Photos: Bejeweled Anglo-Saxon Found in Christian "Burial Bed"

Christian Treasure

Photograph courtesy University of Cambridge

This solid-gold pectoral cross inlaid with garnets was recovered from the early Anglo-Saxon grave. Only the fifth cross of its type yet found in the U.K., the treasure is among the earliest Christian artifacts known from Anglo-Saxon Britain, said dig team leader Alison Dickens of the University of Cambridge's Archaeological Unit.

Loops on the back of the cross indicate the bauble was worn stitched into the young woman's clothes. The cross was probably made in England, but the gold and garnets were likely sourced from as far away as Asia.

For the dead teenager to have been buried with such a valuable object shows that "she's an important, probably wealthy person," Dickens added.

(Related pictures: "Celtic Princess Tomb Yields Gold, Amber Riches.")

Published March 21, 2012

Lady of the Cross

Photograph courtesy University of Cambridge

The gold cross pokes from the noblewoman's grave during excavations at a housing-development site near Cambridge, England.

Other items found at the seventh-century burial site included an iron knife, a waist chain, and glass beads, which would have been kept in a purse on the end of the chain.

While the cross is clearly Christian in its symbolism, the other objects hark back to earlier beliefs, said dig leader Dickens.

Pagan burials often contained personal effects of the dead for use in the afterlife, but as Christianity took hold, that practice petered out, Dickens said. The newfound grave thus marks a "transitional point" between Christian and pagan beliefs.

(Related pictures: "Pagan-Cult Worship Objects Found.")

Published March 21, 2012

Burial Bed

Photograph courtesy Ricky Patten, University of Cambridge

Seen during excavation work in 2011, the body of the Anglo-Saxon noblewoman—which dates back to between A.D. 650 and 680—was laid to rest on a "burial bed."

Constructed from wood and metal, the bed had a slatted base and a straw mattress.

Burial beds are extremely rare, but the few that are known also date to the early Anglo-Saxon period, the study team said. Why only a chosen few were buried in their beds remains a mystery.

(Related pictures: "51 Headless Vikings in English Execution Pit Confirmed.")

Published March 21, 2012

Cross Marks the Spot

Photographs courtesy University of Cambridge

Perhaps worn by an early English convert to Christianity, the garnet-encrusted cross (seen above from the front and back) may mean that the grave marks the site of an ancient monastery or missionary center, according to archaeologists.

Along with the noblewoman's burial site, the team found the graves of two other teenage females and one individual of undetermined gender in his or her twenties next to the remains of an Anglo-Saxon settlement.

(Related: "Stonehenge Settlement Found: Builders' Homes, 'Cult Houses.'")

The cross indicates that the site had "some sort of Christian focus, be it a monastery, nunnery, or something like that," Dickens said.

Published March 21, 2012

Next: Lifelike "Wet Mummy" Found During Roadbuilding >>

Photograph from Fame Pictures/Barcroft

Published March 21, 2012