Buckland was an inhumation-only cemetery, with no evidence of cremation. The cemetery was on a false crest on the hill, having wide views of the surrounding landscape. Many of the dead were interred with grave goods, which included personal ornaments, weapons, and domestic items.
The cemetery is located on the southern slope of Long Hill, on the eastern bank of the River Dour.[1] The site is visible from the river valley coming from the coast line.[1] Geologically, the base rock was unbroken solid chalk.[1]
A late prehistoric barrow ditch was located in the highest part of the Anglo-Saxon cemetery, on a false crest of the hill. There was also evidence for Romano-British activity on the site, with a small circular pit 2 feet deep cut into the chalk, containing a few sherds of Roman-era pottery.[2]
Archaeological investigation
In 1951, construction began on the Buckland Estate, a housing project on the site of the cemetery. Workmen uncovered a number of artefacts when they began clearing the soil, before coming across skeletal remains. The archaeologist W.P.B. Stebbing was brought in to examine the finds, and he oversaw the excavation of Grave C, revealing that it was of Anglo-Saxon date. The artefacts uncovered were sent to F.L. Warner, curator of Dover Museum, and the Inspectorate of Ancient Monuments decided to implement a rescue excavation of the site.[1] Excavation began in September 1951, under the directorship of Vera I. Evison, who was assisted by John Anstee, David Smith, and G.C. Dunning, who was responsible for surveying the site.[1] Due to the disturbance of the heavy machinery driving up the hill coupled with heavy rainstorms, four of the graves that had been identified – 31, 47, 51, and 86 – were destroyed prior to excavation.[3]
A lack of resources following the culmination of the Second World War meant that post-excavation work was delayed, and in 1963, the artefacts were transferred to the British Museum in Bloomsbury, Central London.[1] From 1974 to 1980, the Museum exhibited most of the finds from the site in their Medieval Gallery, while the final excavation report was finished in 1984, seeing publication in 1987.[1] Archaeologist Keith Parfitt later described the report as "a major contribution" to Kentish and wider Anglo-Saxon studies.[4]
In early 1994, proposals were put forward to construct another housing estate – termed "Castle View" – this time on the lower slopes of Long Hill. Kent County Council's Heritage Conservation Group requested that archaeologists put in some evaluation trenches in Castle View to see if any outlying Anglo-Saxon graves would be destroyed by the development; undertaking the work in a single day in March 1994, South-Eastern Archaeological Services revealed 12 graves. Realising that a full excavation was required, the developer, Orbit Housing Association, contracted the work to the Canterbury Archaeological Trust, who undertook the work from June to September.[5] Following the excavation, the developer donated all of the artefacts to the British Museum,[5] while the two roads serving the newly built houses were named Evison Close and Parfitt Way after the archaeologists who had led the two excavations.[6]
Background
The Kingdom of Kent.
With the advent of the Anglo-Saxon period in the fifth century CE, the area that became Kent underwent a radical transformation on a political, social, and physical level.[7] In the preceding era of Roman Britain, the area had been administered as the civitas of Cantiaci, a part of the Roman Empire, but following the collapse of Roman rule in 410 CE, many signs of Romano-British society began to disappear, replaced by those of the ascendant Anglo-Saxon culture.[7] Later Anglo-Saxon accounts attribute this change to the widescale invasion of Germanic language tribes from northern Europe, namely the Angles, Saxons, and Jutes.[8] Archaeological and toponymic evidence shows that there was a great deal of syncretism, with Anglo-Saxon culture interacting and mixing with the Romano-British culture.[9]
The Old English term Kent first appears in the Anglo-Saxon period, and was based on the earlier Celtic-language name Cantii.[10] Initially applied only to the area east of the River Medway, by the end of the sixth century it also referred to areas to the west of it.[10] The Kingdom of Kent was the first recorded Anglo-Saxon kingdom to appear in the historical record,[11] and by the end of the sixth century, it had become a significant political power, exercising hegemony over large parts of southern and eastern Britain.[7] At the time, Kent had strong trade links with Francia, while the Kentish royal family married members of Francia's Merovingian dynasty, who were already Christian.[12] Kentish King Æthelberht was the overlord of various neighbouring kingdoms when he converted to Christianity in the early seventh century as a result of Augustine of Canterbury and the Gregorian mission, who had been sent by Pope Gregory to replace England's pagan beliefs with Christianity.[13] It was in this context that the Finglesham cemetery was in use.
Kent has a wealth of Early Medieval funerary archaeology.[14] The earliest excavation of Anglo-Saxon Kentish graves was in the 17th century, when antiquarians took an increasing interest in the material remains of the period.[15] In the ensuing centuries, antiquarian interest gave way to more methodical archaeological investigation, and prominent archaeologists like Bryan Faussett, James Douglas, Cecil Brent, George Payne, and Charles Roach Smith "dominated" archaeological research in Kent.[15]
Cemetery features
Most of the graves at Buckland are orientated W-NW to E-SE.[16] Only one is facing the complete opposite direction.[16] The depth of the graves varied, although most were around 0.36 metres deep below the 1950s soil level. The deepest was 0.76m (2ft 6in) below, while the shallowest were 15–23cm (5.9–9.1in) below the modern surface, indicating that the Anglo-Saxon ground level was undoubtedly higher.[16] The sizes of the graves also varied, with the smallest being 1.02m ×0.51m ×0.28m (3ft 4in ×1ft 8in ×11in), and the largest being 3.2m ×0.86m ×0.41m (10.5ft ×2.8ft ×1.3ft).[17] Excavators also noted that the quality of the grave cut had also differed, from those that were neatly and sharply cut, to those which had been more roughly cut into the rock.[18]
The conditions of the soil meant that the skeletal remains were not well preserved when excavated.[19] There were 11 instances where the osteological sexing of the bones differs from the gender of the grave goods; the excavators believed that the grave goods were an accurate indication of the individual's sex, and that the osteoarchaeology was incorrect.[20]
One of the most notable inhumations was found in Grave 67, and consisted of a female body that faced downward, while the skull was turned around to look up. The right arm was under the body but with the hand over the left shoulder, while the left arm was bent under the body. The right leg was bent under the extended left leg. The director of the excavation, Vera Evison, suggested that while the body could have simply been "unceremoniously" placed into the grave, the lack of grave goods made her suspect that the woman had been buried alive, with her position indicative of an attempt to push herself out of the grave.[19]
Another notable case was Grave 96, the only double burial, containing one man aged around 40, and one person of indeterminate sex aged between 20 and 30; both were given the typical weapon burials associated with male burials. Evison suggested that it might indicate that homosexuality was "sufficiently socially acceptable" that two male lovers were buried together.[21]
Archaeogenetic research on a large sample of skeletons from the cemetery showed that most were identical to a reference group of Continental northern European (CNE) DNA samples when compared with a Welsh/British/Irish (WBI) reference group that showed genetic continuity from Britain's Iron-Age population. Influence of WBI genetic material was, however, traceable in some detail. The researchers gave the example of
a group of relatives, spanning at least three generations, who all exhibit unadmixed CNE ancestry. Down the pedigree, we then see the integration of a female into this group, who herself had unadmixed WBI ancestry (grave 304), and two daughters (graves 290 and 426), consequently of mixed ancestry. WBI ancestry entered again one generation later, as visible in near 50:50 mixed-ancestry grandchildren (graves 414, 305 and 425). Grave goods, including brooches and weapons, are in fact found on both sides of this family tree, pre-mixing and post-mixing (for example, in the youngest and mixed generation, we found both weapons, beads and pin, and their mother with a brooch).
Adding in a third reference group, people from the Iron Age in present-day France, the researchers found more specifically that about half the genetic material matched the CNE profile, a quarter the WBI profile, and a quarter the western European profile, indicating that many of the people buried had ancestry in that region.[22]
The Kingdom of the Kentish, today referred to as the Kingdom of Kent, was an early medieval kingdom in what is now South East England. It existed from either the fifth or the sixth century AD until it was fully absorbed into the Kingdom of Wessex in the late 9th century and later into the Kingdom of England in the early 10th century.
Julliberrie's Grave, also known as The Giant's Grave or The Grave, is an unchambered long barrow located near to the village of Chilham in the south-eastern English county of Kent. Probably constructed in the fourth millennium BCE, during Britain's Early Neolithic period, today it survives only in a state of ruin.
The Snape Anglo-Saxon Cemetery is a place of burial dated to the 6th century AD located on Snape Common, near to the town of Aldeburgh in Suffolk, Eastern England. Dating to the early part of the Anglo-Saxon Era of English history, it contains a variety of different forms of burial, with inhumation and cremation burials being found in roughly equal proportions. The site is also known for the inclusion of a high status ship burial. A number of these burials were included within burial mounds.
Anglo-Saxon dress refers to the clothing and accessories worn by the Anglo-Saxons from the middle of the fifth century to the eleventh century. Archaeological finds in Anglo-Saxon cemeteries have provided the best source of information on Anglo-Saxon costume. It is possible to reconstruct Anglo-Saxon dress using archaeological evidence combined with Anglo-Saxon and European art, writing and literature of the period. Archaeological finds have both supported and contradicted the characteristic Anglo-Saxon costume as illustrated and described by these contemporary sources.
The archaeology of Anglo-Saxon England is the study of the archaeology of England from the 5th century AD to the 11th century, when it was ruled by Germanic tribes known collectively as the Anglo-Saxons.
The Taplow Barrow is an early medieval burial mound in Taplow Court, an estate in the south-eastern English county of Buckinghamshire. Constructed in the seventh century, when the region was part of an Anglo-Saxon kingdom, it contained the remains of a deceased individual and their grave goods, now mostly in the British Museum. It is often referred to in archaeology as the Taplow burial.
Burial in Anglo-Saxon England refers to the grave and burial customs followed by the Anglo-Saxons between the mid 5th and 11th centuries CE in Early Mediaeval England. The variation of the practice performed by the Anglo-Saxon peoples during this period, included the use of both cremation and inhumation. There is a commonality in the burial places between the rich and poor – their resting places sit alongside one another in shared cemeteries. Both of these forms of burial were typically accompanied by grave goods, which included food, jewelry, and weaponry. The actual burials themselves, whether of cremated or inhumed remains, were placed in a variety of sites, including in cemeteries, burial mounds or, more rarely, in ship burials.
An Anglo-Saxon burial mound is an accumulation of earth and stones erected over a grave or crypt during the late sixth and seventh centuries AD in Anglo-Saxon England. These burial mounds are also known as barrows or tumuli.
A bed burial is a type of burial in which the deceased person is buried in the ground, lying upon a bed. It is a burial custom that is particularly associated with high-status women during the early Anglo-Saxon period, although excavated examples of bed burials are comparatively rare.
The Street House Anglo-Saxon cemetery is an Anglo-Saxon burial ground, dating to the second half of the 7th century AD, that was discovered at Street House Farm near Loftus, in the unitary authority of Redcar and Cleveland, England. Monuments dating back as far as 3300 BC are located in the vicinity of the cemetery, which was discovered after aerial photography revealed the existence of an Iron Age rectangular enclosure. The excavations, carried out between 2005 and 2007, revealed over a hundred graves dating from the 7th century AD and the remains of several buildings. An array of jewellery and other artefacts was found, including the jewels once worn by a young high-status Anglo-Saxon woman who had been buried on a bed and covered by an earth mound.
Polhill Anglo-Saxon cemetery is a place of burial that was used in the seventh and eighth centuries CE. It is located close to the hamlet of Polhill, near Sevenoaks in Kent, South-East England. Belonging to the Middle Anglo-Saxon period, it was part of the much wider tradition of burial in Early Anglo-Saxon England.
Finglesham Anglo-Saxon cemetery is a place of burial that was used from the sixth to the eighth centuries CE. It is located adjacent to the village of Finglesham, near Sandwich in Kent, South East England. Belonging to the Anglo-Saxon period, it was part of the much wider tradition of burial in Early Anglo-Saxon England.
Fordcroft Anglo-Saxon cemetery was a place of burial. It is located in the town of Orpington in South East London, South-East England. Belonging to the Middle Anglo-Saxon period, it was part of the much wider tradition of burial in Early Anglo-Saxon England. Fordcroft was a mixed inhumation and cremation ceremony.
Mill Hill Anglo-Saxon cemetery is a place of burial located close to the town of Deal in Kent, South-East England. Belonging to the Middle Anglo-Saxon period, it was part of the much wider tradition of burial in Early Anglo-Saxon England.
Sarre Anglo-Saxon cemetery is a place of burial that was used in the sixth and seventh centuries CE.
Sonia Chadwick Hawkes, was a leading specialist in early Anglo-Saxon archaeology, described by fellow medieval archaeologist Paul Ashbee as a "discerning systematiser of the great array of Anglo-Saxon grave furnishings". She led major excavations on Anglo-Saxon cemeteries at Finglesham in Kent and Worthy Park in Hampshire.
Vera Ivy Evison was a British archaeologist and professor of archaeology at Birkbeck College, University of London. She was a specialist in Post-Roman Britain and early-Medieval England
Updown Girl is the name given to the skeletal remains of a young Anglo-Saxon girl discovered at an early 7th century burial site close to Updown Farm, near Eastry in Kent. Although first found in the 1980s the Updown Girl aroused new interest in 2022 when modern aDNA analysis indicated she had some West African ancestry, with evidence suggesting her paternal grandfather, or possibly her great-grandfather, came from either the Esan or Yoruba population groups.
A 7th-century cemetery was discovered in Updown, Kent, United Kingdom, in the 1970s. It was excavated by Sonia Chadwick Hawkes and Brian Philp in advance of development. Part of the cemetery is protected as a scheduled monument, and its full extent may encompass around 300 graves.
↑ Gretzinger, J., Sayer, D., Justeau, P. et al. The Anglo-Saxon migration and the formation of the early English gene pool. Nature 610, 112–119 (2022). doi:10.1038/s41586-022-05247-2.
Parfitt, Keith (2012). "Introduction and Archaeological Background". Buckland Anglo-Saxon Cemetery, Dover: Excavations 1994. Canterbury: Canterbury Archaeological Trust. pp.1–8.
Welch, Martin (2007). "Anglo-Saxon Kent to AD 800". In J.H. Williams (ed.). The Archaeology of Kent to AD 800. Rochester: Kent County Council. pp.187–250.
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