The grave of a sixteen year old girl was found at Trumpington Meadows near Cambridge. Her 1,400 year old grave contained a knife, glass beads, and a gold and garnet cross, making this one of the earliest Christian burials in England.
Skeleton of the young woman
Dr. Sam Lewsey, an expert on Anglo-Saxon burials, stated that the knife and glass beads were evidence of pagan burial rituals, placing the grave firmly with the transitional period. The girl was given a bed burial, a practice where nobles were laid on a frame of wood and metal, topped with straw. Bed burials disappeared after the 7th century.
Garnet cross, front and back
- “Is this Britain’s first Christian burial? Anglo Saxon grave reveals 16-year-old girl laid to rest with a gold cross“, MailOnline, 2012-03-15
- “Collingbourne Ducis, Wiltshire: an Early Saxon cemetery with bed burial“, N. Stoodley, J. Schuster