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A new publication, An Early Medieval Craft: antler and bone working from Ipswich excavations 1974-1994, details the extraordinary Viking Age finds discovered over the course of 20 years of digging in the town by Suffolk County Council Archaeological Service (SCCAS).
In total, the excavations uncovered an astonishing 2,400 bone and antler waste fragments and over 1,300 objects, most of which date to between the 7th and 12th centuries AD. Viking-made artefacts were especially common, surpassing all other known sites in England in terms of both quantity and quality. Combs were some of the most frequent Viking items uncovered, and appear to have been made both abroad and within Ipswich itself, where they take on a particular local style. The majority of combs appear to have been made from red-deer antler, but a few reflect other materials including reindeer antler and whalebone. Other Viking Age finds from the excavations included brooch moulds, pins, strap-ends, textile-manufacturing tools, and gaming pieces, as well as maritime equipment, such as cordage toggles and a whalebone float.
Commenting on the significance of these discoveries, the authors of the book, Ian Riddler and Nicola Trzaska-Nartowski, said: ‘The range of objects is extraordinary and unique in the UK. There are several items that indicate links abroad, particularly northern France, Frisia (what we now know as parts of the Netherlands, Germany, and Denmark) and southern Scandinavia. Although most of the combs were likely made in Ipswich, there are also imports from the Merovingian, Frisian, Irish, and Viking worlds, and the closest contacts seem to lie with Dorestad and Hedeby [trading centres in what are today the Netherlands and Denmark].’
Text: K Krakowka / Images: Suffolk County Council
