It has been a particularly busy few weeks at CA, with visits to Nottingham and Carlisle and, of course, our annual conference – huge thanks to everyone who came along!
This month’s cover feature takes us to Broughton Lodge in Nottinghamshire, where one of the county’s richest and most unusual Anglo-Saxon cemeteries, home to an exceptional number of multiple burials, was uncovered during a pioneering community project in the 1960s. Why had so many people died over a short period in the 6th century? Subsequent scientific analysis may hold the answer.
We next examine a trio of stunning silver hoards from late Roman and early medieval Scotland. What can their contents, together with other finds from across Britain and Scandinavia, tell us about how this metal was used and viewed during a period of great cultural change?
From shining silver, we then turn to traces of leather preserved on some of Britain’s earliest church doors, which tradition holds represent the skins of ill-fated Danish raiders. How did these associations, now proven to be myth, arise, and what else can these rare survivals tell us?
Finally, we venture into the Cambridgeshire countryside, where development-led excavations have uncovered an extensive, affluent Roman farming landscape, possibly part of a villa estate.
In this issue:
FEATURES
SILVER BEYOND EMPIRE
Offering a new perspective on the late Roman to early medieval transition
What can silver hoards and other objects of this material tell us about reactions to the end of Roman administration and the emergence of early medieval kingdoms? Over the last 15 years, international research has offered illuminating insights into a period of transition and transformation.
SKIN IN THE GAME
Examining the lives of Britain’s oldest church doors
Tree-ring dating has helped identify some of the oldest surviving church doors in Britain, including those found at Westminster Abbey and Hadstock Church. Warwick Rodwell examines the life history of these doors, from the story of their construction and use, to the sometimes grisly myths surrounding them.
HOME ON THE RANGE
Examining a late Roman villa estate at Milton, Cambridgeshire
The area around Cambridge is known to be scattered with Roman villa estates. What can the discovery of an extensive and affluent late Roman agricultural landscape near Milton add to our understanding?
PROSPERITY AND PLAGUE
Revisiting Broughton Lodge’s Anglo-Saxon cemetery
In the 1960s, a pioneering community excavation in Nottinghamshire revealed an unusual burial ground, including the largest number of multiple graves yet found in any 6th-century cemetery in England. What has more recent scientific analysis revealed about why so many people perished over a short period?
LETTERS
Your comments, complaints, and compliments
NEWS
Millennia of transport, trade, and travel along the A66; Bronze Age brought to life at Harden Quarry; Elite Anglo-Saxon centre uncovered near Skipsea Castle; Tracing historical children’s burial grounds in Ireland; New timeline for the drowning of Doggerland; Science Notes; New dating of Buckquoy dispels Viking story; Finds Tray
NEWS FOCUS
A rock and a hard place: sarsen study sheds new light on the construction of Stonehenge
COMMENT
Joe Flatman excavates the CA archive
CONTEXT
The last piece of the puzzle: Withington Roman Villa mosaics, Corinium Museum
REVIEWS
Domination: the fall of the Roman Empire and the rise of Christianity; Neolithic Impressed and Related Wares in Britain and Ireland; Common Ground in Scottish Archaeology: contributions in honour of Anna Ritchie; The Archaeology of the Stonehenge Visitor Centre; Archaeology of Britain’s Oldest Church Doors; Neolithic Timber Halls and a Bronze Age Settlement with Hoard at Carnoustie, Angus
EXHIBITION
Uncovering Roman Carlisle: where worlds met and Gladiators of Britain at Tullie, Carlisle
EXHIBITION
Samurai at the British Museum, London
MUSEUM NEWS
The latest on acquisitions, exhibitions, and key decisions
LISTINGS
Our selection of exhibitions and events, as well as historical, archaeological, and cultural resources online
SHERDS
Chris Catling’s irreverent take on heritage issues
ODD SOCS
The Carpenters’ Fellowship
