More skeletons discovered in Anglo-Saxon dig

The remains of an Anglo-Saxon child and three women adorned with brooches and beads were discovered at a former playground in Oakington yesterday.

Students excavating an Anglo-Saxon grave at the site [Credit: Cambridge News]

This follows the rare excavation last week of the first woman from this period ever to be found buried alongside a domestic animal – a cow.

Dr Duncan Sayer, from the University of Central Lancashire, one of the archaeologists leading the dig, said: “We came across the remains at 8am. It was an exciting find particularly as the women were buried with a bone comb which is a clear indication of closeness and community.”

A team of 40 archaeologists and students worked till 8pm to ensure that the bodies were preserved in a lab to avoid any contamination from exposure.

The bodies found are pagan Anglo-Saxons from the sixth century AD.

In 1926 four early Anglo-Saxon burials, one with a spear, knife and a shield boss, were found in Oakington.

Towards the turn of the millennium, during the construction of a children’s playground in 1993 and 1994, 26 further Anglo-Saxon burials were excavated by Cambridgeshire’s Archaeological Field Unit.   

Dr Sayer said: “So far 83 bodies have been excavated from the site but we hope to increase that number to 100 by the time we leave on July 15.”

Source: Cambridge News [June 28, 2012]