East of England

Re-examination of the Colchester Vase reveals it was made locally

The vase was found in a grave, located outside Roman Colchester, having been reused as a cremation urn.

Museum Review: Muckleburgh Military Collection

Open 10am-5pm daily (1 April to 30 October)Weybourne, Norfolk, NR25 7ERwww.muckleburgh.co.uk+ 44 (0)1263 588 210 The Muckleburgh Military Collection is the largest privately owned military museum in the United Kingdom. It was opened to the public in 1988 by Michael…

Military history exhibitions, events, and festivals – March listings

Festivals IWM Duxford flying season: 50th anniversary April-October 2023IWM Duxford, Cambridgeshire, CB22 4QR, UKwww.iwm.org.uk/duxford-air-shows-50+44 (0)20 7416 5000 In the summer of 1973, ‘Duxford Air Day’ was first staged at the historic aerodrome in Cambridgeshire to celebrate the area’s aviation heritage.…

Conserving the keep

Orford Castle in Suffolk has reopened to visitors after detailed conservation work – a project 13 years in the making – was completed in January. The castle was originally built for Henry II between 1165 and 1174, as a royal…

Museum news: exhibitions on Rendlesham and Lindisfarne open

Royal sites revealed Lying more than 275 miles apart, Rendlesham and Yeavering belong to a handful of sites named as a vicus regius or ‘royal settlement’ by the Anglo-Saxon cleric Bede. Later this month, both are set to showcase their…

Iron Age axle revealed in Suffolk

The axle has been radiocarbon dated to the middle Iron Age, c.400-100 BC.

Re-excavating Arminghall Henge: a burnt timber circle from prehistoric Norfolk

Last September, an excavation at Arminghall Henge in Norfolk reopened a trench first dug by Grahame Clark almost a century earlier – revealing a glimpse of a large timber monument that may have met a fiery end. Andy Hutcheson, Matt Brudenell, and Mark Knight report.

Museum news: new exhibitions set to open in Norwich and London

The latest on exhibitions, acquisitions, and key decisions.

Further evidence of Iron Age activity identified along the A428

One of the most noteworthy finds was a huge pit full of burnt animal bones, including those of cattle and sheep/goat, as well as pottery vessels and stones.

Saving a Second World War Heavy Anti-Aircraft Battery

This Heavy Anti-Aircraft (HAA) Battery – located some 350m east of Decoy Farm, to the north of the River Bure, near Mautby, Norfolk – is believed to be the most-complete battery of its type in Britain, and one of only…

Above Overlooking the remains of Weeley Barracks. Here the northern part of the camp, looking east, is shown; the site’s main road, with buildings on either side, can be seen.

Excavating Weeley Barracks: echoes of the Napoleonic Wars in Essex

In the early years of the 19th century, military camps sprang up along the south coast of England to guard against French invasion. Once the Napoleonic Wars ended, most were dismantled, leaving little trace of this turbulent period – but now archaeological work at Weeley, a small village 11 miles from Colchester, has uncovered the remains of one such site, as Nick Cox reports.

Royal hall revealed at Rendlesham

Excavations at Rendlesham in eastern England have unearthed the remains of a high-status early medieval settlement, including a royal hall built for the first kings of East Anglia.

Rare investigation in Verulamium

Excavations at Verulamium Park in St Albans during the summer uncovered the corner of a possible mansio – a stopping place on the Roman road network – as well as remains of other buildings from the Roman town.

Opposite Flying Officers Jack ‘Benny’ Goodman (right) and John ‘Bill’ Hickox with Mosquito DZ484 at RAF Oakington, December 1943.

The Mosquito Men: the unsung heroes of 627 Squadron

The elite Pathfinders of 627 Squadron may not have achieved the renown of their Dambusting comrades in 617 Squadron but, as David Price explains in a new book, their Second World War acts of valour were equally remarkable.

RIGHT The latest CA was a special issue, highlighting new evidence of migration in the early medieval period.

Ancient DNA and ‘Anglo-Frisians’

I have a personal dislike of the term ‘Anglo-Saxon’ to describe the people and culture of southern and eastern Britain from the 4th to the 8th centuries because it is anachronistic – it implies homogeneity where I see much more interesting diversity

Current Archaeology 392

• Setting the scene: insights into early medieval England
• The migration question: exploring the history of the ‘Anglo-Saxons’
• Archaeogenetics: illuminating the past with DNA
• New evidence from Anglo-Saxon cemeteries
• Uncovering family tales and African ancestry
• What can isotopes add to the picture?
• Revisiting the Adventus Saxonum

Above Recent excavations at Caistor St Edmund have uncovered the remains of an early Roman aqueduct and other features thought to relate to a nearby temple complex.

Caistor St Edmund: excavating an aqueduct in Roman Norfolk

Archaeological investigations in a field outside Norwich, close to the remains of a Romano-Celtic temple, have uncovered further evidence of activity associated with the religious complex. Carly Hilts reports on a recent visit to the site.

Recovering an anchor from the North Sea

Through the combined efforts of ScottishPower Renewables and Maritime Archaeology Ltd, with support from Historic England, a wrought-iron anchor, possibly dating from the Roman period, was successfully raised from the North Sea in June of last year. The location of…

ABOVE This summer, excavations at Rendlesham have uncovered the remains of a high status early medieval settlement, including the footprint of a great hall, seen in the rightmost trench.

Revealing royal Rendlesham: luxury living in early medieval Suffolk

A second summer of excavation at Rendlesham, four miles from Sutton Hoo, has uncovered further evidence of a high-status settlement that thrived from the late 5th to the early 8th century. Carly Hilts spoke to Faye Minter and Professor Christopher Scull to find out more.

Exhibitions, events, and heritage from home across the UK

There are great opportunities to get involved in heritage, history, and archaeology over the coming months, ranging from new exhibitions to exciting conferences, lectures, and more. Or, if you prefer to get your cultural or historical fix from home, there are plenty of ways to do so, including virtual museums, radio and social media offerings, documentaries, and games. Amy Brunskill has put together a selection of some of the options available.

The Past

Royal hall used by kings of East Anglia unearthed in Suffolk

‘The results of this season’s excavation are of international importance. Rendlesham is the most extensive and materially wealthy settlement of its date known in England.'

Above This equal armed brooch comes from Grave 122 at West Heslerton the burial of an adolescent male who, due to the presence of this artefact, beads, and a knife, was initially interpreted as a young female. But genetic analysis demonstrated that the juvenile was biologically male, and a migrant from northern Europe who had arrived into East Yorkshire early in the post Roman period.

Setting the scene: early medieval migration into the east of England

Newly published research centred on ancient DNA, which is revolutionising our understanding of early medieval mobility and the genetic changes it brought in its wake, forms the focus of this special issue of Current Archaeology. Duncan Sayer discusses some of the key themes that we will cover this month, and how the project came together.

ABOVE Students and volunteers excavate Grave 112 at Oakington, Cambridgeshire, in 2013. Post excavation analysis, including sampling for aDNA, revealed its occupant to be a mature man aged 45 years or older, who had near 100% CNE ancestry.

Grave affairs: what can ancient DNA tell us about early Anglo-Saxon cemeteries?

By combining excavated evidence from early medieval burials with genetic information, we can gain powerful insights into patterns of population movement, and ideas of identity and integration. Duncan Sayer explains more.

Below At Oakington’s Anglo Saxon cemetery, in Cambridgeshire, two men were found buried with interlinked arms (Grave 88). Ancient DNA analysis has revealed no genetic relationship between the two, suggesting that, although the funeral party may have intended to signal a close personal relationship through this positioning, whatever their relationship had been in life, it was not based on biology.

Individual encounters: capturing personal stories with ancient DNA

The study of ancient DNA is a potent recent addition to the archaeological arsenal, with the power to illuminate (and eliminate) family relationships between excavated individuals. Duncan Sayer, Dominic Powlesland, and Allison Stewart explore some of the most-intriguing recent revelations from the early medieval period.

ABOVE Cleaned teeth (after having been through a sonic bath and dried in the oven) set to undergo isotope analysis.

Isotopes and aDNA: teasing apart ancestry versus migration in early medieval England

The previous articles in this issue have focused primarily on ancient DNA – but what can isotopic analysis add to this picture? Sam Leggett explores how this technique can complement genetic analysis, and how it illuminates the experiences of people living centuries earlier.

Below ’Spong Man’ sits on the lid of a mid fifth century cremation urn from Spong Hill in Norfolk.

Revisiting the Adventus Saxonum, again: exploring the implications of new evidence

Following this issue’s explorations of genetic data, cemetery and skeletal evidence, and isotope analysis, Joanna Story reflects on the significance of the research, and its place within the bigger picture of understanding the early Middle Ages.

New analysis shines light on medieval anti-Semitism in Norwich

The remains of at least 17 individuals found in a medieval well in central Norwich most likely represent a group of Ashkenazi Jews who fell victim to anti-Semitic violence in the 12th or early 13th century, a new study suggests.…

The Past