Treasure-filled grave belonging to a teen girl and child unearthed after 1,300 years
More than 1,300 years ago, a teenage girl and a child were buried side-by-side in the United Kingdom. Now, due to construction, their grave has been unearthed — along with the ancient treasures it held.
Wessex Archaeology experts have excavated 50 sites along a planned onshore cable route since 2020, but they said “the most striking discovery” is the remains of an Anglo-Saxon cemetery, which included the treasure-filled grave, according to a Jan. 8 news release. The grave was found in Lincolnshire, which is about 115 miles north of London.
Archaeologists said they uncovered more than 20 people’s buried remains and 250 grave goods, including knives, jewelry and pottery vessels. The burials were focused in a “Bronze Age ring ditch,” which indicates the cemetery was “long established.”
Among the 20 people’s burials, experts excavated the remains of a teenage girl and a child, Wessex Archaeology said. The two were lying on their sides, and the child was “tucked in behind the older girl.”
Within the burial were “two small gold pendants set with garnets and a delicate silver pendant with an amber mount,” which were found near the “teenager’s head or chest,” according to archaeologists. Two “doughnut shaped translucent light turquoise glass beads” and a broach were also discovered in the grave.
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Now, researchers have plans to explore the relationship between the child and the teenager.
“Although many Anglo-Saxon cemeteries are known in Lincolnshire, most were excavated decades ago when the focus was on the grave goods, not the people buried there,” Jacqueline McKinley, an expert with Wessex Archaeology, said in the organization’s release. “Here we can employ various scientific advancements, including isotopic and DNA analyses. This will give us a far better understanding of the population, from their mobility to their genetic background and even their diet.”
Experts are also examining other artifacts and the cemetery’s layout to learn more about the ancient community.
This story was originally published January 9, 2024 at 5:07 PM with the headline "Treasure-filled grave belonging to a teen girl and child unearthed after 1,300 years."
