erection of
buildings by the USAAF nothing from this layer was preserved for
archaeologists to examine.
Fibres (see H M Appleyard, Chapter 6, this report)
With one exception (Grave 0842) all fibres identified in the textiles were of
animal origin, most of sheep's wool with medium or fine fibres; in some cases
these were well enough preserved to show whether pigment was present
(0071/0696, 0338/0690 and 1434/1537); in one twill weave (1434/1537) yams
with pigmented and unpigmented fibres were used to form a striped pattern.
Animal fibres used for pattemwork on tablet-woven braids were probably
horsehair, again naturally pigmented, two colours, chestnut and black, being
still visible on the wristclasp in Grave 0071 (0667 +0699). The one vegetable
fibre preserved, in fme shiny white threads in a tabby weave (Grave
0842/1224) was identified as well-preserved undyed hemp. A tiny fragment of
plait from the same grave, possibly a bead string, appears to be of similar
origin.
Dyes (see Penelope Walton Rogers, Chapter 7, this report)
The preservation of dyes was perhaps disappointing, particularly as rather
larger samples were available for testing than can usually be detached, and
colour sometimes seemed to be visible, notably in the striped covering in Grave
2170, where to the eye the ground weave was blackish, and the stripes
distinctly redder, but no dye was detected. There was little sign of the range
of reds, blues and purples occasionally found from other Anglo-Saxon sites and
identified in Viking material at York, - a few traces in tablet-woven braids
and tapes (Graves 0420 and 0842) and one twill (Grave 0071). As mentioned
above, natural pigmentation was preserved in some wool, and still clearly
visible in the striped twill (Grave 0242), but it seems probable that some
garments and coverings were indeed white, or the light tan of natural fleeces.
It is also possible that the pollution of an area of the graveyard with a purple
colorant (discussed by Walton Rogers, Chapter 7) may be responsible for
masking the presence of some weak or fugitive dyes. The sample of hemp, as
in that recently found at Harford Farm, Norfolk, (Appleyard in Penn,
20
forthcoming) was strikingly white and shiny.
Spinning and weaves
Most of the textile types are those general in sixth century Anglo-Saxon
weaving, but two show clear connections with earlier continental practices. As
usual, with people recently come from northern areas, twill weaves, whose
stmcture gives a warm double layer of threads, are noticeably predominant.
There are remains from over forty examples, compared with only fourteen
tabby (plain) weaves, and eight tablet weaves, including two weave-borders,
and six bands, i.e. ornamental pieces made separately, to be sewn to decorate
garments. As in Scandinavian fabrics of the earlier Migration Period, the high
number of those with Z-spun yam in warp and weft is noticeable - at least
twenty-eight of the twills, all the tabby weaves and the tablet-bands, with one
possible exception (2170/2337).
Twill weaves
A high proportion of the twills are medium to coarse grade but this is perhaps
due to the survival here of outer coverings, which in most cemeteries may have
disappeared long before excavation. Of the simple 2/2 (four-shed)
constructions, only one, the coarsest preserved, originally used to wrap a
wooden bowl in Grave 0242, has any decoration, the narrow stripes of
unpigmented single ?warps on a naturally pigmented dark brown wool fabric
mentioned above, a type of weave familiar from other sites, fragments from
two graves at Mucking (Hirst, forthcoming, graves 767 and 878), Sewerby,
Yorkshire (Crowfoot and Appleyard in Hirst 1985, 52, 55) and a very wellpreserved weave from Broomfield Barrow (Crowfoot 1983, 468-471).
Fourteen of the twills have the 'mixed spinning' (Z-spun yam in one weave
system, S-spun in the other) often associated in other cemeteries with fabrics of
superior quality. Two of the fmer twills here have evidence of broken
diamond or herringbone structures, though the whole pattern cannot be
recovered, but none have the heavy warp-thread count preponderance, or the
shiny appearance which suggests that they were made of high-grade worsted
wool, so noticeable in the fme broken diamond twills from the rather later very
rich banow burials, Sutton Hoo, and Broomfield Barrow (Crowfoot 1983, 418424, 468).
Ribbed twill
The coarse striped wool cloak or blanket covering the man's burial in Grave
2170 connects the Snape settlers with travels further afield. This is an example
of the Rippenkoper, a twill weave with reversed ribs, of which many examples
were published by the late Professor H-J Hundt from numerous Alamarmisch
sites in Germany (Hundt 1966; 1967; 1972; 1976; 1978; 1980; 1982; 1984, fig
21
6 distribution map, 141-143) but this is the first example of the structure so far
recorded from an English burial. Hundt's examples were all based on a 211
twill, but the weave here, based on a 3/1 construction, works on the same
principle, and seems likely to have a similar origin. Dr J P Wild has pointed
out that the 2/1 Rippenkoper appears first in a Roman context at Mons
Claudianus, and its presence in the Snape burial perhaps suggests service in the
military Roman world.
Tabby weaves
The tabby weaves are all tiny fragments, two perhaps from tapes; one of these,
from Grave 0842, of wool, showed the fine Z-spun warp and coarsed S-spun
wefts characteristic of narrow bands, though no selvedges are preserved; all the
others are Z-spun throughout. The appearance of the fibre of a possible tabby
scrap from Grave 0071 suggested fme hair, but was too deteriorated to be
sampled. Fragments preserved under two brooches, one in close folds, with
tight spin and thread count 16/14-16 (Grave 0327), the other a finer scrap with
two paired throws suggesting a stripe (Grave 0241), could have come from the
women's veils, and were probably of flax, though these must have been soft
even weaves, of very different quality from the unevenly spun and woven flax
of the remains of cloth wrapping a bronze cremation bowl in the earlier Snape
excavations (Crowfoot 1976, 53-54). The hemp tabby (Grave 0842) curling
round a brooch, again suggests a headveil, tucked under the pin to keep it in
place; the good preservation here allowed a positive identification.
Tablet-weaves
Tablet-woven borders on twill cloaks or blankets, like that on the twill covering
a woman's burial in Grave 0420 made simultaneously with the fabric, are a
feature from the Roman Iron Age onwards (Nockert 1991, 82-83; Hald 1950,
63ft). This border is narrow, only six cords, and perhaps comes from the side
edge of a weave. Tablet-woven bands, of which fragments survive, as here, in
the metal wrist-clasps from women's burials, were made separately and sewn as
cuffs on the long sleeves of their garments. Other well-preserved Anglo-Saxon
examples, from Mildenhall and Mitchells Hill, Icklingham (G M Crowfoot
1951, 26-28; 1952, 189-191) were solid undecorated bands, but the fragments
from Graves 0071 and 0327 from Snape have sufficient remains of fine
horsehair pattern to indicate that they were woven in an elaborate technique
that has been described by Margareta Nockert as 'a complete innovation of the
Migration Period' (Nockert 1991, 83). In her study of the magnificent textiles
of that period from Hiigom in Sweden, Dr Nockert suggests that the origin of
these braids should perhaps be looked for in the Near East or Mediterranean
region (ibid, 88-89). Bands like those from Snape come under her
classification of 'Warp-twined bands with patterns in different kinds of weftwrapping and a tapestry-like technique' (op cit, 83). As far as can been seen,
the Snape bands from the Grave 0071 wristclasps had edge borders with tablets
22
threaded alternately in pairs at both sides; the stationary tablet warps of the
centre pattern section are clear where they have lost much of their horsehair
decoration, but remains of two of the different kinds of pattern wefts described
by Dr Nockert can still be identified:
'A pattern section always begins and ends with one or more lines
of weft wrapping, which run from edge to edge. The pattern
weft can, for example, pass over all threads from two tablets,
back under the threads from one tablet, under one and so on.
This kind of weft wrapping is synonymous with soumak .... ' (op
cit, 85)
(Remains of this soumak wrapping can be seen on the band fragment from
wristclasp 0071/0737)
'The contours of the pattern are done in weft-wrapping. The
weft passes several times round all threads from one or two
tablets. In this way vertical slits can be formed in the weave
between the differently coloured fields, just as in tapestry weave
or kelim.' (op cit, 85).
This pattern was clear when 0071/0667+0699 was first examined and drawn,
with slanting lines of wraps in alternate wrapping in black and chestnut
horsehair, though some of the delicate hairs disintegrated before photography.
The tiny scraps from Grave 0327 show remains of both types of pattern wefts.
An even smaller fragment, recently excavated, in a wristclasp at Barrington,
shows traces similar to the soumak wrapping (Crowfoot in Malim,
forthcoming). Dr Nockert points out that the pattern wefts cover the entire
warp, and there is no active main weft in the pattern sections, so that the
patterns are not, as sometimes previously described, brocaded (Nockert 1991,
83).
Many of the pieces from Scandinavian sites, particularly those from the
Hogom Warrior's Grave published by Dr Nockert, are in magnificent
condition, wide bands with colours preserved, showing dramatic animals and
human praying figures. The slightly later date of the Snape fragments
compared with these examples of the Migration Period perhaps suggests that
they should be regarded as old pieces, treasured and re-used by the elder ladies
of the family, as so often happens with beautiful fragments in medieval
ecclesiastical material.
One interesting feature of the Grave 0071 bands is a very neatly made
'guilloche' plait, surviving on the fragments from both clasps. On 0071/0737
it is preserved for 16 mm, fastened to the edge of the tablet cuff; on
0071/0667+0699 a fragment hangs loose from the corner, suggesting that it
continued down to decorate the sleeve opening, like the ornamental stitching on
a sleeve from Hogom (Nockert 1991, 76-78). A similar plait was used to
decorate the edges of bands of the I Oth century among the relics of St Cuthbert
at Durham; it can be simply made with two 2-hole tablets (G M Crowfoot
1956, 447, fig 13.6).
Much of the published work on Anglo-Saxon textiles comes from the
23
Anglian region; of southern and western cemeteries, though studied and
catalogued, many remain unpublished; but the available comparative northern
material has been recently very much expanded by the work of Penelope
Walton Rogers, on Humberside, further north at Carlisle, and on the very large
collection from West Heslerton, Yorkshire (Walton Rogers, forthcoming).
Two of these sites have produced fragments of tablet-woven bands with
remains of similar patterning to the Snape bands - at West Heslerton again in
horsehair, at Norton-on-Tees possibly in silk.
Costume
As usual in Anglo-Saxon cemeteries, the costume evidence at Snape depends on
the arrangement of the grave-goods, and the interpretation of the fragments of
textile that they may have preserved. The best-provided of the women's graves
(Graves 0071, 0327 and 0420) follow the usual Anglian pattern (Owen-Crocker
1986, 28ft) - an under-garment with long sleeves, their cuffs decorated with
tablet-woven bands, and fastened with wrist-clasps, worn with an overgown,
either tubular or of the 'peplos' pattern, fastened on the shoulders with a pair
of brooches; a necklace of beads; a belt, with a buckle; but none have the array
of 'girdle hangers' worn by later colonists, only the essential knife. Seven
women had pairs of shoulder brooches, the others pins, or a brooch and a pin,
to fasten their overgowns; only three had wristclasps, and two a third central
brooch, which may have held up the loose front of the gown, as there was no
sign of cloak material in it.
The fabric of these garments at Snape is always twill, for both under
and overgown; there is very little variation in quality; as far as can be seen
from the small fragments surviving in the brooches and wrist-clasps, both
garments were of very similar weights, where best preserved well-spun even
weaves. The only lightweight fabrics, the tabby fragments probably of flax
and hemp, are always found associated with brooches, and their position
suggests that they come from the headveil rather than any undergarment such
as a shirt. Evidence from later sites suggests that the overgown could be of
linen tabby (Walton Rogers, West Heslerton, forthcoming) a lighter garment
falling into the soft folds shown in MS paintings and sculptures (Owen-Crocker
1986, figs 25-31), but at Snape there is no evidence of anything but solid
woollen garments, like coarse tweeds.
The evidence on men's clothing is always more difficult to fmd; the
settlers were not wealthy, their men wore no jewellery, and textile remains
come only from belt buckles and fittings, and their knives. Weapons may
sometimes have lain in contact with their clothing, but in most cases fabric
traces suggest that they were wrapped when buried with their owners; the
sword and spears in the boat Grave 1800 show folds of coarse twill and
threads, some possibly from ties, including one fine tabby tape. It can be
assumed that like the Scandinavians of the Migration Period graves they wore
tunics and trousers, and were covered by their cloaks; the fragments left on
buckles and knives often show two twill weaves of slightly different quality.
But there is no way of knowing if their garments were carefully cut and sewn,
with shaped sleeves and skirt gores (Nockert 1991, 125-130), or loom-shaped,
24
like the earlier Germanic bog-finds, woven in four pieces, rectangular front and
back, with tablet-woven borders at neck and hem, and the sleeve pieces
tapering to the wrists (Owen-Crocker 1986, 70-71). The large areas of textile
over Graves 2063 and 2170 suggest cloaks or blankets - the originally
handsome ribbed twill probably the former - but unfortunately no borders
survived, nor any brooches or pins for fastening.
The fragments of wood and metal in Grave 2183 identified as parts of a
lyre show patches of coarse woollen textile, probably twill; some even coarser
threads curling round the stud pins at first suggested a selvedge or starting
border, but their position might indicate this could be a fragment of the wriststrap, fastened by the pins. No fabric was found in this position at Bergh
Apton (Lawson 1978, 92-95) or with the very small wood remains at Morning
Thorpe; but perhaps the other traces of textile indicate that here at Snape the
lyre was buried in a bag, as suggested for that found at Sutton Hoo, though
there the evidence indicated one probably of beaver-skin (Bmce-Mitford 1975,
451-452).
References
Appleyard, H M, 1983 Fibre examinations of textile specimens, in Hirst 1985,
54-55
Bmce-Mitford, R, 1975
The Sutton Hoo Ship Burial, l, London
Crowfoot, E, 1976 Appendix A: Textile, inS E West and E Owles, AngloSaxon Cremation Burials from Snape, Proc Suffolk Inst Arch, 33, 53-54
Crowfoot, E, 1983 The Textiles, in The Sutton Hoo Ship Burial, 3 (ed R
Bruce-Mitford), 409-79, London
Crowfoot, E, 1985
The Textiles, in Hirst 1985, 48-54
Crowfoot, G M, 1951 Textiles of the Saxon Period in the Museum of
Archaeology and Ethnology, Proc Camb Ant Soc, 44, 26-32
Crowfoot, G M, 1952
Anglo Saxon Tablet-weaving, Antiq J, 32, 189-191
Crowfoot, G M, 1956 The Braids, in The Relics of Saint Cuthben at Durham
(ed C F Battiscombe), 433-463
Hald, M, 1950 Olddanske Tekstiler (Kopenhavn). English edn, 1980, Ancient
Danish Textiles from Bogs and Burials.
Hundt, H -J, 1984 Die Textilreste aus den Reihengraberfeld von
Niedemburg, Aschajfener Jahrbuch, 8, 123-144. (1966, Marktoberdorf;
1967, Neiderstotzingen; 1972, Donzdorf; 1976, Munningen; 1978,
Giengen; 1980, Sievem; 1982, Herbolzheim.)
25
Hirst, S M, 1985 An Anglo-Saxon Inhumation Cemetery at Sewerby East
Yorkshire, York Univ Archaeol Pubs 4, York
Hutchinson, P, 1966 The Anglo-Saxon Cemetery at Little Eriswell, Suffolk,
Proc Camb Ant Soc, 59, 1-32
Lawson, G, 1978 The lyre from grave 22, in B Green and A Rogerson, The
Anglo-Saxon Cemetery at Bergh Apton, Norfolk, East Anglian
Archaeol, 7, 87-97
Nockert, M, 1991 The Hogom Find aud other Migration Period Textiles and
Costumes in Scandinavia, Archaeol and Environment, 9, Hogom, Pt II
(University of Umea)
Owen-Crocker, G R, 1986 Dress in Anglo-Saxon England, Manchester.
26
Grave Se. OP
2
F 0940
1254
.9
(0841)
1261
Object
Ae link?
Teeth
Detaehcd
262 Chain, ?beads
Position of Object
round metal
traces and fragments
jammed rotmd
loose (a)
under half, area
(<J)
S~in
Dye
Z
Wco.tvc
Thread Count Comment
1Ox8
unidcut.
ll.d d
z.s
/j?lv Thrc;Hb
Nl)l t:lt:iil
13x9
Wnol
·:rpigmcJil /'iS
2/2 '!Will
!Ox!O
other side (b)
Fibre
]\:lin.
patches
12C7 Annular brooch underneath (b)
1268 Annt1!ar brooch above (a)
1272 Cu alloy ring
Measurement
.
l'f
~~~~~-
!'vlin.
DeL
traces
.
ISxlO
Del.
9x8
t-.Tin.
wiclth 25mm
?\Vnnl
I OliO
··-
'/
n.d.d
fine
Nl)l dc:u
·--- -----
-~ ~tz--1121\~iE~==· t-E!_I'l_li _o_ _
n.d.d
spin
_!l!!t:
-
~~kmQL_
dark brown
liS
2/21\vill
est. 6/) 5tntll
z;z
2/2 Twill
c.I0/12&
twist
cvcu spin, fine
()/7 l)Jl )1\lr\1
thread and strip
15/12
l4x9.
2 layas, reddish
IODSC
--;;;s-2r2 1\viiT
JLd.d
lom~c
··--~
·-
aud dark br~)W/1
c.l)xlO
nearer ling (b)
'?\V011]
under ring (c)
N
..._,
.
_pi:;.1.!!E!l ~.
1274 Knife
width 5.5
sheath Ji·agwcnr (d 1
otuer SLOt
Ux.12
( •. .!llllllll
l.cathcr
f\liu.
M
0777 Spearhead
patch, ferrule
20x9
----- ·------- -- -- ·······
~.•nc
·---·
,. l.?i_l \
/,Sply
'211 '!\vi! I
Tllrc·,u!
z;z
212 '}\viii
d{6-7
-------- -------
t'vli n.
----
flS
7'1
·--
.
3
--·
~-----···
!'v!i II
"'li'iltl
7/') nn 5nun
-·-·--
n_d dun
?W1wl
from (a) over rill£_
patches
212 'J\vit!
'II/
IULd
e~posed
traces w1md,
lc;Jlhl.'r, thrc;Lds
<~pl'kam~·c llax
damaged, lhn:ad
thread
dialll c. I tllrll
C'u alloy buckle lHHkrneath (a)
f-"Ox38
pm, next to metal (b) . J2ill
?\V\Hl]
'!\Vo;1!
Ll.d.d
!i~(f{f-·
G, K, N scmps ?(al
J
0960 Fe
1001
(0328)
5
("')
.
?~;I~;Jt;;-:~------
miil~ing:
095~
(0071)
liner.
!inc !1brcs, not
hair.
\(H.));C
(0329)
4
!(H}SC ~pi 11,
F
bu~·klc
Fe stud, WO(ld
?hox
a!! over
in~idc
ring
·~:r/
~,12
'\\v-iii
___212 ·twm--..
~
-~: -~ ~!.! ~~;:.:*I 1·1-1{12.1·1
~-~':.·~~~-~1~~:_ ____
spill,
w·;ve
C\'Cl!
·0x9
Top and edge
)696 Annular brooch 'll)p of brooch (a l
1.. shoulder
l.ludcr(a)'t{b)
·
/i/
13xl0, JOxU
27xl2
l'vlin
1/S
l\·liu
l/-
\Vt)ll]
\Von!
ludq.!nltn
n.d d
/'/
y;;
?.!'2 Twill
very fine,
dama••ed
damaged textile
underne:111l,
k,llhcr
?.i'2 'J\v ill
'2/2 'J\J.·ill
T!lbular selvedge
-------
~·-~---
-
! O(l 0. I 0/~-')
I 0/S
11-12 warps
3 folds round
'?iltll'l:Jct raised
damaged
~
e:..
0
(fCl
~
C1>
0
.....
(t
~
-"'-·
C1>
I
Grave Se. OP
5
(cont.)
Object
Position of Ohjed
0751 Annular brooch Undcr(a)
ILshouldcr
llmJcr(bl
07371 Wrist dasp
0699\ Wrist clasp
Mcasurcrncnl
Fihrc
Dye
~e.!!!._ Weave
55x35
15:<.10
\VDo[
n.d.d
\Vnnl
?'l;runin~
li'l
'/!'!
I
08451 Knife
6
1\1 10779/ Knife
E'!0!i.0.'.:£f..P!.!.!_ __
~12'J'will
lilldsliJHkrpin
12/(,~8
Cnnls S: edge
lraguH.:nts c< gc
·gnillo"Chc plait
14x45
Sewn, S ply (c)
Wool
pigmcutcdll/Z ply ITahlcl hr;rid
Hair
pigmcrucd
l2i2 '!\viii
Iarea above ?(a)
38x35
W''"l
adhering (d)
3:0
Ilair or Sil
detached (a) or (b)
Ux5
/'diu.
cud blade, ne<lr hill
!Oxl3, 5x5
lv1i n
u d.d
j!lZ
_bn '1\vill
I!Z
(0258)
8
?
10990{ Texlik
J6x15
lump
jwith '!leather
"1\vil!
Tllrca<ls
"1'1\vill
liZ
tvlin.
~
llndcr:~idc,
!"-"inc
F
18xl0
108481 Annu!arbrooeh Front, overbone(a)
andunderpin
10x6
Under, protruding (b)
L. 9mm
0/! 0 lm 7mm
~<~']\\'ill
/IZ
Wnol
2?2 ']\viii
1----1
Semi-min.
'Through beads(c)
I
L.l9nun
Z, Sp!y \..J.-whipcnnl
I
.
along ring; detached ?(a) 30x15, 12xll
101~
Lt1ose weave
!-----·---•--------
- j- - - - -tZ. Sply ---;~-I
1--+-----t------+-----l----+----l
08491 Knife
I
Ll)ose spine,
---1---------Lt:vcn \>.!~:___ .
4
(0241)
Fastened In (a)
I
Ihv thread
(il
--t·
Li!.
?"!\viii
11--~
/{/
'2/l '!\viii
I
under(a)(d)
.
l26x24, 45xl3
W1wl
n.d.d
j 5 x 6 l ' d i'n .
jLIZ
j
Tabby
I 0/8
I ,tll)SC tv/1s1:
1-------L]all same weave
718-9 on Smm
~?2 double lines,
fstripc"?
(0242)
'!
0661 Wood bowl
847 Scraps fi·om
0661
On cu rim
loose
nn metal and wood
Jump from rim
20xl8
c.23x20
141).<40
!\lin
1
;,\V,lnl
l
I
dd
II
•J!J(!lll~ JJlcd '! /1/
I?Sinn)!.
l 2/?. 'I\~· il!
--
Dcgr;Jdcd
'-I JU~~~~~~~~t=~:=p=·~-I I I
I
-~- ~I
I
tN.
~0851{ Annular brooch(above, and under pin (a)
9
~
lcalhl'r
7·
I
e.
J1h:.24 in 3mm _pwarp bundles
(0243)
N
00
~
f(1 sleeve
fragmcJllary
_L~-9/:S
!llnsptm ~ ?'llr bby
II
i
a,
Scw11, umkrsidc
\Cords65mm
pallcrn, \\'rapped
II/
\\htlf
I
075Jj Buckle, waist
Thread C·o=1ml Com!.!!..£!!.!
Detached (c)
(:J)oi;(b)
I
.
1/2 '[\viii--------··- !f.l!!C~-- ----·-
__
Traces
Loose 1\vist,
.Jlld lllljll;,:,
striped ligl1t and
rnenlcd
dark lilfcads
g
~
Grave Se. OP Object
Position of Object !Measurement
18;.:5
10
F 0810 Knili.: and ring On both sid~:s (a)
(0327)
3lxl3, 22xl0
(h)
Fibre
Min.
Dye
'J'hrcad Count Comment
212 '/Will
IIIII I
Li\OSC spin &
weave
2"12 '1\vili-- c. I IIIII
No rcv~:n;cs
/I "I
Min.
D
~
\\'cave
Spi 11
/IS
'~
•g,
-·
~
~
l
0811 Wrist clasp
Llndersidc(c)
16x3.5
~
Decayed.
Z!Z S ply Tablel w.:avc
Min.
:-iewing, hole,
0812 Wrist clasp
lhmt (c)
12x25
Wnol
~-
n.d.d
··z,~z s ply JlJbJcJ WC;IV~
4 lw!t:
I fair
Wrapped p;tllcrn
S lliV thread
I (1/!6
Cords, 12-13S,
lZ, IS, paucrn
(Son 5mmJ
as on 0699, gr.
'
SUi~.~·)
0816 Cruciform
brooch (large)
Undcrfront(d)
25x23
'1\.viJJ
"(tL
?Woo!
detached ?(b)
z;z
Min.
lvlcditun,
I 6/l...J.-16
J':!bby
(8l7-S 5mm)
confused
Tight folds,
'tucked under
catch
N
Undcr(d)?(b)
35xl8
Min.
'!_(/
112 '1\viJJ
on detached knob (d)
20xl8
/\,lin.
'If/_
l~bby
!ldl7
1:vcn
on bone, back of head (b 34x30
\Von!
'li'/
'2/2 'J\vi!J
9-111/12
Very even spin,
weave, Jlil
Fine
\0
rcven,:~:s
0817 Cruciform
Front, head and behind
brooch (sma!fJ ?(b)
52x35
Miu.
'2!2 'J\vil!
Lil
I '2/12
Layers, dctaiorated, no
rev~:rses
11818 <.'rucir(lnn
Front ?(h) are;1
bro,)ch (small) against cross
40x40
Miu.
Ill
AninLal
?S
111 'J\vlll
?Jion!t:r
l2·-1-til2
~~·
0820 Detached
11
(0421)
F
?from brooches (d)
1341 Annular brood under ring, pin (a)
(!fags)
I) (with bom:sJ
Ci detached 1h) ?wrapjJCd
<JfOund
15x12
ivtiu. ?f>lax
20xl4
unid.
llx7
animal
bb!Jy
JUI d
?V
?.!2 '1\vdt
12/9
JJ.d.d
Ill.
•t'];Jhby
L' .
?wool
L.- ·---
-m~;u;
'L!/
-
-
~
~·
-
.S/6
all d(IWU
Patches
I~:Jck
Fnltb;; t:v,ai-))pin, weave:
thrt:ad diam
03mm
C'oar:-;e fibres,
I
!nose spin
hard throad,
tight twist
Position of Object
Gra\'C
Sex OP
14
FC' 0735 A11nutar broocl on back (a)
O_hject
( ~·1naJJ l
(0576)
Meusurcment
13xl6
X~
and to trout a l
protruding (c)
dd"'l"d(dl
2~--
Fibre
!'vlin.
Wol)J
-----
\\{)~)~,-.--
Dvc
!
1
n_d_d
---···
ll.d.d
D
Spin
ZIZ
lwcal"'=-+lucad Couut Cummcul
212 'I\>.· ill
c 14/12
!
Z, Sply Thread "
Z/SI)jy- 'l:tllkl --1- lh'k
1c.~t. 10 cords)
!lnc even spUL._
?fn>m hcadli
8 weft ]Dops
visible
[,.)flSC, pulled
diagonultv
16 wcli.'i
0783 S1t1a!l long
brc•och
:
Oxl2
front plate (a)
bt:low bridge (c)
I
!
16
F
1282 Csuciform
ZIZ
112 T\'.:iJI
Semi-min
Zor
Threads
Dct
S. Zply
ZIS
112 ']\viii
Semi-min.
dC'ladu:d (b)
?Ji·om ;tbo"c '?(a)
25x23
headend(al
4Sx30
w.wt
under(<!) 2 l:tvcrs th)
90x90
width8mm
\V\l(ll
layers oulop and piu); (b) . 5:-:.13
dctaehcd (e)
J:lx7
ll.d.d
ltgll!
bruwn
(0420)
l.lllrder(b) (c)
0
""
1283
1284
1~.1ir
Annular
ht undies
1125 \\'ri:-;1 clasps
1127 pair
area under plate (h)
40x22
c SIS
(\qrsc, hnund
round
8 lOIS
[~\
IHI Spill
I'
dcd nbrcs
liZ
'??J2 'fwill
indie.otin
&: ycllnw
· talkanctl
711.
Z/7.
<fii;hlr!c<l
liner threads
212 '1\vil~~k-t·.l0-1 1/S-10
'f;thkl. -1 hnlc
() Clll'ds/J:.~ s.z-::~.z.s-.z--
WL•OI
a;; al>11\'.:
?.17
:>2 ']\\'ill
Wotll
as a]l\l\'C
7/S ply Tahkl
n d.d
hl"!.'l\lCh
\Vuol
n.d.d
7/Z
' I OliO
Tlll~·:~tlmnlinln
-
l'nrd~.
..j..h\lk
?.1'2 '1\v ill
(lpcn weave,
·JI9
twist; Iaven;
j~_HISC
in ll[ock
l\'lcdium spin,
12/11
fOlded doubh:
behind broken clasp (d)
13xl4
Wnol
lL.d.d
Z,SplyiZ Tth[cl braid 4-holc I 0 cords on 9mn 1 fine reddish
(sewing lhre<!dS
seen by KWJ
18
M
(0330)
19
(0842)
0776 hnife
Buckle with
knife
F
on blade
other side hilt
alloy strip
1223 Knife, ring
both sides blade
1224 Small long
I.Jf\lOCh
top of brooch (a)
sam lie E)
scrcwedup(b)
20x20
7x7
25x9
(<~nd
L. 40mm
r-.·lin.
Min.
1\·fi II.
7.!?
71.!.
2.12 '!\viii
del
·r;
?'!Will
llcmp
10x6
Semi·min
71Z
212 '1\vill
7.~/8
ti~ht spin
weave ntll clear
even,
~18
on 7mm
10110 II
originally even
weave tall ji·ags.
pwb. same)
wilh wond,
bad! dama 'ed
[,l,l:iC twist even
spin and weave
line threads
----- T,thlly
---------· 11-12114
llndyt:~!- 71!.
z
~
0
liZ
'
I
E.
'[\vii! :tnd t;Jillct
--·
-
--·-···--·····-
g,
~
[
~
g
~
Grav1
SexjOP
!Object
'Position of Object
12241 Small long
brooch
19
(cont.)
I Measurement\
end of brooch (a)
Fibre
\Dye
!Spin
25x8-9
[We:nc
?Hemp
L5mm
Undyed
0
'~
20(!0 on5mm) ~?tape, brown,
I5
no edges
preserved
4 threads
as on gr. 5 Wfist
(sample R)
protruding (d)
~
l Thread Count(Commcut
'J;Jbby
Z, Sply jCluillot:hc pl<~il
•g,
"aa
clasp 0737
1225 I Small long
underneath (b)
broochandbea1
I
25xl4
I
Min.
I
Sec A
!wlDW
adhering to (c)(b)
1/Z,Sp!yj'J:ibfct \n::tvt:
~~ hlllc
I
I
1\vJJJ
I •' Jl y <ihkt
clt:tache<l?fh)
I
5 conl~/6-7 wcflslloosc twisl,
l\ll
f-=;,
I
)mm
\Hd~---
cords S,Z,S,Z,S
I
~undcrnc.Jth
cdsc com~
[WJIIZ/Z
I'll
Sample A
L. 20nun
detached ?(b)
.~~cd/p~lrplciZ/Z, Splj J:Jblcl
Wool
I;;Jc, 7 c~Hds
4
\\.t:,;:;--
. 1'rdtd
?Z,Sp!y !Plait
Beads sample Mlprofruding (d)
...,
-
20
?M 10692 \Buckle
60x20
top, strap end (a)
ZIZ
Min.
(0338)
14xl2
9:-:8
I-
Min.
rvriu.
i.t:lS
21'2 '!Will
111'2 '1\J,:ill
11110
tOld:;; thread
diam 0.5
06mm
\!~:ro]rs----1n:vCfscs
d\anH'IHI twill
1069..:1- I Str;tp cud
detached on ?(a) ?kathctl I )xI 0
0695 ?Rudie )]ate
0675 on wond
on nieces ?(a)
:o690 I with rivets
;r;
W<.lOI
\1!'2 'I\\· ill
-
4cnd~
I'
1----p!s-·-- ?j'2. hn;kw-
c.cl~:·
S,S,Z,S,Z,Z
'?guillochc
CTc"'i"l-r:--
even spin
!even SlliH,
I
WC~J\'e
;klached (c)
17xl5
30xl3
\ViH)]
small areas '?(a)
7x7, 12xl3
\V<.)\)1
del.
~2
'[\<,'J!!___ I
/17
/17
1;1 'I\!..· ill
pi~nlt:llkd l//7
2/2 Twill
llll]lig
r
~danmged
Thread c.0.75
c_l_ 2/ I 0
C,})/8
diam
Jll<:lllt:d
with leather
o.d.d
21
M
(0087)
\plate and loop
11386 1
1under stud, folds
Knil~ and .stud
(0533)
25
11384 l Buckle (frags)
M
10250 ilk It phle
thro11~h
105181 Knife
below (a) and b!adc(bl
025IIBucklc, plate
!Ox5
1
Wool
1w,wt 1n.d.d
I
50x27
\VtHl
~5x:{5
Woul
jon loop, leather; under, J 15x15
Wool
rivet hole (a)
(a)or(b)
l
ll.d.d
ll
dd
n.d d
!I/
?)?.. '!\viii
c.X/'r: t\ll Snn11
1---j---~--~--j/i/
2/2 'J\vill
c.I0/10.
///
'1./2 Twill
1-1/1-1-l<i
1!'1
?'!Will
~/(;.?
ZIZ
Twill
mcdiumtwisl.
1.-'""i'IJ ""ining
l-l/1--1-mcdium, pulled
l\lackish ::.lain
?all sauu: weave
Thread diam:0.8
rncdiunl twist
Thread diarn 0.6
Folds on loop
1
~
J 536 Knif10
Position of Ohject I Measurement
with bone, J{ffiCrin ~
hollt sides blade, a11d ell< I 12x.l 0
15391 Fe piu
along
Grave ScxpP \Object
27
F 1!533 Fe buckle
Fihre
}) )' e
Spin
I K11n.
Min~
7JL.
?.12 'J\vi!!
Min.
'??
?'JI.vi!!
')-1 0/8
(1424)
28
?
155-1-l Fe pin
wound rouud below eye
15371 Pcnannular
brooch
junction of pin on
lmk (a)
(1434)
15-J.S! Ft: plate
""
N
31
M
~2531 Knifo
12273 Strike a light
(2171)
I
1'1254) Fe buckle
32
MF325
(2183)
Fragments of
lyre: wood,
~tuds
I
5x3
z
Min.
24x25
?Wot1l
Pigment
I ZIZ
L. 5mm
Wool
n.d.d
1
Thn:<.~d::.
t)/'5 i"'~TI 5mrn
darkl>rown
Jump
LIZ
'E1blc! ht'Jdcl
5 t•nnl~. 5nnn
?Z,S,Z.S,Z
7/7
ZIS
[(}H) (I)Jl 711Hll)
!vii n.
4-hnk
212 1\vi!!
?'/\viii
top of blade of 2253
and top of2273 (a)
patches under (a) lying
along 2273
ncar poml blade 2:!)J
c.4-0x:30
?Wool
ZIS
212 'J\vill
9Jc;
L45126
?Wool
117
212 Twill
17/12
-
;r:x---- t
?W~~----_,-..--·-- --} 7!:
c.60x90, I x20
?Le<.~!her
IO:dO
Min.
Min
edgeofwood(a)
c.20xl5
l
Animal
~7/Z
pin
p326 Ae links
brokt:n off
against (b)
tine
2328 Knife and
buckle
25x15
or(a)
c.l5mm L.
on strip (d)
c.35xl3-6
Wool
n.d.d
I 'J\VIJI
I '1\o,.·ill
I
~ 1 2'1\vJll
\h
I'll Stlllll)
I M
\VOl\/
ll.d d
z
~
gnod qualify
<~nd thread~
J
e:;t8/8-l0
darkbrown,Fe
paldH.:~. open
weave
r~7--s
very open,
-l
-'!7/ --t,hllv
ZIZ
8
thrc<ld~
d;~ma!!.ed
23271 Wood and stud~ top of stud (c)
~
dark brown, z
yam loose, S
variable
------
~
2J2l\~·i-tt-----r~:J7it2.---ltt~~~~;:;;~~~---·-
nail
1nail a'nd
~
dalllt~gcd
-----1---J. ?hmh.cn d~<liiiOlld
ndd
~
very line
under coarser
thre:Jds
Cl"'~aflH!, Joost:
twi::;t
\Ox7
I 15x15
•0
Ivarn med-loosc
2i2 '!\viii
ZIS
liZ
0
'~
Dmnagcd
one clear patch;
L;~yer,
loose(al
over one side (b)
small patch (t;)
top surface and patches
loop(?a)
underloop(b)
~
Thre;ld Count \Comment
We<IVC
2./2 Twill
knot edge;
loose coarse
[oops, curling
?.<:.·!ar!iug l>or<kr
1
z;s- ·-~2!2 '[\..,·ill_ _ _
c.l..:.J-hJ-1 0
z
alon•'d''
finer, no
rev.::rse
Grave Se. OP
Object
2328 Knilt: and
buckle
32
(cont.)
36
M
-
Position of Ohject Measurement
lump (d) on wood, leather c.25x25
Fibre
Wool
!lye
ll.d.d
Spin
'1/S
'V
Thread Conn! Comment
cave
'21'2 '1\vi!l
luo~e
dark
thn::ad,?
sewing, insect
centre area
"'
black. decayed
?
~
c.70x70, 2-3 deer ?Leather
leather and/or
ovemll area (a)
180x23
Wool
ZIS
n.d.d
above ac plates
6-..~N
2J'2 '!\viii
rcmai ns even
weave,
'!llrokcn di<rrnoud
?rcvc:rscs
?
under knife (b)
Jighr,
ZIZ
·n1hhy
tiny scr;rps,
Zply
'J'Jrreads
traces
wntmdround
und cd
2343 Ae buckle and
fc ring
~
~
2.l44 Buekle
2287 Tcxtilt:
Min.
on rins (c)
underbuck!c(a)
20xl5
BxT>
·w~~nt
n.d.d
- zis·-·
across(a)(d)
L.20
best 5x3-4
:Wool
n.d.d
t7z--
fragments (e)
traces (c)
dctaehcd ?(a)
20xl5
2/:t'";i\vli-,- - -
7·8/S
l\11 - llllll
Tim:: ads-·----
/'vii n.
Animal
---
11Jh!d.-.:i hole
vanablc, loose
.L~~-coarse, roots
T2 l'ord~~.,iiM- corcts-z~s.
bel-,-or t:dge; cut end
curled under
Tablcll'tll'd:>
(Alkanet) ZIS
}rz twill. lln1ken
! 0/! :Z
diatnonds
willdy SJlaccd
'1~-!J/-
damaged; Z line
dianlti!Jd
-
(on site) all
over huria!
Area nearest body, (a)
I ..of head
Samples 7, S
R. of head (b)
(2170)
l80x240
\Vn(lj
u.d.d
ZIS, Z
2/2 'j\yjl!
ZIS. Z
o:;;-o--
6-~l/J
ZIZ, S
311 stripl.'d twi II.
c_717
Jl)OSC
l'. 1)fl)
cnarsc, ?wp dafk
?vv"c!! reddish
11laekcncd
-15-6
scraps, ?cords
_1~
4x3, 3x2
300xl80
Wool
n.d.d
tAJkanctJ
2337 unstratified
Samples 4 13 e)
'-h:2 3x2
below knife (d)
L.c.20
Won!
·----n.d.d
_/_
\VJ
- l::!~!!:i~l~'1'!\vill
S, Zply/ 'li1hkt braid
o1
~lka~ll. _1£.__ J~~rde_r ~!li~~----
scraps, ?(c) or (e)
u
2212 Knife
are<:~
blade {a)
:Z5x30
'!\Vlll)j
(i\Jkallc!l
0
J'CI'l'f"SiiiC!
I!/
Samph:s 6, 9-10 ?{a) M <"cri.5x2, 2.5x.3.5
38
7/Z
?'l\vill
/i/
'!'~. 1 2
S./
'!'!\viii
Twill
____
~)-(1/6-7
est.
t.'lllVCd liJtd (h)
twL'if, S.
-------very coarse
dark !Jn,wn; lint:
lhn:aU~. loose
weave
Sand 2 irn:gulal'
8/9
(2064)
I
~
pupae
llcXIilc
M
"a,
n
0
(on site) over
burial
(2063)
37
i
~
'
~
~~---
Grave Sex
38
lP
Object
tl212 !<ail(;
Position of Object
?top of sheath (cJ
(cont.)
40
l'vlcasurcmcut
Fihrc
J0xJ5
l>yc
-
--
·-
Spin
\\'ca\'l'
Thrc~td
<'
Threads
7 on5mm
,,
1747 1:c knife
adul
C(\af~c
tkd
-..
?
~
Count Cnmmcnl
libn:s,
'\l0
e.
fl\lllld
~
nr handle round one side 9xl1
flying across blade) (a)
Z!Z
Min.
WIJ
Tabby
tt~
?worsted thread,
ewn wear, ?tape
(1740)
~
(no edges
m:servcd)
1748, Clay beads
-
lying against
Replaced
7/?
n;•bby
>alcllcJ> ?Je;Jthcr
?t:1pc, jll\ssil>ly
(al but C(larscr
dctcrii)fillcd
covered both sidc.s (c)
l\lin
Z!?
?'J\vill
fine, sttrfitcc
Tl\vill
L'll:tfSl'f
point, other side
pommc 1anwc ( t))
lUX/
!\'!ill.
'1\lllby
IV!In
''WY
1
I
'
702
1761
Fe. buckle
d;IJIJ;J~Cd
w
-1>-
41
,,
u
1921
I)
2002 Santp!c 1-i
:Jhovc pin (d)
-J.:-.:7
lvlin.
on fragment, damaged
30xl7
l\1 j ll.
Z!S
?./?. ']\viii
/,S
?'I\ viii
c.ll/12-13
(1919)
43
edge of grave: (al
w~~~~~
<AII\.anc!l
\Vpp[
(,\!Kanct)
(i\lkanel)
·r~~anen
vcty coan;c,
[!.1\ISC spin;
mixed ruots
'!ltning
(1878)
1003 Sanlpk I
?higher in grave
_087 , huitC and IJuckl overlying (a)
2088
blade c:~(b)
(c)
dc:L1ched (d) ?(b)
detwhed (c)
\V!.H\J
(Alkan~i)
\V!.1(![
(Aikan~O-
-z;s--- "'"112
\V()(\[
70xl5
W£~~~-
40x40, 40x40
Similat
c.s::rws:rv-':"hviiL_
very bGCK--- - p_C ·-272'1\VITr-r-;,nq-snv...
.. ·c.'5l{-4______
·--
c.30x30
30x25
l5x20
slightly opcJI
weave, yarn
medium twist,
1w reverses
·
-~2~(_~- <Alkane!l
~llstorted
LIS
Zis-·-
--;i~\;::Til
?\.,.:ci',-~~oar;:-
~----
·-272----;I\Vi-11_. _ _
·lr;:rs!l:.--- rca-:-t)i\)Wl-,~----
1\\·"!IT~~- -c~S-978
\~cty tl<nf-~
crushed layer
45
M
1917 1k fra,gmcnts
dctachctl (layc:f) ?{d) S: (c 1 45x:J5
\VP\)j
(best scrap)
lluid.
11x8
(1847)
47
/IS
212 '1\vill
LiZ
2i2
----
n.d.d
- - - - --M
1826 h11nps?
in two layers
13x7
(Alkanet) lil
20/[8
']\~till
c.1018
~-----~--
.,
-------c_6 on 5mml?
(1800)
I
rcddi:-:~11
------- ---
-
L__
loose spin h::
stain
--~-----
l0ost: threads.
some coarse;
variable
!
Grave Se OP
ObJect
1939 Swonl
47
(cont.)
Position of Object Measurement
patches along blade
3reas 210 L
crumpled folds (a)
c.45 wide
~!er 11pbiadc(t})""---
Zl8-Xi2
Fibre
Min.
-
Dye
~pin
Weave
Zf!.
212 Twill
Min.
Zl'/
. '212
1\vfii·--~----
i
Thread Count Comment
c.7/6
threads coarse,
loose
~~:)/)-?(a) but coarser
~
e,
5
[1.
knot of S thread
c. L. 80rnm
fold on scabbard and hill c. L 50mm
lo!> ofblado(c)
1914 Spearheads an~! 1111der sockd and upper
i>ladc(d)
snafls A.
Sp,·arhcad B
;~s above (d)
c.90 L
20 widest
area fi0xl5
Min.
Min.
Min.
21
Z/?
• Min.
..
Spearhead C.
Min.
areas textile, none clear
Soil Jump from dama_gcd?(d)
speMhcads
dear areas, shaft on
.1~-------
_
~~---
"7/1-.-
--------
?'T\vi!~--
____ j_
'1.12 ']\viii
...
----------"----
area ?0x30
li.·lin.
'/.!/
'!']IN ill
9xl7, 15xl:l
lvtin.
s
Thn:ads,
~-~~~:~--
1951
v.
Uoidcuti!icd ll: patch ?(I)
1954 tvlin. Jump
one sick (g)
·:;7~J-~g;~-·
undcr(g)(l)
under (f), (g) ?(d)
NOTES: I)
Min.
?l/
·ntt1hy
traces
tvfin.
1/i/
c-
J
2)
Measurem,·nts in millimetres, thread counts per IOnun unless oltuawisc stated
(a), (b), ck·. indicate ditfercnt fabrics present in a grave.
3)
4)
5)
Miu. or Sr111i Min. indic<Jies !ibn:~ mineralised (" n:plact:d" ) by me! a! nxidcs Ji·•llll gr:•vc /-':1\Pd.<;
Dye idcntllication by Peuelopc Walton. (n.d.d::.: lll) dye detected).
Fibre idcntlllcalion by H. M AppleyanJ.
6)
llrnckch::d grave No! = cxcavll.tion/archivc grave Nos
----- - -
111 '1\vill
--·
1
threads
posl>"i!J!c tape or
--------------·
"];!llhy
c32/22-4
Min.
lea tiler
Ct\afSc
'7
ZIZ
witlll18
~
like (a) on 1939
but '?wrappin~;
----·-~- -·----~-----
'l\tllby
Min
g
feathers and ~L~
?Wltilt'G-ginciiT·-
ZIZ
2.'1:-30
~
fQ!~
decayed - -
wood(c)
<.;.)
fine· in
I 5/16
!w<~id mund
shafl
Jiuc thread:->,
l~ose..nyj::!!_ ___
tape, Iilii width,
simpk sdvcduc
prntmding.
t.:P<IJ'SC, pro b. ( (}
;ipp(araucc: Jlax
h\llSC spi1~~
ANCIEN'IMONUMENTS LABORATORYREPORTS3ERIES
6. Fibre identifications
H. M. Appleyard
Identification of animal fibres is determined by the following criteria: general
appearance of the fibres, i.e. regularity of fibre diameter along the length of
the fibre and the amount by which cuticular cells protrude from the fibre, scale
pattern, cross-sectional shape, thickness of cuticle, presence and type of
medulla and pigment distribution.
Some of the fibres described below were so badly damaged by bacterial
action that much of the detail had been destroyed, and then it could only be
said that they were of animal origin. Some fibres were very friable and useful
cross-sections could not be cut.
Gr.0071
Gr.0087
0696
(a)
(b)
0699
(see a and b, 0737).
0737
(a and b) Wool, fibres fine to medium, stained.
(c, pattern) Coarse fibres, very densely pigmented,
with smooth regular profiles; only a few
slight protrusions of scales visible.
Possibly horsehair, but not enough detail
to be sure.
0751
(a and b) Both badly degraded, wool fibres, fine to
medium, undyed.
0753
(a)
(b)
Wool, degraded, some scale pattern visible.
Wool, fibres coated Fe?
0250, 0251
(a)
Wool, a lot of degradation and bacterial
damage.
Animal, degraded, probably wool.
(b)
Gr.0241
Gr.0242
Wool, fibres medium, some pigmented.
Wool.
0848
Fibres wool? deposits, small amount of scale
structures visible.
0851
(a)
Animal fibres, probably wool, but too much
damage.
0661 (with
0847)
(a)
Light threads, undyed, fine to medium wool
fibres, no pigmentation or medullation.
Dark threads, medium diameter wool fibres,
dark pigmentation.
(b)
36
Gr.0327
0812
(tablet weave) Wool, fine to medium fibres, copper
stain.
0818
Animal fibre, damaged.
Gr.0328
0690
Very degraded animal fibres, pigmented.
Gr.0329
0954
(a)
(b)
Gr.0338
Most likely wool. Some coarse, some fine
fibres, degradation and deposits.
Similar to (a) but in worse condition.
0675
Wool, animal fibres, some fine, some coarse.
0693
Wool, fine to medium diameter fibres, undyed.
0694
Wool, fine to medium diameter fibres.
1282, 1283
(a)
(b)
Animal fibres, ?wool, too much fibre damage.
Wool fibres, somewhat finer than (a).
1284
(c)
(tablet cords, loose) Fine wool, dyed.
Gr.0421
1341
(a)
(b)
Debris and mineral deposits, no fibres clear.
A few fragments of fibres.
Gr.0533
1384
Medium to fine wool fibres.
1386
Medium to fine wool fibres, copper stain.
0735
Fine to medium wool fibres, undyed.
0783
Fibres unidentifiable.
0784
(a)
(b)
(c)
Animal fibres too degraded for identification.
Animal - ?wool.
Animal fibres, undyed, interrupted medullation,
most likely to be wool.
1261
(a)
Fine to medium wool, some medium fibres
pigmented.
1267
No fibres found, fragment of hard skin.
1272
(b)
Wool fibres, some very badly degraded.
1272
(c)
This is much too fme to be human hair.
There are fine medium non-medullated fibres,
there is no pigmentation, and their general
appearance and what scale structure there
is indicates wool.
1224
(a)
Gr.0420
(1296)
Gr.0576
Gr.0841
Gr.0842
An interesting sample, it does not stain
with phluroglucinol and HCI. It was
possible to get clear cross-section which
showed the features of hemp.
Sample R. Fine wool fibres, a few coarser, some
medullated.
37
1225
Gr.1878
Samples from lining of the grave chamber:
2002(H)
(a)
2003(1)
Wool fibres.
2088
(a)
Fibres very black and friable, animal.
(b,c,d,e) These are all like sample (a), with
the addition of an occasional coarser
fibre with a medulla; slightly clearer
scale structure on some fibres
indicates all are wool.
2287
Animal, fibres with much degradation.
2342
(twill) badly degraded, but general profile suggests
wool fibres.
2344
Animal, general appearance of wool, but degraded.
2212
Some traces of scale pattern, general appearance
wool.
Samples from grave-coverings on site:
Gr.2170
Gr.2171
Fine to medium thickness wool fibres.
Samples from grave-coverings on site:
Gr.2063
Gr.2064
Sample C. (tablet-weave) Badly degraded fibres,
appear to be bonded together, could be wool.
Sample 4.
(striped) (Ground weave) probably wool, but too
much degradation for identification.
Sample 3.
(stripes) Some degradation, scale structure
deteriorated, but wool fibres.
2337
(a)
Sample 12.
(Z/Z reddish area) Wool.
2253
2373
(a)
(b)
(twill) Short fragments of fibres, some
scales, general appearance wool.
(Z/S twill)
(Z/Z twill) alike, fibre degradation, but
suggestions of scale structure and irregular
diameter indicate wool.
Samples from Lyre:
Gr.2183
2325
(Z/Z twill) Animal fibre, pigmented, but overall
staining.
2327
(edge, ?border, Z/Z) Wool, fine to medium fibres.
2328
(?strap Z/S) Wool, fine to medium thickness fibres.
38
ANCIENT MONUMENTS LABORATORY REPORTS SERIES
7. Tests for dye in textile samples
Penelope Walton Rogers
Introduction
Altogether 60 samples of textile were provided for dye analysis by Elisabeth
Crowfoot. The samples came from 23 different graves and included twills,
tabbies and tablet weaves. Most of the textiles sampled were wool (Crowfoot,
Chapter 5, this report), as it did not seem necessary to test the obviously white
plant-fibre textiles. Preservation ranged from poor to excellent.
Each sample was exposed to our usual examination procedure for
natural dyes, namely extraction into solvents, followed by absorption
spectrophotometry (for details of the procedure and representative absorption
spectra, see Walton 1988). Where tannin dyes were suspected, thin-layer
chromatography was also used (Walton and Taylor 1991).
Few authentic dyes were detected and it is beginning to appear likely
that many of these early Anglo-Saxon textiles were used undyed (see below).
An unusual purple colorant was, however, detected in a number of graves and
this has posed some intriguing questions concerning the source of the colorant
and its relation to Anglo-Saxon burial practice.
Woad-dyed cloth and braid
The blue colorant indigotin was detected in a twill from Grave 0071 (brooch
0696:a) and a tablet braid from Grave 0240 (brooch sf 1282). Indigotin may
be derived from woad, indigo, or related species, but in an Anglo-Saxon
context the dye is most likely to be woad. The woad plant, Isatis tinctoria L,
was grown in Britain long before imported indigo became available probably as early as the Iron Age - and was used for shades from sky-blue to
deep blue. The behaviour of the dye in the braid from Grave 0240 suggested
the presence of an additional yellow or brown dye, which would have changed
the blue to green or black.
Lichen purple on a tablet braid
A trace of purple dye was detected in the tablet braid from Grave 0842 (sf
1224:c). Although weak, the dye appeared in two separate extractions, one in
alkaline conditions, the other acidic. The spectra obtained in both cases
39
indicated the presence of the lichen dye, variously known as orchil, cork or
lacmus (Taylor and Walton 1983). Lichens which yield this dye, such as
Ochrolechia spp, Umbilicaria spp and Evemia prunastri are to be found on
rocks in northern and western Britain, but do not appear to be available in East
Anglia or southern England. The Anglo-Saxons seem to have made limited use
of the purple dye (Walton 1988), apparently eking it out on small items such as
embroidery yarns, as at Kempston, Beds (Taylor 1990, 41-2; Crowfoot 1990,
51-2), and tablet braids, as at Snape.
A red tape
The narrow tape from Grave 0842 (sf 1225:R) also showed a trace of dye, in
this instance a red, comparable with a very dilute dyeing with madder or
bedstraw. Madder from dyers' madder, Rubia tinctorum L., was commonly
used in the late Anglo-Saxon period (Walton 1988), but wild madder or
bedstraw may have been used instead in the 5th and 6th centuries (Walton and
Taylor 1991, 7). The Snape dye was unfortunately too weak to allow the exact
dye-plant source to be identified. Madder-type dyes have previously been
identified in an early Anglo-Saxon braid at Mucking, Essex (Crowfoot in
prep); in the headdress of a richly dressed woman, at West Heslerton, N. Yorks
(Grave 2BA604, Walton Rogers forthcoming); in two patterned soumak
weaves, one from the boat burial at Sutton Hoo (Whiting 1983), the other from
Taplow Barrow, Bucks (Taylor 1990, 42); and in fine diamond twills from
Broomfield Barrow, Essex (Whiting 1983). In the pagan period, therefore, the
use of this dye is only attested in fine cloth and patterned weaves, especially
those worn by the wealthy and aristocratic, and in small items such as braids.
Tannin dyes
Two samples of a textile on an annular brooch (0753, a & b) in Grave 0071,
on extraction showed strong absorption at short wavelengths. This suggested
the presence of a yellow or brown organic substance, although not necessarily a
dye. The extracts were further examined by thin-layer chromatography, using
systems designed for yellow and brown colorants (Walton and Taylor 1991).
The chromatograms showed no indication of yellow dye (from comparison with
the behaviour of known dyestuffs), but both (a) and (b) showed two spots
comparable with the tannins of, for example, oak galls. Tannins occur in
many natural substances, such as autumn leaves, tree-barks and nuts. We
cannot therefore be sure whether the textile from Grave 0071 was dyed with
tannins or heavily stained by some contaminant in the grave. Since, however,
there was none, or very little, of the same substance in other textiles from the
grave, and since it appeared in both samples of the same textile, a tanninbearing dye is possible. This would mean that the textile was originally
brown, grey or black.
40
Undyed cloth
The remaining 54 samples of Snape textiles showed no evidence for having
been dyed (Table 1). In previous work on early Anglo-Saxon cemetery
textiles, this typically small number of positive results has been attributed to the
poor preservation of the samples. More recently, however, work on the
remains from Hochdorf, Germany, has shown that dye may still survive in
considerable strength on mineralised textiles (Walton Rogers in Banck in prep).
Futthermore, some of the Snape samples were in excellent condition. The
decay of dyes during burial is poorly understood, but if dye had ever been
present in a textile such as the well-preserved twill from brooch 1537 in Grave
1434, surely some residue would have survived in detectable form?
It has already been shown that, as far as the early Anglo-Saxon period
is concerned, dyes, especially reds and purples, tend to be more frequently
detected in textiles from high-status burials and in small items such as braids
and embroideries. Only woad blues and relatively dull tannin colours have
been found in ordinary full-size cloths, at Snape as elsewhere; natural fleece
colours also provided some variation from white (Appleyard, Chapter 6, this
report). The evidence, therefore, is beginning to suggest that bright colours
were used only in a limited way in the 5th, 6th and 7th centuries and that most
clothing was blue, brown, grey or natural white - perhaps with more lively
colours in the braids at cuff and neckline.
Table 1: List of samples in which no dye was detected
(* indicates purple colorant detected, see below)
Grave 0071: from annular brooch 0696 (b); from wrist-clasp 0737; buckle
0751 (a) & (b)
Grave 0087: from belt plate 1250 (two samples)
Grave 0240: from sf 3247 wrist clasps (i) twill*; (ii) tablet
Grave 0241: from annular brooch 0851
Grave 0242: from object 0661 (two samples); from 0847
Grave 0329: from sf 0954, samples (a) & (N)
Grave 0338: from strap-end 0693
Grave 0357: from small cruciform brooch 0818
Grave 0358: on wood 0675; on riveted leather 0690
Grave 0421: from sf 1341, samples (a) & (b)
Grave 0533: from sf 1384 buckle; sf 1386 knife
Grave 0576: from small-long brooch 0783 (a) & (b); from small-long brooch
0784
Grave 0841: from sf 1258; sf 1262; sf 1267; sf 1272 samples (a), (b), (c)
Grave 1296: Sample A, layer nearest body; Sample B, layer underneath
Grave 1434: from sf 1537 brooch
Grave 1800: from sf 1826, ZZ twill*
Grave 1847: from sf 1917
Grave 1878: from sf 2002, sample (h)*; sf 2003, sample (i)*;
sf 2088, samples (a)*, (b)*, (c)*, (d)*, (e)*
Grave 2063: from sf 2287, buckle; sf 2288*; sf 2343
Grave 2064: from sf 2212, knife*
Grave 2170: (i) twill*; (ii) striped weave*; (iii) tablet cords*
Grave 2183: from sf 2325 wood/studs; sf 2327; sf 2328 buckle
41
Alkanet-like purple colorant
In 14 of the textile samples from six graves at the southern end of the
cemetery, another purple organic material was detected. Its absorption pattern
was very close to that of the dyestuff alkanet, although there is a strong yellow
component in the Snape colorant, registering at 445-450 nm (Table 2), which is
only faintly recorded in acidic extracts from alkanet (450 nm).
Table 2: The unknown colorant from Snape and alkanet extracted from
dyed wool.
The figures represent the wavelength (in nm) at which peaks of absorption
occur. Figures in brackets indicate minor absorption; underlining marks the
main peaks.
In diethyl ether out
of acid (acidic)
Snape colorant
Alkanet
445, 490, 525, 570
(450), 490, 520, 570
In methanolic solution of
magnesium acetate (alkaline)
450, (525), 56.Q, 606
(525), 560, 606
The dye alkanet derives from the roots of the plant Dyers' Alkanet, Alkanna
tinctoria Tausch. (formerly Anchusa tinctoria L.) which was reportedly used by
early civilizations of the Mediterranean (Brunello 1973, 329). It has, however,
rarely been detected on early textiles and there are no records of it in any other
samples from archaeological sites in Britain. The number of examples in the
Snape cemetery - sometimes including all of the textiles in one grave - was
suspicious and samples of a soil block (2337) from Grave 2170 were therefore
supplied for testing, by Vanessa Fell. The soil samples proved to contain the
same alkanet-like material. This suggests that the colorant is a contaminant
permeating the burial, rather than deliberately applied dyestuff.
Table 3: list of textiles with alkanet-like colorant
Grave 0240: sf 3247,
Grave 1800: sf 1826,
Grave 1878: sf 2002,
sf 2088,
Grave 2063: sf 2288
Grave 2064: sf 2212
Grave 2170: (i) twill;
wrist clasps (i) twill (very faint trace); (ii) tablet
ZZ twill
sample (h); sf 2003, sample (i);
area around buckle, samples (a), (b), (c), (d), (e)
(ii) striped weave; (iii) tablet cords
42
The following theories for the presence of the purple may be considered.
(i) The colorant is from some modern agricultural spray: this is possible,
although modem synthetic colorants tend to have simpler absorption spectra
than those in Table 2.
(ii) It has formed as a result of the decay process of the body: yeasts and
metabolic products can stain bones, but not, in our experience, the surrounding
soil.
(iii) It is the result of contamination from plants growing on the site. Most
recently the site has been farmed for oil-seed rape and before farming it was
open heathland (W Filmer-Sankey pers comm). Dyers' alkanet, A.tinctoria, is
a native of southern Europe (Cardon and du Chatenet 1990, 29, 160-1) and is
unlikely to have been growing in the area at any stage, but other members of
the Boraginaceae, the family to which alkanet belongs, contain the same
colouring principle, alkannin (Thomson 1957, 111). It is possible that there is
some native species which yields alkannin plus the yellow substance recorded
in the Snape spectra. On the other hand, there is no recorded evidence that the
colorants from dye plants can wash out and stain the surrounding environment
while the plant is still growing. Plant roots which had invaded Grave 2170,
were tested for dye content, but these did not show any greater concentration of
dyestuff than in the textiles or soil-sample.
(iv) The colorant derives from some material placed in the grave at burial. The
presence of grasses, bracken or flower stems strewn over the body has been
noted at Sewerby, Yorks, at Mucking, Essex, and in continental graves of the
Migration and Merovingian periods (Hirst 1985, 31). Bracken has been used
in this way in at least one grave at Snape and it is possible that an alkannincontaining plant has been placed on some of the bodies, as part of the burial
ritual. The Romanesque shrine of a 3rd-century saint, St Maurus, in Bohemia,
has recently proved to contain silks, resins and plant remains, including laurel
leaves (a Cluistian symbol of everlasting life) and a root of dyers' alkanet,
A.tinctoria (Samhylova forthcoming). The reason for placing this root in the
shrine is not known, but its presence suggests that alkanet had some symbolic
importance in the medieval world.
On present evidence, the third and fourth theories seem the most likely
candidates and the fourth the most tempting.
References
Brunello, F, 1973
The Art of Dyeing in the History of Mankind, Vicenza
Cardon, D, and Du Chatenet, G, 1990
Lausanne
43
Guide des Teintures Naturelles, Paris-
Crowfoot, E, 1990 Textile fragments from 'relic-boxes' in Anglo-Saxon
graves, in Textiles in Northern Archaeology, NESAT III: Textile
Symposium in York, (eds P Walton and J -P Wild), 47-56, London
Hirst, S M, 1985 An Anglo-Saxon Inhumation Cemetery at Sewerby East
Yorkshire, York Univ Archaeol Pub, 4, York
Samohylova, A, in prep.
Dyes from the shtine of St Maurus, submitted to
Dyes in History and Archaeology
Taylor, G W, 1990 Reds and purples: from the classical world to preconquest Britain, in Textiles in Northern Archaeology, NESAT III:
Textile Symposium in York, (eds P Walton and J -P Wild), 37-46,
London
Taylor, G W, and Walton, P, 1983 Lichen purples, Dyes on Historical and
Archaeological Textiles, 2, 14-19
Thomson, R H, 1957 Naturally Occurring Quinones, 1 edn (2 edn 1971),
London
Walton, P, 1988
Dyes of the Viking Age: a summary of recent work, Dyes
in History and Archaeology (formerly Dyes on Historical and
Archaeological Textiles), 7, 14-20
Walton, P, and Taylor, G W, 1991 The characterisation of dyes in textiles
from archaeological excavations, Chromatography and Analysis, 17, 5-7
Whiting, M C, 1983 Appendix 2: dye analysis, in E Crowfoot, The textiles,
in The Sutton Hoo Ship Burial, 3 (ed R Bruce-Mitford), 465, London.
44
ANCIENT MONUMENTS LABORATORY REPORT SERIES
8. Mineral preserved organic material associated with
the metalwork
Jacqui Watson
Organic material associated with the metalwork
In damp conditions most metals will corrode and the resulting corrosion
products will stain any adjacent organic material. When buried, organic
material impregnated with metal salts cannot readily be broken down by soil
micro-organisms, and over long periods this material will become chemically
altered by these minerals (Keepax 1975). The sandy soils at Snape have a pH
of around 4.5, and in association with the inhumations have provided a
particularly aggressive environment for the metalwork promoting the large
scale preservation of organic material for study.
Mineral preserved organic material is more common on ironwork as this
metal corrodes more rapidly than copper, lead or silver alloys. Iron preserved
organic material is heavily impregnated with corrosion, and in some cases the
whole structure has become replaced by iron salts while the organic component
has dissolved away. On the other hand organic material preserved by copper
corrosion still resembles the original material which is sometimes stained green
- this mainly applies to bone or ivory. In only a few instances copper
corrosion has replaced the organic material. Wood has been preserved by both
iron and copper corrosion, with varying degrees of replacement. Hard animal
tissue such as bone, ivory and horn is poorly preserved and with the exception
of two drinking horns, horn is only seen preserved in iron corrosion products.
Fresh and waterlogged organic materials are identified by examining
their microscopic structures and this is also true for mineral preserved
examples. It has been possible to distinguish between most materials such as
horn, bone, wood, leather and textile with the aid of a hand lens or low
powered incident light microscope. For the most part identification of wood
species was done by observing either thin sections of lightly coated material or
gold coated specimens in the Scanning Electron Microscope (Watson 1988).
Where the latter technique has been used a sample number is quoted in the
catalogue, and the samples have been retained for future study if required.
A large range of organic materials were recognised and these are best
discussed under their object types, along with any comments on reconstruction.
All the materials recorded were readily available in Anglo-Saxon Britain and
Europe. It has not been possible to isolate any imported items on the basis of
species identification, other than walnut which is considered to have been a
rarity in Britain prior to the Middle Ages (Meikle 1983). In addition to
identifYing the materials used it has also been possible to suggest the
45
reconstruction of some of the wooden objects (Watson and Edwards 1990).
Spears
There are 15 spearheads and ferrules probably representing 12 spears, all with
traces of their shafts - ash (7 of which 4 are mature timber), hazel (3), beech
(1), and willow or poplar (1). On the fenule from Grave 1800 (1933 + 1940)
there are possible traces of paint or vamish on top of the wood.
In addition to the spears there is an arrowhead (2170/2277) with a shaft
of beech or holly.
Shields
Five sets of shield fittings were recovered from the site and their details are
summarised in Table 8: 1. Three different woods are represented in the
shieldboards; willow/poplar (3), ash (1), and birch (1). Shield stnds from 0329
and 1800 have evidence for the wooden board being trimmed to a tapered
shape towards the edge; this has also been noted on a shield stud from
Barrington, Cambs. The diameter of the shields are estimated by the distance
of the studs from centre of boss and can only be a guide as to their minimum
SIZe.
All the shields were originally leather covered, and in 2 cases (Graves
0329, and 2183) the leather is thicker on the back than the front.
All the shields were examined for the type of grip construction used,
and based on Dickinson and Harke (1993) classification, 2 have the cut-out
type and 2 are possibly rebated. The grip from Grave 0329 has been
reinforced by binding with leather strips.
Vessels
There are 3 sets of mounts or repairs from wooden vessels, 2 made from
walnut and another of maple or birch. The grain represented on all these
fittings suggests that they were originally mounted on lathe tnrned vessels
(Morris 1982). Some of the staples are probably repairs as they are usually
attached to wood with a cross section or tangential surface. These are the
weakest areas on a lathe-tumed vessel as the wood splits along the grain and
through them.
It has been possible to put forward reconstructions for the cup from
Grave 0242 (0661 + 0847) - Figure 8:1, but would expect that the one with
the narrow neck is more correct as it is very like the walnut cups from both
Sutton Hoo and Taplow (Bruce-Mitford 1983).
In Grave 1800 ( 1822) there is an iron-bound stave built bucket made of
flat sawn yew planks.
Caskets
There is very little evidence for boxes or caskets from this cemetery. In Grave
1878 (1942) there is a set of box fittings which had been on a maple wood
casket (or possibly lime or cherry), but not enough wood is preserved on them
46
to suggest its construction.
The grave plan for 1800 suggests that there might have been a long and
narrow box containing the comb and the tools, possibly made from ash. There
are, however, no recognisable box fittings although these are not strictly
necessary if it was made of dowelled or interlocking joints with a sliding lid.
Boat
The boat burial is represented by just a soil stain in Grave 1800, but small
fragments mostly preserved on metalwork suggest that it was made from oak.
Coffins and grave covers
In three graves there are wood remains on the top of objects that may belong to
coffins or grave covers; 0071 (oak), 0243 (not identifiable) and 0329 (ash). In
0329 was a soil stain that probably represented an apsidal ended coffin with
near vertical sides. The curved end goes round the head, and similar soil stains
have been noted at Mucking, Essex. The carpentry required to produce a
curved piece of wood can be seen at Taplow where there is a piece of furniture
with a curved back made from 3 pieces of shaped wood joined together with
loose tenons held in place with silver headed rivets.
Lyre
Fragments of the two arms are all that remains of the lyre in Grave 2183
(2327, 2325A), preserved by copper alloy studs and a decorative strip (Fig
8 :2). Fortunately the metalwork was positioned so that part of the yoke,
soundbox and a fragment of the soundboard were preserved. The yoke was
joined to the arm by the same type of mortise and tenon joint used on the lyres
from Bergh Apton (Lawson 1978), Morning Thorpe (Lawson 1987), Sutton
Hoo and Taplow (Bruce-Mitford 1983). The lower portion of the arm was
hollowed out to form part of the soundbox, and housed on top of part of this
was a piece of the soundboard. The yoke and soundbox were made from
maple, but the soundboard was made from oak.
There are no associated pegs or bridge, but if these elements had been
made from wood, bone, antler or ivory they would not have survived the burial
conditions on this site.
Preserved on the back of the main fragment is a piece of leather or
animal pelt, which may be the remains of a bag containing the lyre, like the
beaver skin bag from Sutton Hoo.
Combs
Only 2 composite combs were recognised in this cemetery. One (045/0049 +
2417) was in fragments which indicated that it had been made of antler sideplates with possible bone or compact antler tooth plates. The other
(1800/1950) was only represented as a line of iron rivets with three sections of
antler preserved on them. On the x-radiograph it has a curved back which
suggests that it is a single-sided type.
47
Tools
There is a set of three tools in Grave 1800 (2091, 2093) which from the grave
plan appear to have been in a wooden box, possibly with the comb. All have
wooden handles.
Miscellaneous
In addition to the organic material associated with specific objects, random
organic material like straw has been noted on a number of objects. Such
materials were probably used to line the graves or placed on top of the body
before interment. Covering graves with straw, or branches in leaf, greatly
accelerates the decomposition of the body (Mant 1987), and in tum this
promotes the corrosion of metals with the subsequent preservation of organic
material.
References
Bruce-Mitford, R, 1983 The Sutton Hoo Ship-Burial, 3, London (Burr walnut
cups- Pt I, Ch III, 316-405; Lyre- Pt II, Ch IX, 611-731)
Dickinson, T, and Harke, H, 1993 Early Anglo-Saxon Shields, Archaeologia,
110
Keepax, C, 1975 Scanning electron microscopy of wood replaced by iron
corrosion products, J Archaeol Science, 2, 145-150
Lawson, G, 1978 The Lyre from grave 22, in B Green, and A Rogerson,
The Anglo-Saxon Cemetery at Bergh Apton, Norfolk: Catalogue,
East Anglian Archaeology, 7, 87-97
Lawson, G, 1987 Report on the Lyre Remains from Grave 97, in B Green,
A Rogerson, and S G White, The Anglo-Saxon Cemetery at Morning
Thorpe, Norfolk, Vol 1: Catalogue, East Anglian Archaeology, 36,
166-171
Mant, A K, 1987 Knowledge acquired from post-War exhumations, in Death,
Decay and Reconstruction (eds A Boddington, AN Garland and R C
Janaway), 65-78, Manchester
Meikle, R D, 1983 Discussion on the distribution of Juglans regia, in BruceMitford 1983, 405
Morris, C, 1982 Aspects of Anglo-Saxon and Anglo-Scandinavian Lathe
Turning, in Woodworking Techniques Before AD 1500 (ed S McGrail),
BAR Int Ser 129, 245-261
48
Watson, J, 1988 The identification of organic materials preserved by metal
corrosion products, in The Use of the Scanning Electron Microscope in
Archaeology (ed S. Olsen), BAR Int Ser 452, 65-76
Watson, J, and Edwards, G, 1990 Conservation of material from Anglo-Saxon
cemeteries, in Anglo-Saxon Cemeteries: A Reappraisal (ed E
Southworth), 97-106
Watson, J, 1994 Wood usage in Anglo-Saxon shields, Anglo-Saxon Studies in
Archaeology and History, 1, 35-48
49
Details of shields from Snape
(.Jravt::
w
L
0243:0703
X
X
0329:0678
X
X
T
s
Bo<.~rd details
Di:un.
Depth ritn
Dcp!h stud
R
c.l3mm
'!
I co
Board is willow or poplar with an obliqut! TLS.
X
Board made from birch, RLS at ceutrc, TLS at
side. The wooden board has possibly bt:en
trimmed and tapered, The leather on the front is
about a third of tht! thickness on the back. Grip
>-l
0"
"'(;"
00
~
bound with strips of leatht;;r.
'-"
0
0533:0912/3
X
X
Board is willow or poplar with an oblique TLS.
1800:1908/16
X
X
Board is willow or poplar with RLS. Edge of
board appears to taper.
2183:2307/8,
2322/3
X
X
X
X
Board slow-grown ash with RI .S. /\ thick piece
of leather covers the revcrst:: with a thinner piece
on the front.
I
Abbreviations
W- wood
L - leather
T- textile
S - straw or other random organic material
R ~ rebated grip
CO ~ cut-out grip
TLS - wooden board has a tangential surface
RLS - wooden board has a radial surface
8-!0mm
min
t:J
Er
~
(!)
'!
9.4-11.8mm
X
c.43cm
min
,_,
0
"'::r
(D'
c.ISnun
X
c.54cm
~~-
0::
"'::r·
0
3
(/l
:::>
.§
(!)
Fig 8:1 Possible reconstructions of vessel (0661 + 0847) from Grave 0242
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
\
I
\
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
\
I
I
I
I
I
~
:
I
2 ems
I
I
\
I
I
\
\
I
I
I
\
\
I
I
I
I
\
51
Fig 8:2 Lyre arm 2327 from Grave 2183
(
fI
,---0
..... ___ _
2 ems
52
Catalogue of examined material
* sample taken
Grave 0045
0192
Antler spindle whorl
0049/2417
Fragments of a composite comb. Decorated side-plate is made from antler,
and the tooth-plates could be bone or very compact antler.
Grave 0031
0032
Iron spearhead with mineral preserved wood in socket, Fraxinus sp. (ash) from
mature timber.
Grave 0071
0751
Iron buckle with layers of mineral preserved organic material including textile
and possibly decayed tissue. On one surface there is a thin layer of wood,
Quercus sp. (oak), which may be the remains of a grave cover.
0737
Copper alloy wristclasp with a fragment of degraded bone which was originally
thought to be wood.
Grave 0242
066110847 (Figure 8:1)
Wooden vessel with copper alloy mounts or repairs lifted in a soil block. On
examination the wood and copper alloy fragments seem to belong to a lathetumed vessel probably made from Juglans sp. (walnut). All that remains are
the fragments of wood closely associated with the copper alloy mounts and
repairs. From the thickness of the wood and rivets the vessel appears to be
consistently about 5.5 - 7mm thick for the base and sides, sharply tapering to
3mm at the rim. The base appears to have a flat bottom with a diameter of
around 70 - 80mm. The grain orientation of the wood suggests that the sides
are nearly vertical rather than the slight incline of a shallow bowl, see
reconstruction drawing, Figure 8: 1. Unfortunately there is no indication of the
height of this vessel, but it was possibly quite small.
One piece of the rim has the remains of a copper alloy mount which is just
off-centre from the crack, this suggests that the vessel originally had decorative
rim mounts, and was later repaired with both staples and riveted strips. Tumed
vessels tend to break in half so the wood from the repairs should represent
most of the cross section from rim to rim. On the fragment of rim with the
53
mount, the crack has been repaired with a copper alloy staple. Another
fragment has a clean break through the cross section which has been repaired
with riveted copper alloy strips.
Grave 0243
0593
Spearhead with mineral preserved wood in socket, Fraxinus sp. (ash) from
mature timber.
0703
Shield boss rim with various organic materials preserved on it. In one place
there is a patch of hom next to the iron. The shield board* is made from Salix
sp. (willow) or Populus sp. (poplar) and has an oblique tangential surface.
There is a thin layer of leather between the wood and the iron rim.
There is wood* squashed onto the front of the boss but it is too poorly
preserved to identify, this may be part of the grave cover.
Grave 0327
0812
Copper alloy wristclasp with mineral preserved organic material which appears
to be a mixture of textile and compressed tissue and bone.
Grave 0329
0668
Iron spearhead with mineral preserved wood in socket, Fraxinus sp. (ash).
0678
Shield boss and grip with various organic materials preserved on them. There
is a thin layer of leather between the rim and shieldboard, but possibly no
leather between the board and copper alloy washer. The shieldboard is made
from Betula sp. (birch), with a radial surface at the centre and a tangential one
at the side. The depth of wood at the rim is 4- 5.6mm. There are stems and
other random organic material preserved on the front of the boss.
Shieldboard SEM B657
On the grip there is a thin layer of leather between the iron and the wood.
Only a sliver remains of the wood, and the grain of this lies along the length of
the grip which may indicate that it was an inserted type. The outer part of the
grip is bound with 2 strips of leather, approximately 2mm wide. Wood is
preserved on the head of the stud, Fraxinus sp. (ash), which may be part of a
coffin.
0732
Iron buckle with a fragment of Fraxinus sp. (ash) preserved on the front. The
wood has a tangential surface and may belong to a coffin.
Packed with this buckle is a complete shield stud with preserved organic
material. The shieldboard is 6.6mm, with an oblique transverse surface at this
54
point. The board is leather covered on both sides with leather, but the front is
a third the thickness of the back. The complete thickness of the shield at this
point is 13mm, and it is possible that the edge of the board has been trimmed
to a tapered shape.
0777
Iron ferrule with mineral preserved wood in the socket, Fraxinus (ash) from
mature timber.
0954
Carbonised wood associated with copper alloy buckle, Fraxinus sp. (ash), with
a tangential surface.
Grave 0338
0582
Iron spearhead with mineral preserved wood in the socket, probably Fraxinus
sp. (ash).
0595
Copper alloy with a fragment of bone not wood.
0693/4
Organic material preserved by thin copper alloy plates, this is possibly a strap
end or counter plate on a thick leather belt. The leather is around 4mm thick,
which may indicate the use of cattle skin. Textile and fragments of charcoal,
Quercus sp. (oak), are also associated with this object.
Grave 0533
0912/0913
Shield fittings with mineral preserved organic material. There is leather
between the shieldboard and the iron rim. The shieldboard* is made from
Salix sp. (willow) or Populus sp. (poplar), and has an oblique tangential
surface. The rivets on the rim appear to be just folded over nails which give a
variable shield thickness between 8 - lOmm. On the grip there is a small
fragment of wood on the central portion where the grain may lie with the axis
of the grip and perpendicular to the grain of the shield board; this probably
indicates that the grip is an inserted type.
0914
Iron spearhead with mineral preserved wood* in socket, Fraxinus sp. (ash)
from mature timber.
1386
Soil block containing an iron knife and copper alloy fragments associated with
wood*. The wood turned out to be mainly pith-like material so was probably a
root rather than the remains of a box/coffin.
55
Grave 1800 (boat burial)
1822
*Iron bound stave bucket. Made from flat sawn yew planks (Taxus sp.).
SEM B696
1831
Iron clamp with mineral preserved organic material from the west end of the
grave, outside of the boat stain. The outer side has layers of coarse textile
overlain with random organic material including stems and leaves. *The wood
is probably Alnus sp. (alder) or Corylus sp. (hazel) and the grain is at an
oblique angle on both points.
SEM B700
*Associated with this clamp is a nail with mineral preserved wood, Alnus sp.
(alder). The nail pierces a cross section of the timber, and the grain is
diagonal on the shank. This may mean that the nail was used to secure, or as a
repair, in a mitre joint? Coarse textile is also preserved on the head.
SEM B697
1836
*Fragment of iron preserved wood from boat stain, Quercus sp. (oak).
1876
Iron clamp very like 1831, but found diagonally opposite at the east end of the
grave. *Wood, Alnus sp. (alder), all over the inside and over the points, but
with no indication of a joint. The points pierce a tangential surface board, with
the grain perpendicular to the length of the clamp. There is coarse textile
preserved on the iron and the wood, and this is repeated along the back of the
clamp.
SEM B698
1907
Iron nail from the boat soil stain with mineral preserved wood, Quercus sp.
(oak). The nail pierces a tangential surface and could have been positioned in
the side of a dug out. Stems or roots are preserved on the head.
1908
Shield boss, grip and studs with mineral preserved organic material.
*The shield board is Salix sp. (willow) or Populus sp. (poplar). The grain
of the shield board runs vertical to the axis of the grip and has a radial surface.
The orientation is the same on the grip which probably indicates a cut out type.
Leather is present between the wood and iron on both the boss rim and grip,
which suggests that the shield board has been covered on both sides with this
material.
1916D
The organic material preserved on this shield stud includes a shield board with
an oblique surface, along with leather between the head and wood. The
thickness of the shield board at this point is between 9.4- 11.8mm, which
presumably means that it tapers towards the edge.
56
1914
Three spearheads with mineral preserved organic material.
A *There is mineral preserved wood in the socket, Fraxinus sp. (ash) from
mature timber.
B *Spearhead/ferrule with mineral preserved wood in socket, possibly Corylus
sp. (hazel). There are the remains of an adjacent spear shaft on the outside
of the socket in addition to textile.
SEM B704
C *Spearhead socket with mineral preserved wood, Corylus sp. (hazel).
SEM B705
1933 + 1940
Ferrule with mineral preserved wood in socket, Fraxinus sp. (ash), and there
may be a surface coating on the wood - paint or varnish??
1935
*Wood fragments from boat stain. One fragment of iron preserved Fraxinus
sp. (ash), and two fragments of Acer sp. (maple) possibly with thin metal rivets
through both. Unfortunately this group is not marked on the grave plan so
there is no indication as to what object they belong to, but it is unlikely that
they are part of the boat.
Maple SEM B706
1938
*Fragment of charred wood, Corylus sp. (hazel) from a piece of roundwood unlikely to be part of the boat.
1950
Line of 7 rivets, 6 lifted together in a soil block. All have three sections
(c.3mm thick) of mineral preserved antler preserved on them, so this group of
rivets is probably all that remains of a composite antler comb. From the
radiograph of the block the comb appears to have a curved back, therefore it is
likely to be a single sided type.
On the top rivet No.5 there is a patch of animal hair, possibly 'fur',
belonging to some other object that the comb was lying under or on top of.
On the head of rivet No.I is a piece of mineral preserved horn, again from
an adjacent object.
There is as a sliver of wood associated with rivet 6, which is possibly
Fraxinus sp. (ash). This may be a fragment of the possible container for the
comb and other objects, rather than the fragment identified below.
*Associated with the line of rivets is a piece of poorly preserved wood,
which was adjacent to the block. This may represent the floor of the boat, or
it could possibly be the remains of a box. The wood is Quercus sp. (oak) with
a tangential surface.
57
1951
Mise group of ironwork and organic material. Includes an iron nail and
rectangular section bar, fragments of *wood, textile, *fleece. The wood is
Fagus sp. (beech). In the middle is a small peg which may be of bone/antler.
Very difficult to make any sense of this group.
Wood- SEM B699
1956
Looped headed pin, possibly a buckle tongue, with mineral preserved organic
material that is mostly feathers.
2082
Fragment of wood from boat, Quercus sp. (oak) with a tangential surface.
2091
*Small iron awl with mineral preserved wooden handle, probably Salix sp.
(willow) or Populus sp. (poplar) made from a branch as pith is present and
mounted centrally on the tang.
SEM B701
On top of the handle are fragments of mineral preserved antler (from the
comb) and hom.
2093
Block including two tools with wooden handles, *a. awl, with Corylus sp.
(hazel); and *b. with probably Fagus sp. (beech).
a SEM B702; b SEM B703
2095
Sliver of hom preserved on spindle whorl.
On the grave plan blocks 1950 and 1951 look as if they could be a group of
objects in a long rectangular wooden box.
Grave 1847
1856
*Spearhead with mineral preserved wood in the socket, Corylus sp. (hazel).
SEM B708
Grave 1878
1942
Small group of box fittings including the drop handle and fragment of the split
spiked loop, and possible corner bracket.
The drop handle only has the remains of textile and roots. But the split
spiked loop that attached it to the box pierces a cross section, which means that
it was probably mounted on the edge of one of the sides. Textile is also
preserved, the position of which possibly indicates that it was present between
the handle and the box.
58
*The possible corner brackets, with rectangular section pins, also appear to
be mounted on the cross section. The length of the pins may indicate the board
thickness as being a minimum of 15mm. The box appears to be made from
Acer sp. (maple), but could also be Tilia sp. (lime) or Prunus sp. (cherry).
SEM B709
Grave 2063
2279
*Spearhead with mineral preserved wood in the socket, Fagus sp. (beech).
2350, 2352 - 2363
*Fragments of wood from F, most are not identifiable with the exception of
2356 which appears to be Quercus sp. (oak) or Fagus sp. (beech) -could
possibly be from the spear shaft.
Grave 2170
2232, 2242 - 2247
Line of 6 iron clamps arranged diagonally across the south east end of the
grave. The original wooden object must have been at least 400mm long but
could have been up to 600mm.
*2242 The wood cannot be identified further than to say that it has
predominantly uniseriate rays.
SEM B713
The grain follows the line of the clamps.
The thickness of this wooden object varies from 12 - 23mm, and is thicker
in the centre. As the wood cross section on the clamps becomes oblique
towards both ends, this suggests that the tapering was done by trimming the
outer edge after putting the object together, but before the edge clamps were
added.
The clamps presumably were used to join two boards together, but there is
no obvious sign of this.
2277
*Arrowhead with mineral preserved wood in socket, Fagus sp. (beech) or !lex
sp. (holly) pith is present so it is likely to have come from a branch or very
young stem.
SEM B712
Grave 2171
2204
Iron spearhead with mineral preserved wood* in the socket, probably Salix sp.
(willow) or Populus sp. (poplar).
59
Grave 2183
2179
Iron socket with mineral preserved *wood, Fraxinus sp. (ash).
2273
*Iron ferrule with mineral preserved wood in socket, Fraxinus sp. (ash).
2280
Copper alloy mount for lathe-turned *wooden bowl, probably Juglans sp.
(walnut). No sign of breakage in the wood and the copper alloy is mounted
just off the cross section, therefore unlikely to be a repair.
230718, 2322/3
Shield boss and studs.
Grip: wood on inside is perpendicular to the axis of the grip, most likely is
cut out type. On the other side is a layer of coarse textile. The grip is
slightly offset from the centre of the boss, and the two sets of shield
studs are in the same plane.
Boss: wood with RLS. No obvious sign of leather between the wood and
nm.
Studs: 2323 possibly has a very thin layer of leather between the wood and
head of the stud, and a layer of leather approx 4.5mm thick on the back
of the shield board. Wood thickness over 9mm.
Shield board is orientated with the grain running E/W in the grave. Appears to
be slow grown ash (Fraxinus sp.) c.8 rings per !em. The shield board appears
to be covered on the reverse with a thick layer of leather, with possibly a
thinner piece being used on the front or at least over part of the circumference.
Most of the studs have fragments or random vegative material preserved on
the front.
2309
*Two iron clamps with mineral preserved wood, possibly maple or birch from
TS. They were possibly used to join two flat pieces of wood, but there is no
sign in the wood grain. The board(s) had a TLS and was only 3.5mm thick.
The two clamps are of different widths, one is 16.5mm and the other over
19.5mm.
SEM B711
2321
Strike-a-light and steel in leather pouch. *Steel has a wooden handle, but it is
not identifiable.
2326
S-shaped copper alloy link with iron plates containing mineral preserved
leather. This object was found between the edge of the shield and possible lyre
- thought to be a possible attachment for the wriststrap of the lyre.
60
2327 (Fig 8:2)
A fragment of shaped wood with copper alloy pins and decorative binding upper part of the arm of a lyre representing the junction between the soundbox
and the yoke. The yoke or peg-arm was made from Acer sp. (maple). The end
is a shaped tenon which fits into a mortise in the arm and is held in place by a
copper alloy stud. Beneath this joint the arm is hollowed out to form the
beginning of the soundbox, and this section is also made from Acer sp.
(maple). One small fragment of the soundboard remains which would have
originally covered the hollow soundbox, and this was made from Quercus sp.
(oak). The join between the top of the soundboard and the main part of the
arm was covered with a strip of copper alloy attached with copper alloy pins on
the sides. On the reverse of the wood is a fragment of leather or animal pelt
with possible punched decoration, this may be all that remains of a bag for the
lyre.
Wood B - soundbox of lyre SEM B714 Acer sp. (maple).
61
ANCIENT MONUMENTS LABORATORY REPORTS SERIES
9. Charcoal identifications
Rowena Gale
Introduction
Charcoal found during excavations at Snape cemetery was associated with
inhumation burials, cremations, ring ditches, a post hole and burnt flint
features. The burnt flint features were particularly rich in charcoal. Species
identification of the charcoal was undertaken to establish evidence of the
economic and, where possible, ritual use of wood associated with Anglo-Saxon
burial customs.
Materials and methods
When samples contained large amounts of charcoal, for example those from the
burnt flint features, these were subsampled to produce realistic quantities for
identification. These samples mainly contained relatively large ( > 1 em in the
longest axis), firm-textured fragments. Samples from contexts including
Logboat Grave (0328), some coffin stains (e.g. Grave 0329) and some
cremation scatters (e.g. 0216) contained few fragments of charcoal and these
tended to be small (measuring < 2mm in the longest axis) and friable.
Examining fragments of this size can be time consuming and unproductive but,
in view of the paucity of material from these contexts, identification was
attempted and usually produced some results. Some fragments (notably from
Graves 0241, 0242 and the urn in area 0297) were partially vitrified: when
wood or charcoal is burnt at temperatures > 800 ° C modifications (including
plasticity of the cell walls) may occur in the cellular structure (Prior pers.
comm.).
The charcoal fragments in each sample was sorted into groups based on
the anatomical features present on the transverse surface when viewed using a
X20 hand lens. Representative samples from each group were selected for
detailed examination at higher magnification. Each fragment was fractured to
expose clean flat surfaces in the transverse, tangential longitudinal and radial
longitudinal planes and mounted in washed sand. These were examined using a
binocular incident-light microscope at magnifications up to X400. The
anatomical features were matched to authenticated reference material. The
origin of the fragments (i.e. roundwood, sapwood and heartwood) was noted.
Samples arising from stems or branches measuring up to 2.5 em in diameter
were classed as roundwood whereas samples arising from wider stems or
branches but not apparently from heartwood (i.e. some curvature of the annual
62
growth rings and tyloses absent) was noted as sapwood. Samples with little or
no curvature of the annual growth rings and with tyloses present were classed
as heartwood.
Results
The identifications have been listed in Appendix 1 and arranged in tabulated
form in Table 1. The genera identified (or tentatively identified) are listed
below with classification based on Flora Europaea (Tutin et al 1964-80).
Corylus L., hazel.
Ericaceae: including Erica L. and Calluna Salisb., heathers.
Pinus L., pine, sylvestris group which includes Scots pine.
Pomoideae, subfamily of the Rosaceae, which includes Crateagus L.,
hawthorn; Malus Miller, apple; Pyrus L., pear; Sorbus L, rowan,
whitebeam and wild service. These species are anatomically similar.
Prunus L., which includes wild cherry, bird cherry and blackthorn.
Quercus L., oak.
Rosoideae, subfamily of the Rosaceae, which includes Rosa L., rose or briar;
Rubus L., blackberry or bramble.
Rosaceae: a large family with woody members in the subfamilies Pomoideae
and Rosoideae (see above) and Prunus L. (see above), some of which are
anatomically indistinguishable.
Salicaceae: Salix L., willow; Populus L., poplar. These genera are
anatomically similar.
Ulex L., gorse.
The inhumation graves
Details of the graves and associated charcoal are summarized in Table 2. The
majority of the 26 graves in which charcoal was found included Quercus (with
the exception of Graves 1800, 1846, 1847,2170,2172 and 2183). In many
graves (see Table 2) Quercus was the only woody species identified. Coffins
were present in Graves 0031, 0243, 0329, 0841 and 1847 and all, except 1847,
included Quercus: in the three former graves this was heartwood while in grave
0841 it was roundwood. Few wooden grave goods, morphologically
recognisable as such, accompanied the bodies: the grip of a shield (0372) in
Grave 0329 was made from Quercus (heartwood). Some the chambers in
which the coffms were placed were possibly lined, e.g. Grave 0841 in which
Quercus roundwood was found. Quercus fragments from Graves 0012, 0190,
0071, 0241, 0242, 0328, 0330, 0420, 0533, 0841, 1442, 1878 and 2061
included either a mixture of roundwood, sapwood and heartwood or only
roundwood (see Table 2). This would appear to confirm the suggestion that
planks and/or branches were associated with or were overlying the body in
some of these graves (notably 0190, 0241 and 0242). However, in some
instances the origin of the charcoal was less evident. The inclusion of
roundwood in so many graves may indicate, perhaps, the use of some structure
(such as a hurdle) which incorporated stems and poles or, possibly, some
63
scattering of burnt branches. Quercus was common to all graves and, despite
the availability of other species, was frequently the sole woody species
represented. Grave 1442 included some fragments of Quercus root
(anatomically distinct from aerial wood by the diffuse porous arrangement of
the vessels) but any implied significance of this find was tempered by the
paucity of data relating to the context.
Interestingly, several genera ( Corylus, Salix/ Populus and Quercus,
roundwood) were identified from Grave 0533 in which a bier was also
recorded. The possibility of the bier having been made from one or more of
these woods was strengthened by the almost total absence of the 3 former taxa
in the other graves.
A mixture of species (Quercus and Ulex) was also present in Grave
0012 which was overlying a small circular pit but here one must question the
possibility of contamination from the pit. Ulex was evidently used as a fuel
(see below) and may have entered the pit as debris. The large mass of Ulex
roundwood and (minimally) Prunus present in Grave 1846 may have originated
from the associated Burnt Flint Feature 1775 which included both genera. A
large quantity of charred Quercus heartwood (and minimal representation of
Salix! Populus) was associated with the ring ditch inhumation 0338 in which the
corpse was interred in an organic wrapping.
The logboat burial Grave 0328 produced abundant Quercus charcoal
including sapwood and roundwood. The estimated diameter of these fragments
suggests that they were not part of the logboat which would presumably have
been hollowed from a tree trunk of wide girth. In addition, a poorly preserved
stem fragment was tentatively identified as either a member of the Rosaceae or
Ericaceae. In view of this unconfirmed identification this fragment should be
disregarded. In contrast, logboat burial Grave 1800 yielded minimal charcoal
(Prunus).
Three futiher graves (2170, 2172 and 2183) produced very little
charcoal. Grave 2170, which incorporated a chamber with an organic lining,
showed traces of textiles throughout and included Corylus. Graves 2172
(robber pit) and 2183 (possibly with a bier) included Ulex although, for the
latter context, this was only a tentative identification.
Cremation graves
The cremation Graves 0046, 0083, 0143, 0216 and 0495 (the area of a
cremation) included traces of charcoal (see Table 2). Quercus was identified
from each (except Grave 0083) and, in most instances, this originated from
roundwood (undetermined in Grave 0495). Corylus and Ulex were present in
Graves 0083 and 0495 respectively. Uniquely, the charcoal from Grave 0216,
included Pinus with the Quercus and Corylus. The status of Pinus in East
Anglia in the Anglo-Saxon period is uncertain. It is known to have been
common in the Mesolithic (Rackham 1990) but communities declined
significantly during the following millennia. Its withdrawal from southern
England to more northerly latitudes certainly allowed (perhaps isolated) stands
to survive in some areas as, for example, at the Wytch Farm Oilfield, Dorset,
(Cox and Hearne 1991) where pollen and charcoal were identified from Mid
Iron Age deposits (3rd and 2nd century BC). It is, therefore, conceivable that
in some regions small pockets of Pinus were still present in the early centuries
64
of the next millennium. By the 12th century locally grown pine timber was
unavailable in East Anglia and consignments were imported from the Baltic
(Rackham 1986). The Pinus fragments found at Snape were small and gave no
clue as to their likely origin. If the wood came from locally grown trees its
use here suggests some particular selection - perhaps with some assumed
importance reflecting its rarity value. Alternatively, it may have been of
artefactual derivation either imported as wood or as a ready made item. Its
presence in the cemetery was also of interest since Pinus trees have sometimes
been associated with immortality and the wood used to make coffins in the
belief that it protected the body from corruption (Cooper 1978).
Ring ditches
Ring Ditch 2062 produced an insignificant quantity of Prunus charcoal.
Burnt Flint Features
Burnt flint features 1771, 1775, 1779, 1794, 1815, 1849 and 2251 each
produced a great abundance of charcoal. This was predominantly roundwood
and consisted mainly of Ulex and Quercus with small representations of
Prunus, members of the Pomoideae and Rosa!Rubus. Traditionally, both Ulex
and Quercus have been exploited for their high calorific values when used as
charcoal or wood fuels and have proved particularly important for use in kilns,
ovens and other industrial purposes (Lucas 1960; Keepax 1974; Lambrick
1985). Whilst it was impossible to ascertain whether the fuel was used as
charcoal or wood at Snape one may conclude that the use of these species
would have heated the flints more rapidly than many other species.
Other features
A few miscellaneous features (1900 (a post hole), 2263, 2306 and 1392 (an urn
in area 0907)) included Quercus. The posthole ( 1900) produced a large
quantity of roundwood. Roundwood was also present in 2263 and 1392.
Other miscellaneous finds of charcoal
The charcoal scatter 1782 included Ulex roundwood.
Use of wood resources
The charcoal arose from several distinct groups of features and indicated
sharply defined preferences in usage. Quercus was strongly associated with
both inhumation and cremation burials. Quercus is a strong, tough and durable
wood suitable for many forms of construction and carpentry particularly for
outdoor use. For inhumation burials the wood may have been used for coffins,
to support or line the chambers, or to make other funerary artefacts such as
hurdles for supporting the chamber walls or carrying the cadavers. Quercus
has also had many mystical and religious connotations (Cooper 1978) and the
presence of branches in some graves may infer ritual rather than secular use.
Indeed, the presence of charred wood at all in these graves, in which the
charring apparently has little practical application, must be of significance.
The means by which the charcoal was deposited in the graves is also open to
65
conjecture since the transfer of burnt branches from fire to grave would have
resulted in their fragmentation. Perhaps lighted branches were thrown into the
open grave and continued to burn, igniting the flammable grave goods and
wooden components such as the shield grip and bier. It is conceivable that,
once the grave had been back-filled, the enclosed charcoal may have
smouldered for some time, emitting enough heat to bum adjacent structures.
Quercus was also present in the cremation graves. As noted above,
Quercus is an efficient fuel and would have been particularly suited for use on
a funeral pyre. Here, however, there was virtually no evidence of Ulex, which
was used so abundantly in combination with Quercus in the fuel associated with
the burnt flint features, whereas Corylus and Pinus were sometimes present.
Ulex was evidently readily available but was apparently excluded from use as a
pyre fuel. The preference for Quercus for funerary uses is again emphasised.
Pinus is resinous and burns well but, as previously discussed, its use here may
be artefactual.
Ulex was found (with Quercus) in prolific quantities in the burnt flint
features and was almost certainly used as a fuel. When present in other
contexts it was either very sparse or had some association with a burnt flint
feature (for example in Inhumation Grave 1846) or some other possible source
of contamination.
Woodland management
A great quantity of roundwood was present in many of the contexts but most
notably in the burnt flint features. The fragmentation of the charcoal samples
had destroyed any evidence of morphological or anatomical features associated
with coppice rods. A few Quercus fragments appeared to have wide annual
growth rings typical of fast grown stems (see Table 2) but, in general, it was
impossible to assess the bulk of the material with any accuracy. The
predominance of stem material tended to suggest that coppice woodlands were
present in the area.
Ulex has many economic uses (Lucas 1960) and has been cultivated and
coppiced in regions where other wood is sparse (e.g. parts of Ireland).
However, at Snape where other species were evidently available Ulex was,
perhaps, more likely to have been cut at random from plants growing in the
wild.
Conclusions
The identification of the charcoal has indicated preferential use of the woody
resources available. Quercus was evidently important in economic terms and
possibly in ritual practices in both inhumation and cremation burials. Woods
used for fuel included Quercus and Ulex roundwood. While this may have
been gathered from coppiced woodlands the evidence was inconclusive.
66
References
Cooper, J C, 1978 An illustrated encyclopaedia of traditional symbols,
Thames and Hudson
Cox, P W, and Hearne, C M, 1991 Redeemed from the heath: The
archaeology of the Wytch Farm Oilfield (1987-90), Dorset Nat Hist and
Arch Soc Mon, 9
Keepax, C, 1974 Danebury tile kilns, unpubl AML Rep 1735, London
Lambrick, G, 1985 Further excavations of the second site of the Dominican
priory, Oxford, Oxoniensia, 50
Lucas, A T, 1960 Furze - A survey and history of its uses in Ireland, Nat
Mus of Ireland Stationary Office
Rackham, 0, 1986
The history of the countryside, Dent
Rackham, 0, 1990
Trees and woodland in the British landscape, Dent
Tutin, T G, Heywood, V H, et al, 1964-80 Flora Europaea, 1-5, Cambridge
67
Table 1. Charcoal identifications
Key: Species:Cory :;;; Corylus sp., hazel
Pinus sp., pine (Scots pine type)
Porn :;;; Pomoideae, subfamily of Rosaceae which includes
Crataegus sp., hawthorn; Malus sp., apple;
Pyrus sp. , pear; Sorb us sp. , rotvan, whi tebeam, wild
service. Members of the Pomoideae are anatomically
similar.
Prun = Prunus sp., includes wild cherry or gean, blackthorn
and bird cherry.
Quercus sp. , oak
Rosoid:;;; Rosoideae, subfamily of Rosaceae which includes:
Rosa
sp., rose or briar and Rubus sp., bramble or
blackberry.
Ros/Eri = ?Rosaceae/Ericaceae: very tentative id. based on TS
examination only; the family Rosaceae includes the
subfamilies Pomoideae, ?runoideae and Rosoideae
{see other entries); the family E~icaceae includes
Erica and Call una (heathers).
Salicaceae which includes Salix sp., willo•..;. I Populus sp.,
poplar; anatomically similar gene~a.
Ulex sp., gorse
Abbreviations: X
R
large quantity of fragments in sample
= roundwood i.e. stems up to± diameter 3 c~.
s = sapwood, i.e. from trunk or ste::n/branch of
diameter >3 c:n
H = heart\vood.
F = fast grown.
v = vitrified (burnt at temperatures >800°C)
1
CONTEXT
IDENTIFICATION
Cory Pinus Pom Prun Quercus Rosoid Ros/Eri Sal Ulex
Inhumation burials
0012
(1729)
l2RH
9R
0031
(0142)Inh. plankXH
Ol90)Plank
xs
(0197)
45R
0071
(0465)
3H
(0486)
9?R
0241
(0809)
X?S
(1002)
XSH
(0823)
20R(V) (0625) ?Plank
46R
0241/1
l?S
{0135)
0242
(0483) ?Plank
XRS
( 0521) Plank
XR
( 0603) Plank
XSH
(0604) Plank
XS(F)
(0626) Plank
XR(V)
( 0697)
XH
(0736) Plank
XR
(0771)
XR
0243
(0780)
2
68
CONTEXT
IDENTIFICATION
Cory Pinus Porn Prun Quercus Rosoid Ros/Eri Sal Ulex
0328
(093l)Boat grave(0945)Boat grave(1003)Boat floor(1004)Boat floor(0121)
0329
(0568)Coffin stain
(0732)Shield grip
0330
(0615)Grave fill0338
(0450)Ring dit.inh.
(0775)Ring dit.inh.
0420
(0953)
0533
(0934)
4
(0935)
1
(0950)
2
(0534)
4
0841
(0939 )Fill
1442
(1447)
xs
ss
5
2R
llH
XH
32R
1
XH
7R
13R
9
1
2
SR
l4S?H
3root
1800
(188l)logboat gr.
1846
( 2018)
(2019)
1847
(1930)Coffin stain
1878
(2021)
(2022)
(1893)
(1895)
( 1896)
1878/6
(2020)
2061
(218l)Sample 1
Sample 2
Sample 3
2170
(2283)
lR
2172
(2259)Robber pit(2269)Robber pit2183
(2284)
Cremation graves
0046
(0255)
6
0083
0143
(0168)
( 013 6)
0216
(0443)
1
(0458)
(0479)
?1
(0482)
0495 Area of crem.-
?root
3
XR
3
SSR
3
?1
8R
5SH
lR
13R
3R
37RH
21R(F)H12RH
lR
1R
?1
XRH
2R
1R(F)
5
1?R
6
4
1
69
1
IDENTIFICATION
CONTEXT
Cory Pinus Porn Prun. Quercus Rosoid Ros/Eri Sal Ulex
Ring ditches
2062
(2240)
Burnt flint features
1771
(1781)
1775
(1791)
1779
(1795)
1794
(1828)
(1859)
(1860)
1815
( 1817)
1849
(1861)
2251
( 2317)
(2260)
( 23 20)
2251
(2318)
3
8
1
10
6
18R
8R
35R
15R
llR
5R
42R
56R
1
1
5
2R
3R
14R
35R
68R(F)
12R
6R
40R
8R
32R
15R
1
8R
Other features
1900
(190l)Post hole-
54R
2253
6R
(2333)
2306
6SH
(2305)
1392
Urn in area 0907-
3R(V)
Miscellaneous
1782
(1785)Charcoal scatter-
6R
70
Table 2. Species associated with inhumation burials
Key. Species:
Cor = Caryl us sp.,
hazel.
Prun = Prunus sp., includes cherry or gean, blackthorn
and bird cherry.
Querc =Quercus sp., oak
R/E = Rosaceae/ Ericaceae (see Table l)
Sal= Salicaceae, Salix sp., willow./ Populus sp.,
poplar
Ulex sp. , gorse
.M = male; F = female; A = adult; C = child; R = rounC.Y,..ood; S =
sapwood; H = heartwood; 0 = unspecified origin.
Grave Container Sex Child Grave ------Woods identified----------Adult goods Cor Prun Querc
R/E Sa: Ulex
R S H 0
0012
0031
0190
0071
0241
0242
0243
0328
0329
0330
0338
0420
0533
0841
1442
1800
1846
1847
1878
0
Coffin/
c:J.arred
planks
Plank
0
0
X - -
0
A
X
F
F
A
A
X
r1
A
?C
A
X
?Tray
X
- X X X X X - X
X X - X
X -
11
0
?N
Organic
wrapping
?~1
0
F
Bier
N
Coffin in F
organic
lined
chamber
A
A
A
A
A
X
X
X
X
X
X
-
-
-
X -
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
Coffin
Logboat
Coffin
X X -
X
X
X
X -
X
-
-
X
X -
X
- x x rootLogboat
11
A
0
Coffin
?C
11
'?Textile
?A
'?C
X
0
X
X
X
X
X
X
X X X -
lined
chamber
2061
2170
2172
2183
c
Organic
lined
chamber
(Robber
pit)
?Bier
X -
0
X
X -
X
X
M
A
?
X
71
Appendix 1. Charcoal identifications
Key: R/W
= roundwood;
S/W
Inhumation burials
0012 (1729)
= sapwood;
H/W
= heartwood
- 12 fragments Quercus sp. , oak, stern & Hj\>i
Ulex sp. , gorse
9
"
0031 (0142) Inhumation plank - Quercus sp.' oak, H/W
(0190) Plank
- Large quantity frags Quercus sp., oak, s;r..v,
from wide stem cr branch
(0197)
- 45 frags. Quercus sp., oak, stem
0071 (0465)
(0486)
- 3 frags. Quercus sp.' oak, H/'.o
9
Quercus sp.' oak,
?stem
- Large quantity Quercus sp., oak, probably
S/W but not from narrm.; stem.
- Large quantity Quercus sp. , oak, s;r..; & H/~V
(1002)
- 20 frags. Quercus sp., oak, stem. burnt at
(0823)
high temperature (partially vit~ifiedl
(0625} Plank/branch - 46 frags Quercus sp., oak. sLern
0241/1 {0135)
- 1 frag. Quercus sp., oak. ? s;~.;, slm..r grm..-n
0241 (0809)
0242 (0483) Plank/branch- Large quantity Quercus sp., oak. stem &
S/W
(0521) Plank/branch -Large quantity Quercus sp., oak, stem
(0603) Inh. plank- Quercus sp., oak, S/'.~ & H/'.~
(0604) Inh. plank- Quercus sp., oak, S/W, probably from wide
stem/ narrow pole, fast grown
(0626) Plank/branch- Large quantity Quercus sp., oak. ste~.
almost vitrified.
(0697)
- Quercus sp. , oak, H/tv·
(0736) Plank/branch- Large quantity Quercus sp., oak. stem
(0771)
- Large quantity Quercus sp., oak, stem
0243 (0780)
-
2
Quercus sp., oak, very small fragments
0330 (0615) Grave f i l l - 32 frags Quercus sp., oak, stem
0328 (0931) Boat grave- Few narrow fragments (<2 mm), ? too
small for id, transverse surface ;
?Rosaceae/Ericaceae, ? root.
( 0945) Boat grave bow stain - !1ass of very small fragments,
Quercus sp., oak, ?S/W (no tyloses visible)
but not narrow stem.
(1003) Above floor of boat- 5 Quercus sp., oak, S/W
(1004) Above floor of boat - 5 fragments small & friable Quercus sp. , oak
(0121)
- 2 frags Quercus sp., oak, stem
0329 (0568) Coffin stain- 11 frags. Quercus sp., oak, H/W
(0732) Shield grip- Quercus sp., oak,
H/W
0338 (0450) Ring ditch Inh. - 1 frag. Salix sp., willow./Populus sp.,
poplar
(0775) Ring ditch Inh. -Large quantity Quercus sp., oak,
heartwood.
0420 ( 0953)
- 7 frags. Quercus sp., oak, stem
0533 (0934)
- 13 frags. Quercus sp. , oak. stern
- 9 frags. Salix sp., willow./ Populus sp.,
poplar
- _4 frags . . Corylus sp., hazel
- 1 frag. Corylus sp., hazel
(0935)
72
(0950)
- 2 frags. Corylus sp., hazel
1 frag. Salix sp., willow./Populus sp.,
poplar
- 4 frags. ·caryl us sp., hazel
11
2
Quercus sp. , oak
(0534)
0841 (0939)
Fill
1442 ( 144 7)
- Several frags Quercus sp.! oak, stem
- 14 frags Quercus sp., oak, S/W & ?H/W
3 frags Quercus sp., oak, probably root
1800 (1881) Logboat grave- 3 frags. Prunus spp., which includes
P.avium, wild cherry, P. padus, bird
cherry, P. spinosa, blackthorn
1846 (2018) Quad 1841 Large mass of R/W- Ulex sp., gorse, stem
(2019) Large quantity R/t{- 55 frags Ulex sp., gorse, stem
- 3 frags Prunus spp. , which
includes P.avium, wild cherry, P.
padus, bird cherry, P. spinosa,
blackthorn
1847 (1993) Coffin stain- 3 frags.
Prunus sp., probably P.
spinosa.
blackthorn
1878 (2021)
{2022)
(1893)
(1895)
(1896)
1878/6 ( 2020)
2061 (2181) sample 1
- 1 frag. friable, ?Quercus
- 8 frags Quercus sp., oak,
- 5 frags Quercus sp., oak,
narrow stem) and H/W
1 frag. Quercus sp. , oak,
- 13 Quercus sp., oak, stem
- 3 frags. Quercus sp., oak,
s-eem
stem
- 26 frags. Quercus sp.' oak, stem
11
sample 2
sp., oak
stern
S/tV (not
- 15
"
"
grown
Quercus sp.' oak, H/TJ
Quercus sp.' oak, stem, fast
- 6 frags. Quercus
sample 3
7
5
"
"
sp.' oak, Hj\o/
Quercus sp.' oak~ stem
Quercus sp.' oak, H/'.o/, slm.;
grown
2170 (2283)
- 1 frag. Caryl us sp., hazel, stem
2172 (2259) upper level of robber pit - 1 frag.
stem
(2269) upper level of robber pit - 1 frag.
stem
2183 (2284)
Ulex sp.' gorse,
Ulex sp.' gorse,
- 1 frag. poor condition,
?Ulex sp.,
gorse
Cremation graves
0046 (0255)
-Mass of frags. Quercus sp., oak, stem &
H/W, some slow grown
0083
- 6 frags Corylus sp., hazel
0143 (0168)
(0136)
- 2 frags. Quercus sp., oak, stem
- 1 frag Quercus sp., oak, stem. fast grown
73
0216 ( 0443) Pyre
(0458)
(0479)
(0482)
Pinus sp., pine, sylvestris
group which includes Scots pine
- 1 frag. Quercus sp. , oak, ? stern
1
''
Corylus sp., hazel
- 6 frags. Pinus sp., pine, sylvestris
group which includes Scots pine
- 4 frags. Pinus sp. ·, pine, syl ves tris
group which includes Scots pine
1 frag. cf. Corylus sp., hazel
-
5 frags.
0495 from area of cremation- 1 frag.
1
Quercus sp., oak
Ulex sp. , gorse
"
plus some cokey-looking material
Ring ditches
2062 (2240)
- 3 small fragments, very friable, Prunus
spp., which includes P.avium~ wild
cherry, P. padus, bird cherry, P.
spinosa, blackthorn
Burnt flint features
1771 (1781) Large mass of R/W- 18 f~agments Ulex sp., gorse, s~em
8
''
Rosaceae, subfamily
Pomoideae which includes Crateagus 1
hawthorn, Nalus sp., apple, Pyrus
sp.,pear, Sorbus spp., rowan,
whitebeam and wild service tree
6 fragments Quercus sp., oak
1775 (1791) Large mass of R/'d- 35 frags Ulex sp., gorse, stem
10
Prunus spp.
8 frags Quercus sp. , oak, stern
1
Rosaceae, subfamily
Pomoideae
1779 (1795) Large mass of R/W- 15 frags Quercus sp., oak, stem
11
Ulex sp., gorse, stem
1794 (1828)
- 5 frags Ulex sp., gorse, stern
(1859)
11
- 42
Ulex sp., gorse, stem
(1860) Large quantity R/11 - 56 fragments Ulex sp., gorse,
st:em
1815 (1817)
- 3 frags Ulex sp., gorse, stem
2
Quercus sp., oak, stem
"
1
Prunus spp.
"
1849 (1861) Large mass of R/W- 35 frags Ulex sp., gorse, stem
11
14
Quercus sp., oak, stem
2251 (2317) Large mass of R/W- 68 frags
grown
40 frags
1
"
(2260)
- 12 frags
8
5
11
11
Quercus sp., oak, stem, fast
Ulex sp., gorse,
Prunus spp.
stem
Quercus sp., oak, stem
Ulex sp., gorse
Prunus sp .
(2320) Large mass of R/W- 32 Ulex sp., gorse, stem
6 Quercus sp. , oak, stern
2251 (2318) Large masss R/W- 15 frags Quercus sp., oak, stem, some
with anual ririgs
= 14
years.
8 frags Ulex sp. , gorse, stern
11
1
Rosa sp. , rose/ Rubus sp. ,
bramble
74
Other features
1900 (1901) Post hole, Large mass of R/W- 54 frags Quercus sp., oak,
stem
2263 ( 2333)
- 6 frags Quercus sp., oak, stem
2306 (2305)
-
1392 urn in area 0907
- 3 Quercus sp., oak, stem, partially
vitrified
6
''
Quercus sp., oak, S/W (not
narrow stem) and H/W
Miscellaneous
1782 (1785) Charcoal scatter- 6 frags.
75
Ulex sp., gorse, stem
Appendix 2. Charcoal identifications
Further to the report (p. 62 ft), six samples of charcoal and mineral replaced
wood were examined and identified as follows:
Sample 1972.120 'bone' charcoal2423- 6 fragments Quercus sp., oak
Sample 1972.120 Crem 3 charcoal 2420- 2 fragments Quercus sp., oak
1 fragment cf. Alnus sp., alder
I fragment cf. Prunus spp., cherry or
blackthorn.
Sample 1972.120 crem 1 wood 2427- 7 fragments Quercus sp., oak, decayed
wood (not carbonized).
The ring porous structure of these fragments indicated that the material arose from
aerial pruts of the tree, i.e. branch or trunk. In Quercus root wood the vessels are
diffuse porous in arrangement.
Sample 1970.90 Dowser's crem charcoal 2425 1 fragment cf. Ericaceae
1 fragment cf. Ulex sp., gorse I Cytisus sp., broom (too small to
specifY which)
1 fragment vitrified with distortion of stmcture
Sample 2296 mineralized wood from rove- 4 fragments Quercus sp., oak,
slow-grown heartwood.
Sample 1862 Fe and wood from boat rivets, SAU ref: 2301, Oxford
X-ray: 173- Several fragments Quercus sp., oak, heartwood.
Some fragments were certainly from slow-grown wood: a mixture of
slow- and fast-grown material may have been present but the poor
structural condition of some pieces hindered observation.
76
ANCIENT MONUMENTS LABORATORY REPORTS SERIES
10. Knife sheaths and sword scabbard
Esther Cameron
Methodology
Twenty-eight knives and a sword were examined because corrosion products
from the blades had pattially preserved the sheaths and a scabbard. But while
the effect of the corrosion was to cement parts of the sheaths and surrounding
deposits to the blades, the quality of preserved detail was not often very good.
Compacted layers of organic origin were in many cases structureless and
difficult to tell apart.
Radiography was used before cleaning to help distinguish boundaries
between knives and sheaths, in the first instance, but also between sheaths and
burial deposits. Scanning electron microscopy helped in the characterisation of
some of these deposits and to confirm others as leather or textile.
The knife sheaths
Leather sheath remains were detected on fourteen of the twenty-eight knives,
while seven others, also probably leather, could not be characterised with the
same certainty. A grain pattern of calf skin is preserved on one sheath
(0071/0845) and hairs surviving on another two (2170/2278 [Figs 3:10 & 3:11]
and 1919/1922) were identified as bovid (Chapters 11 and 12, this report).
Other leather sheaths of this period with identified genus include four of
calfskin, and one of sheep/goat recently found at Castledyke cemetery, Bartonon-Humber (Drinkall, forthcoming).
The thickness of the leather on the Snape sheaths is 1. 0 - 1. 5mm. In
spite of poor preservation it is clear from grain pattern or fine surface hairs on
four sheaths that the grain side was outermost, also a feature of several sheaths
from Castledyke. The presence of fine hair does not imply the use of animal
pelts. The Snape sheaths were manufactured from leather from which all but
the finest hairs had been removed. Those remaining are invisible to the naked
eye.
Although incomplete in individual cases some elements of sheath
construction may be drawn from the group as a whole.
While one of the sheaths (0330/0776) fits its blade rather loosely, most
appear to be close fitting but not tight. The leather is folded over the backs of
the blades and joined along the cutting edge, which is also a feature of knife
sheaths from the Sutton Hoo ship burial (Bruce-Mitford 1983, 881-887).
77
Sinuous curves along the joins of sheaths from graves 0243, 1800 and 2170 are
an effect produced by a loose serpentine stitch using a single leather thong (Fig
10: I). A similar though more compressed stitch used by Saxon shoemakers
until the Conquest (Pritchard 1991, 217-218) is also evident on sword scabbard
covers of the Pagan Saxon period (Cameron, forthcoming).
There is evidence that the sheaths covered at least part of the knife
handles. One handle (0243/0779) is almost completely covered by its sheath
while another (084111280) is overlapped very substantially. In most other
cases the sheaths survive only a few millimetres beyond the blade/handle
junction.
Line decoration survives on only one knife sheath (2063/2286, Fig
10:2) although there are three recorded examples from the Buckland cemetery,
Dover (Evison 1987) and another from Broomfield, Essex (BM.1894.1216.8),
the latter showing all the features described in the preceding paragraphs.
While some of the knives from Snape cemetery must have been placed
in graves, others were almost certainly worn on the body (eg 1800/2076).
Positions in burial include two on the upper torso, five in the area of the left
shoulder, head and upper arm, and twenty-one in the region of the waist and
upper pelvis. Eight were found in association with small buckles, five others
with iron rings and one with 'belt-fittings' which do not include a buckle or
ring. With one exception (0420/1291) all knives found with belt buckles, rings
or fittings occur in the region of the waist and upper pelvis. Two knives found
with iron rings (0842/1223 and 1424/1536) were apparently without leather
sheaths but covered with textile remains. Although this may derive from
clothing or bags, the possibility of a textile sheath-lining cannot be discounted.
A textile lined leather sheath was found in a grave belonging to the late 6th early 7th century at Buckland cemetery, Dover (grave 41).
The sword scabbard
The sword occupied a central lengthwise position in the grave (Grave 1800),
overlying a waist-belt surviving as a dark stain, which was fastened with a
small buckle. A sheathed knife had been tucked into or attached to the belt.
The sword hilt of horn is published elsewhere (Cameron and FilmerSankey 1993) but its scabbard remains are described in the accompanying
catalogue. In most respects the scabbard is typical of its kind: willow is a
native wood frequently used in the Pagan Saxon period for the manufacture of
shield boards and scabbard plates (Watson 1994). In dimension and style the
Snape scabbard follows an established tradition and its wood thickness is
identical to that of the scabbard from the Sutton Hoo ship burial (BruceMilford 1978, 284) as well as many others.
A groove left by a scriber or similar tool inside one edge of the
scabbard, the consistent thinness of the wood and the neatness of its edges
attest a level of precision in Saxon scabbard manufacture which has only
recently been recognised (cf Schiek 1992, tafel 35). Similar signs of carpentry
practice are a feature of wooden debris from the scabbard of an unpublished
6th - 7th century sword from G. 91, Mill Hill, Deal, Kent.
The wooden reinforce at the mouth of the Snape scabbard is unusual;
78
metal fittings, binding tapes or cords occur more frequently. Another wooden
example, in Maidstone Museum (cat.KAS 827), belongs to a scabbard known
to come from the cemeteries of SaiTe or Bifrons in Kent. A thin willow wood
belt from Buckland, Dover (grave 20) provides further evidence for the use of
flexible wooden strips in the 6th - 7th centuries AD.
The animal pelt from which the scabbard lining was made could not be
identified, but the hairs are short and densely grown. The scabbard lining of
the Sutton Hoo sword was thought to be a "straight, soft type of animal fur,
rather than sheep's wool" (Bruce-Milford 1978, 284). Where the cut edge of
the scabbard lining is visible it appears to reflect the dimensions of the sword
blade rather than those of the scabbard, calculated no doubt to accommodate
the pelt in a confined space and a common practice in scabbard construction of
the Early Medieval Period.
Description of sheath and scabbard remains
Gr. 003110177 knife
Total!. 129mm, blade I. 78mm, blade w. 16mm
Iron coiTosion products in a compact layer on one side of the blade, confirmed
as heavily mineralised leather. Lumps of mineral replaced textile overlie it.
Gr. 007110845 knife
Total!. 107mm, blade I. 68mm, blade w. 12mm
The blade rests in its leather sheath, preserved in fragments on one side of the
blade. The sheath is folded over the blade back but eroded along the blade
edge. It also overlaps the handle junction by 7mm, but no edge survives to
indicate its full extent. The leather, thickness lmm, has a grain pattern
preserved on one surface, identified as calf.
Gr. 0087/0250 knife
Total!. 130mm, blade I. 79mm, blade w. 17mm
A buff-coloured coiTosion product threaded with mineralised plant roots forms
a discontinuous layer on both sides of the blade. Confirmed as leather by
SEM. Textile overlies it on both sides of the blade.
Gr. 024110849 knife
Incomplete, two fragments which do not join:
i) handle with small fragment of blade, I. 64mm
ii) possible blade fragment, I. 48mm
Apart from the hom handle all organic remains are of very degraded textile.
Gr. 0242/0900 knife
Total!. 185mm, blade I. 105mm, blade w. 16mm
A compact, ochreous yellow layer of coiTosion product, thickness less than
lmm, lies on one side of the blade. It does not extend over the handle junction
and offers no features, apart from proximity to the blade, to suggest that is
from a sheath. Overlying it, and the other side of the blade, are the remains of
textile.
79
Gr. 0243/0779 knife
Total!. 103mm, blade I. 60mm, blade w. 17mm
A compact grey-brown layer, thickness lmm, extends over both sides of the
blade and overlaps the handle by 40mm. It is folded over the blade back and
joined along the blade edge where it forms a sinuous line, but no stitching
survives. Confirmed by SEM as an extensively mineralised leather.
Gr. 0327/0810 knife
Total!. 140mm, blade I. 8lmm, blade w. 17mm
A discontinuous layer, thickness lmm, lying on both sides of the blade. It is
wrapped over the back, extends down below the blade edge by 4mm and
overlaps the handle junction by 3mm. Identification inconclusive, however the
manner of its arrangement on the knife suggests that it derives from a leather
sheath.
Gr. 0328/0959 knife
Total!. 104mm, blade I. 69mm, blade w. 20mm
No organic remains.
Gr. 0329/0952 knife
Incomplete, fragmented. Total (extant) I. 160mm, blade 1. 108mm, blade w.
18mm
The blade is encased in a compact, discontinuous layer, thickness lmm, of a
bleached grey colour. Confirmed as leather by SEM. Traces of textile overlie
it.
Gr. 0330/0776 knife
Total!. 172mm, blade I. 114mm, blade w. 18mm
A dark brown layer, less than lmm thick, lying on the blade surface,
interpreted as a leather sheath by the manner of its arrangement. The layer
extends beyond the blade edge by 8mm where a wrinkled edge of double
thickness and two or three possible stitch. holes are visible. Both sheath and
handle remains are overlaid on one side by textile.
Gr. 0338/0688 knife
Total!. 79mm (incomplete), extant blade l. 30mm, blade w. 15mm
A powdery orange deposit on both sides of the blade identified as leather.
Gr. 042011291 knife
Total!. 95mm, blade I. 56mm, blade w. 15mm
An amorphous deposit on one side of the blade could not be identified as a skin
product. Fibrous organic remains overlying this and the other side of the knife
blade derive from textile.
Gr. 0421/1134 knife
Total!. 135mm, blade 1. 85mm, blade w. 17mm
A thin and brittle layer of ochreous yellow iron oxides curves over the blade
back, across the blade and extends a little below the cutting edge. Thickness
less than lmm, SEM examination failed to confirm the layer as leather. Sand
80
particles separate it from the blade surface and traces of textile overlie it.
Gr. 053311386 knife
Fragmented
Traces of textile on the blade.
The tang is fused to a belt fitting in such a way that the carrying of the knife
tucked inside the belt is suggested.
Gr. 0841/1272 knife
Total!. 142mm, blade I. 82mm, blade w. 17mm
A mineralised layer, thickness l-1.5mm, lies at the blade tip, centre blade and
handle junction which it overlaps by 5mm. No grain surface survives, but
confirmed as leather by SEM examination. Traces of textile overlie the
leather.
Gr. 0841/ 1280 knife
Total!. 108mm, blade I. 54mm, blade w. 17mm
A compact layer, thickness I mm, which curves over the back, extends a little
beyond the cutting edge and overlaps the handle junction by llmm.
Gr. 0842/1223 knife
Total!. 105mm, blade I. 53mm (incomplete, tip missing), blade w. 14mm
A discontinuous layer, thickness lmm, adhering to both blade surfaces at the
cutting edge was confirmed by SEM as textile.
Gr. 1424/1536 knife
Total!. 133mm, blade I. 76mm, blade w. 18mm
Textile alone on both sides of the blade.
Gr. 1740/1747 knife
Total!. 120mm, blade I. 70mm, blade w.l3mm
Textile alone on the blade.
Gr. 1800/2076 knife
Total!. 102mm, blade I. 67mm, blade w. 20mm
The blade is enclosed in a compact brown layer, thickness 1.5mm, which is
folded over the blade back, joined along the cutting edge and overlaps the
handle junction by 8mm. Although no grain surface survives it is clear from
its gross features that this layer is a leather sheath. Part of the seamed edge
survives as a 13mm sinuous line running from the blade tip, and further along
the blade edge a 5mm length of thong is embedded in the seam.
Gr. 180011939 sword
Total I. 920mm, blade I. 790mm, blade w. 50mm
Scabbard of wood, willow or poplar, surface orientation longitudinal radial.
Width 62mm, thickness 2.5mm at central long axis, 1.5mm at edges. In crosssection lenticulate. Scabbard edges survive for 60mm on one edge, 27mm on
the other, marked 1.5mm in from one edge with a scriber.
A hairy animal skin, cut to the dimensions of the sword blade and
81
~
~
~
~~
---~-
~~-~-~~~~
~~~--
---- --- - - - -
arranged hair innermost against the blade, lines each wooden scabbard plate.
Hair length in the region of 4mm, in predominantly transverse and diagonal
alignment to the blade. Hair fibres, viewed under SEM, too encrusted with iron
oxides for identification. A trace of the original leather cover remains,
insufficiently preserved for genus identification.
The scabbard mouth is reinforced with a thin wooden binding, grain
direction running transversely across the mouth, max. width 17mm,
incomplete. There is no indication of means of scabbard suspension.
Textile weaves (see textile report) found upon the outer scabbard surface and
sword hilt are clearly not elements of the scabbard's construction but may have
featured in the deposit as burial wrappings for the weapon.
Gr. 1847I 1923 knife
Total I. 148mm, blade 1. 90mm, blade w. 20mm
A dark brown compact layer, thickness 1.5mm, folded over the blade back and
overlapping the handle junction by 2mm. Fine hairs protruding from the outer
surface of the layer confirm it as a degraded leather.
Gr. 1878/1943 knife
Total I. 155mm, blade 1. 103mm, blade w. 20mm
A layer of corrosion product, encrusting part of the knife back and overlapping
the handle by 7mm, may be the remains of a sheath but id. inconclusive. The
blade is covered on both sides with textile remains, a large quantity of which
was found in this grave.
Gr. 1919/1922 knife
Total I. 115mm, blade 1. 65mm, blade w. 15mm
A layer of powdery corrosion product covers a small area of the blade near the
handle junction. Although no grain pattern survives, fine hairs protruding from
its outer surface were identified as bovid. Bulky deposits of poorly preserved
textile overlie the sheath and remaining parts of the blade.
Gr. 2063/2286 knife
Total I. 160mm, blade 1. 98mm, blade w. 20mm
A compact layer survives patchily over the blade surface and is folded over the
blade back. It has impressed decoration on one side in the form of four
parallel lines, spaced 2mm apart, running lengthways. Textile remains
enveloped the sheath and knife handle.
Gr. 2064/2212 knife
Total I. 126mm, blade 1. 70mm, blade w. 15mm
The blade is enclosed in a compact layer, thickness lmm, which is wrapped
over the back and extends over the handle junction by 3mm. Identification
inconclusive.
Gr. 2170/2278 knife
Total I. 95mm (incomplete), blade 1. 72mm, blade w. 17mm
A hard, compact layer covering the blade and handle, thickness 1.5-2mm.
Hairs protruding from the outer surface are possibly calf. Part of a seam
82
,
survives along the blade edge where a possible thong fragment is still attached.
Gr. 2171 /2 253 knife
Total 1. 250mm, blade 1. J57mm, blade w . 25mm
A compact layer of corrosion product, thickness Jmm, covers the blade . It is
wrapped over the knife back and overlaps the handle junction by 20mm.
Although the layer might be a decayed leather it was not possible to confirm it
as such. Above it, on both sides of the blade, large quantities of textile survive
(see textile report).
Gr. 2) 83 /2324 knife
Total I. 174mm, blade l. 112mm, blade w. 20mm
An orange-brown layer with a rough, granular surface enclos s the blade ,
thickness 3mm . It is rounded over the blade back, tapers towards the blade
edge and overlaps the handle junction by 20mm. Although its arrangement on
the blade suggests a leather sheath it was not possible to confirm this.
References
Bruce-M itford , R, 1978
The Sutton Hoo Ship Burial, 2
Bruce-Mitford R, 1983
The Sutton Hoo Ship Burial, 3 (II)
Cameron, E, and Filmer-Sankey , W, 1994 A Sword-Hilt of Horn from the
Snape Anglo-Saxon cemetery , Suffolk, Anglo-Saxon srudies in
Archaeology and History, 6, 103-105
Evison, V, 1987
Heritage
Dover: The Buckland Anglo-Saxon Cemetery, English
Pritchard, F, 199 1 Small Finds, in A Vince (ed) A pects of Saxo-Norman
London, 2, 120-27 8
Schiek, S, 1992
Das Graberfeld der Merowingerzeit bei ObeTjlacht , Stuttgart
Watson, J , 1994
Wood Usage in Anglo-Saxon Shields, Anglo-Saxon Studies
in Archaeology and History, 7, 35-48 .
Seam along
cutting edge
Thong
[]leather
~Horn
Dlron
0
5
10cm
E:3:=1~3::::=====:J
Fig 10:1 Knife in a leather sheath (2170/2278)
c
A::: ridge
C=CUt
[3
leather
~Horn
D
0
5
10cm
EE33~E3=r~E3~======~
Fig 10:2 Knife in a decorated sheath (2063/2286)
84
Iron
ANCIENT MONUMENTS LABORATORY REPORTS SERIES
11. Identification of leather
Glynis Edwards and Vanessa Fell
Leather sheaths and pouches survive as mineralised pseudomorphs on several of
the ferrous artifacts. These were identified for leather type according to grain
pattern where distinctive:
0071/0845
knife sheath
calf
2170/2278
knife sheath
bovid
2183/2321
strike-a-light pouch (Fig 3 :9)
deer
85
ANCIENT MONUMENTS LABORATORY REPORTS SERIES
12. Identification of hairs
Anna Cselik
Traces of hairs had survived within the follicles of mineralised leather sheaths
from two krtives. The hairs were identified from the scale pattern using
scanning electron microscopy.
1919/1922
krtife sheath
probably bovid
2170/2278
krtife sheath
probably bovid
86
ANCIENT MONUMENTS LABORATORY REPORTS SERIES
13. Feathers
Esther Cameron
Three spearheads lay clustered at the head of Grave 1800. Beneath the largest
spearhead were the mineralised remains of feathers (Fig 13: 1). The feather
shafts, 15 - 25rnm in length, are slightly curved, but the remains are too poorly
preserved to enable the genus to be identified. Professor C. Penins of the
Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, kindly examined the feather
remains on the spearhead and considered them to be consistent in size and
shape with those from the body parts of birds comparable in size to chicken or
duck.
Feathers thought to be goosedown were found in the ship's burial
chamber at Sutton Hoo, mound 1, where they had been used to fill a woven
linen pillow-case (Bruce-Mitford 1983, 889). Other discoveries of feather
pillows in Merovingian graves are cited by Bruce-Mitford.
Another mineralised trace of a feather was found midway along the
length of the grave, at its southern edge, attached to a fragment of iron
( 1800/1956).
Reference
Bruce-Mitford, R, 1983
The Sutton Hoo Ship Burial, 3
Fig 13: 1 Mineralised feather, Grave 1800
87
ANCIENT MONUMENTS LABORATORY REPORTS SERIES
14. Plant and insect remains preserved by
metal corrosion products
Mark Robinson
During the conservation of metal objects from the graves it was noticed that
plant and invertebrate remains had been preserved by their corrosion products.
Plant material associated with iron binding around a bucket and an iron shield
boss, in Grave 1800, had become mineralised. Both plant and insect remains
survived in the vicinity of a copper alloy buckle in Grave 2138 as a result of
the toxicity of the corrosion products. The following material was identified at
the English Heritage Environmental Archaeology Laboratory at the University
Museum, Oxford.
Grave 1800
1822 Top band of bucket: encrusted with many mineralised pinnae (leatlets)
of Pteridium aquilinum (L.) Kuhn (bracken).
1823
Centre band of bucket: encrusted with many mineralised pinnae of P.
aquilinum.
1824 Bottom band of bucket: some mineralised pinnae of P. aquilinum on
surface.
1908
Shield boss: 2 mineralised pinnae of P. aquilinum on surface.
Grave 2183
2097 Insect and textile remains near buckle 2328: c. 250 puparia of Ophyra
capensis (Wied.) or leucostoma (Wied.). The posteria spiracles and
respiratory horn show a close similarity to those of 0. capensis. It was
not possible to compare the specimens with puparia of 0. leucostoma.
1 pair of elytra and 1 pronotum of Trox scaber (L.).
4 pinnae of Pteridium aquilinum.
1 rodent-nibbled stone of Prunus domestica L. (plum).
2280
Otiorhynchus ovatus (L.).
Grave 0327
0812 Dr A. G. Irwin previously determined I specimen of Grammostethus
marginatus (Er.) and 1 larva cf. Fannia sp. (both confirmed).
88
Discussion
The acid sand of the site would have provided a very suitable habitat for
bracken. Even so, the large quantity of bracken that must have been present in
Grave 1800 suggests that it had been deliberately placed in it, perhaps as
bedding or covering for the corpse.
The flies 0. capensis and 0. leucostoma have both been reared from a
variety of foul organic materials, including carrion (Smith 1989, 136). 0.
leucostoma and perhaps 0. capensis are strongly attracted to corpses once they
have reached a stage of ammoniacal fermentation. 0. capensis larvae comprise
the second stage of faunal succession on buried human corpses, probably
appearing several months after burial, especially when the corpse has not been
exposed to the open air for long before burial, which would result in
colonisation by other species of Muscidae and Calliphoridae (blow-flies) (Smith
1973; Smith 1986, 126). The larvae of the fly Fannia sp. have also been
recorded from corpses (Smith 1986, 122).
The beetle Grammostethus marginatus is usually found in moles' nests
(Halstead 1963, 10), but as a beetle which feeds on Diptera larvae
underground, it would probably have found a suitable habitat around a buried
corpse. Trox scaber is associated with dry carcasses and carrion in very
advanced stages of decay amongst other foods (Smith 1986, 149). It was
perhaps able to gain access to the corpse in Grave 1800 at a late stage down a
rodent burrow as evinced by the nibbled plum stone. The weevil Otiorhynchus
ovatus feeds on various plants and does not provide any useful information on
the burial.
Bibligraphy
Halstead, D G H, 1963 Coleoptera Histeroidea. Royal Entomological Society
Handbook for the Identification of British Insects, 4, pt 10, London
Smith, KG V, 1973 Forensic entomology, in Insects and other arthropods of
medical importance (ed K G V Smith), 483-486, London
Smith, KG V, 1986 A manual offorensic entomology, London
Smith, KG V, 1989 An introduction to the immature stages of British flies.
Royal Entomological Society Handbook for the Identification of British
Insects, 4, pt 10, London.
89
ANCIENT MONUMENTS LABORATORY REPORTS SERIES
15. X-ray diffraction analysis of bronze samples
Malcolm Ward
The unusual appearance and condition of several of the non-ferrous metal
artifacts (see Chapter 2) led to their further investigation to determine the
nature of the alloys. X-ray fluorescence (XRF) analysis of six artifacts had
shown in each a strong presence of tin, plus some copper and traces of lead
(Chapter 16).
Samples from three artifacts (0087/0251, 2183/2327, 2063/2344) were
examined by the X-ray powder diffraction method using a Philips PW 1840
diffractometer. The major component in each sample was the tin oxide,
cassiterite, Sn02 (compare Figs 15:1 and 15:2), which is an alteration product
found on bronze. The weaker pattern of 2183/2327 contained less cassiterite.
In all samples there were additional sharp peaks belonging to other minor
crystalline components. Two of these were identified: tin phosphide, SnP, in
0087/0251 (Fig 15:3, further supported by XRF analysis which determined the
presence of phosphorus), and the tin oxide, romarchite, SnO, in 2063/2344
(Fig 15:4). We could not identify the trace component in 2183/2327.
The type of poorly defined cassiterite pattern shown by the Snape
examples is often observed in bronze products and is possibly due to the
formation of very fine crystals (Gettens 1963, 91). These would need too be
about I micron or smaller, in size, in order to cause line broadening effects.
In the past there have been erroneous suggestions that varlamoffite
(Sn,Fe)(O,OH)2 and hydrated stannic oxide, H2Sn03 , were bronze corrosion
products, probably because their patterns have diffuse diffraction peaks in the
same positions as the cassiterite pattern.
Reference
Gettens, R J, 1963
Mineral Alteration Products on Ancient Metal Objects, in
Recent Advances in Conservation (ed G Thomson), 89-92, London
90
Fig 15:1 XRD spectra: 0087/0251, 2063/2344, and 2183/2327
3000~---------------------------------------------------,
[counts]
2500
2000
1500
1000
i
500
Fig 15:2 XRD spectra: 2063/2344 and cassiterite (Sn0 2)
[%] . - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - ,
100
64
36
16
4.0
2344
["~'~"H~L:========:J:J==r===========c=======r==========:J
21-12 50
I
cassltente (SnO,)
II
91
I
I
I II
I II
Fig 15:3 XRD spectra: 0087/0251, cassiterite (Sn02), and tin phosphide (SnP)
_J
256~------------------~-------------------------------,
(%]
196
~
I
ill,
·~~-,WI.,~
144
A ~' !ld(~~ ' '-""
LJJt
'"""r
0087/0251
'!"'1"1'~!"'
' '"'·
36
16
4.0
0251
21-1250
23-0595
cassiterite! nO
LililJiliQs~e
tSnP)
Fig 15:4 XRD spectra: 2063/2344, cassiterite (Sn02), and romarchite (SnO)
(%]~---------------------------------------------------,
100
64
36
16
4.0
2344
[Joorus@7/mm~s•:=:=:=:=:==c=c=r:=:=:=:=:==r:=:=::=r::::::::::~
2 1 - 12 50
I cassiterite (SnO,)
L.mDJ:aihiJe 1snO>
06-0395
I
I
92
I
II
I
I
I II
II
I
I
I I I
LJL]
ANCIENT MONUMENTS LABORATORY REPORTS SERJES
16. X-ray fluorescence analysis
Vanessa Fell
Selected metal artifacts were analysed by X-ray fluorescence (XRF) to
determine metal species or tbe presence of non-ferrous metal platings. The
results are only qualitative since corrosion will affect the composition of tbe
original metal. Analyses were made at Ancient Monuments Laboratory,
English Heritage, London.
Grave/OP
Elements detected
Comments
0087/0251
belt fitting
Sn, Cu, Pb, (Ag)
Decuprified bronze
(see also XRD results)
0327/0811
wristclasp
Q!., Sn, (Pb)
Leaded bronze (white metal
coating not detected)
0329/0954
stud-head
Q!., Sn, Pb
Decuprified bronze
Q!., Sn, Zn,
Copper alloy
2063/2343
buckle:
backplate
(Pb), ?(Ag)
loop/tongue
Q!., Sn, Zn,
Possible traces of silver.
Appearance suggests silver
therefore conceivably it
was a silver alloy.
(Pb), (Ag)
2063/2344
buckle
Sn, Cu, Pb
Decuprified bronze
(see also XRD results)
93
2183/2327
lyre binding
Q!, Sn, (Pb),
(Zn), (Ag)
Decuprified bronze
(see also XRD results)
2183/2328
buckle:
base metal
C!!, Sn, Pb
Leaded tin bronze
plating
C!!, Ag, Sn, Pb
Silver (now contaminated
with bronze products)
filler
Eh, Cu, Sn
Probably lead (now
contaminated with bronze
products or copper)
()
strongly detected
trace only
94
ANCIENT MONUMENTS LABORATORY REPORTS SERJES
17. Concordance lists of grave numbers
A. Listed in excavation/archive grave number sequence (page 96)
B. Listed in publication (forthcoming) grave sequence (page 97)
95
A. Listed in excavation/archive grave number sequence
Excavation/archive
grave No.
Site publication
grave No.
0012
0031
0071
0087
0241
0242
0243
0258
0327
0328
0329
0330
0338
0420
0421
0439
39
17
0533
21
5
25
8
9
6
7
10
4
3
18
20
16
11
1
0546
0547
0576
0841
0842
0843
0982
0983
0984
1424
1430
1434
13
12
14
2
19
15
24
23
22
27
26
28
29
30
40
47
1559
1560
1740
1800
1845
1846
1847
1878
1919
2061
2063
2064
2170
44
46
45
43
41
35
2171
36
38
37
31
2172
2173
2183
2257
34
32
42
33
96
B. Listed in publication grave number sequence
Site publication
grave No.
Excavation/archive
grave No.
0439
0841
0329
0328
0071
0243
0258
0241
0242
0327
0421
0547
0546
0576
0843
0420
0031
0330
0842
0338
0533
0984
0983
0982
0087
1430
1424
1434
1559
1560
2171
2183
2172
2173
2061
2063
2170
2064
0012
1740
1919
2257
1878
1845
1847
1846
1800
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
97