One (Saxon) Man and his Horse

Within days of a major archaeological find of a horse and man burial thought to be on a par with the Sutton Hoo discoveries, researchers world-wide were being kept up-to-date on the latest information via a special Internet site. Over 600 callers visited the site at http://www.Suffolk within the first forty-eight hours and this included the Universities of Canberra, Harvard, Cambridge and Oxford as well as people from Spain, Germany, Finland, NZ, Canada and Ireland. John Newman, archaeologist at Suffolk County Council said: ‘This is a coming together of ages – one of the latest, most important discoveries in Great Britain illustrated on the most up-to-the-minute information source.’

The excavations have proved to be of immense importance in extending understanding of the Anglo-Saxon period. Previous excavations in 1956-57 at an adjacent site had revealed the existence of an Anglo-Saxon cemetery. The decision to construct new dormitory buildings at RAF Lakenheath – a military airbase occupied by the USAF – presented an opportunity to discover the size of the cemetery.