PORTABLE ANTIQUITIES AND TREASURE ANNUAL REPORT 2008 REPORT ANNUAL TREASURE AND ANTIQUITIES PORTABLE PORTABLE ANTIQUITIES AND TREASURE ANNUAL REPORT 2008 Front and back covers: Gold stater (reverse and obverse). One of 840 found in a hoard in the Wickham Market area, Suffolk (no. 471). The coins date from c. 40 BC to c. AD 20. A selection of coins from the hoard is shown on the inside front cover. PORTABLE ANTIQUITIES AND TREASURE ANNUAL REPORT 2008 Minister’s foreword 4 Preface 5 Key points 8 Introduction 10 Learning and outreach 12 Best practice 18 Research and publication 20 Recording finds 24 CataLogue artefacts Stone Age 34 Bronze Age 39 Iron Age 68 Roman 79 Early Medieval 102 Medieval 129 Post-Medieval 161 Coins Iron Age 186 Roman 193 Early Medieval 211 Medieval 215 Post-Medieval 225 References 233 Indexes Index by findspot 246 Index by acquiring museum 252 Index of values 254 Contacts and organisations 257 Contributors 262 Illustrations 263 extract from Published by the Department of Portable Antiquities and Treasure, British Museum ISBN 978-0-9563795-4-2 paperback Treasure Act Annual Report 2008 vi–xii ISBN 978-0-9563795-5-9 download Treasure Act Annual Report 2008 (pages vi–xii): © Queen’s Printer and Controller of HMSO 2010 CONTENTS 2 3 I am very pleased to introduce the second joint I am very grateful to the Minister for his kind words, and Portable Antiquities and Treasure Annual Report, for his consistent support for the Portable Antiquities which covers the year 2008. Full details of all finds Scheme to date. Given the pressure to reduce public recorded with the Portable Antiquities Scheme and spending, I very much appreciate everything he has done reported Treasure, can be found on the PAS database to ensure the PAS has a long and stable future. (www.finds.org.uk). The British Museum has been a keen and active supporter The Portable Antiquities Scheme is crucial to ensuring of the PAS and the Treasure Act since their inception that the most important finds discovered by members in 1997. Since spring 2006 the Museum has managed of the public are recorded so that information about the PAS on behalf of the Museums, Libraries & Archives the past can be enjoyed by all. I am a great supporter Council, and therefore it is very much welcome that the of the Scheme and was very pleased to be able to Government has asked us to take on full responsibility for Ed Vaizey announce at the end of last year that funding will be Neil MacGregor the running and management of the Scheme from 1 April Minister for Culture, continued for the Scheme and that from 1 April 2011 Director of the 2011, also allocating a specific budget for that purpose. Communications it will be managed directly by the British Museum. This British Museum and Creative Industries will ensure that the PAS has a long and sustainable The priority for the British Museum is to safeguard the future and continues to be a great success. network of Finds Liaison Officers, who are the Scheme’s front line, and also complement our Museum in Britain I am very grateful for the hard work of the Scheme’s programme. We have already offered four-year contracts staff, particularly its network of Finds Liaison Officers. to all the local partners who employ FLOs in England, It is impressive that 53,346 archaeological finds have without reducing salary costs, and we will do all we can been recorded by the Portable Antiquities Scheme to ensure that the network is sustained. In Wales, with and a further 806 Treasure finds (some of which are the Minister’s support, we are working with appropriate published in detail below) have been reported in 2008. stakeholders to see how the Scheme can best be funded Due to the goodwill of those finders who have reported there. Unfortunately, with reduced funding, the PAS their finds, this data is being made available to all cannot do everything it did in the past. Hence this will be to advance archaeological knowledge. The Portable the final Portable Antiquities and Treasure Annual Report Antiquities Scheme has also benefitted from the that is produced. Also, office costs across the FLO network generosity of the Headley Trust and the Institute for and within the Scheme’s Central Unit are being reduced. Archaeologists who have provided funding for interns, As the Minister says, the PAS has been very successful in enabling archaeologists and a detectorist to gain obtaining external funding to support its work, and we are new skills while at the same time as enhancing the keen to explore new funding opportunities to maximise Scheme’s recording capacity. the impact of the Scheme and its work. It is welcome news that 265 finds reported Treasure Both the PAS and curators at the British Museum have in 2008 have been acquired by museums for public been heavily involved in the Treasure process, and benefit. This may not have been possible without the there is obviously an opportunity now that the PAS is generosity of finders and landowners (82 parties in fully integrated into the British Museum to make the 2008) and the funding bodies who awarded grants to administration of the Treasure Act even more efficient. enable the acquisition of Treasure items. I would like to To that end, a designated Coroner for Treasure and other thank all those finders and landowners who have made changes to the Treasure Act (including extending the such donations and the funding bodies who awarded obligation to report Treasure and allowing the Secretary grants for items found in 2008 for their generosity. of State to designate officers to whom Treasure can be reported), enacted though the Coroners & Justice Act Finally, the Treasure scheme could not function without 2009, but yet to be implemented, would be extremely the crucial work of the local coroners and their officers, useful. Likewise, it has now been possible to display finds the Treasure Valuation Committee and its Secretariat, reported Treasure in the British Museum soon after they and also the Treasure team and curators at the British have been found, enabling the public to share the finder’s Museum. I am grateful to all those involved for their excitement of discovery and learn about the objects efforts in ensuring that we have a Treasure scheme themselves. Most of these finds are eventually acquired in this country of which we can be proud. I would by local museums, where they are studied and enjoyed particularly like to thank Professor Norman Palmer, by local people. whose term as Chairman of the Treasure Valuation Committee will come to an end this year, for his The British Museum is determined to build upon the dedication to the Committee and wider Treasure issues. tremendous success of the PAS and the Treasure Act to date, and develop positive and fruitful relationships between archaeologists and finders, museums and the general public. MINISTER’S FOREWORD PREFACE 4 5 geoFF egaN (19 october 1951 – 24 December 2010) Cloth seals recorded with the Scheme During the production of this annual report Geoff Egan Geoff was working with metal-detectorists and (Finds Adviser) sadly, and quite suddenly, passed away. other finders – principally those ‘mudlarking’ on the Geoff was a leading expert on Medieval and Post- Thames foreshore – long before it was fashionable Medieval finds, and wrote over 100 books and articles for archaeologists to do so. He was also one of the on the subject, including Lead Cloth Seals (see map on first people to recognise the contribution that metal- p. 7), The Medieval Household, Dress Accessories (with detecting could make to archaeology. His passion and Frances Pritchard) and Toys, Trifles and Trinkets (with knowledge for finds was infectious; he was just as Hazel Forsyth). He was also responsible for editing the happy talking at a metal-detecting conference as to Medieval and Post-Medieval finds in this report, which an academic conference. Almost every hour of his life was unfinished at the time of his death. For much of his was dedicated to researching finds, talking and writing life Geoff worked as an archaeologist at the Museum about them. His death therefore comes as a great loss of London, but was very much involved with the work to archaeology that is impossible to replace. He will of the PAS since 1997; he was contracted (from the be dearly missed by all of us that knew him or had Museum of London) to the Scheme from 2004, and the pleasure of working with him. worked full-time with the PAS from July 2010. Geoff Egan (front row left) and colleagues at the launch of the Portable Antiquities and Treasure Annual Report 2007 in 2009. Ed Vaizey (Minister for Culture), Michael Lewis, Geoff Egan and Andy Johanessen (finder of 418). 6 7 The main achievements of the Portable Antiquities Donations: In 2006 the DCMS launched an initiative to Liaison: During 2008 the FLOs maintained regular Scheme (PAS) and the Treasure Act 1996 in 2008 can encourage finders and landowners to consider waiving contact with 170 metal-detecting clubs – attending be summarised as follows: their rights to rewards in order that museums are more 727 club meetings, and they also liaised with local able to acquire Treasure finds; certificates, signed by the archaeological and history groups. Members of the the extent of the PaS and the Department of Minister, are given to those who do so. In 2008 there Scheme attended at least 922 other meetings to Portable antiquities and treasure: A network of were 51 (6.35%) cases where one or both parties (82 promote the Scheme and its aims.