After conducting year-long research, archaeologists believe that they have found Britain's most spectacular Anglo-Saxon treasure. As per the experts, the Staffordshire hoard belongs to the era when battles were very common between rival English kingdoms. After analysing these treasures, archaeologists claimed that it was possibly seized during six substantial military encounters.
The treasure, which is thought to have been taken by the English midlands kingdom of Mercia from Northumbria, East Anglia and possibly Wessex, is mentioned as the greatest Anglo-Saxon golden treasure ever found. It should be noted that this treasure is one of the most important archaeological discoveries ever made in this region.
The Anglo-Saxon era in Britain spans approximately the six centuries from 410 to 1066AD. This period is also known as the Dark Ages, mainly because written sources for the early years of Saxon invasion are scarce. It was the time when the Roman Britannia broke into several separate kingdoms and the period witnessed continuous battles against Vikings.
Over 10 year's researchers conducted a study and finally, they decided to publish a complete account of the hundreds of high-status gold and silver objects, which were found by metal detectors, almost a decade ago in a field in southeast Staffordshire. The archaeologists described all of the hoard's 700 objects, including four kilograms of gold items and over one kilogram of silver. They suggested that the material is actually military in nature and one of the small numbers of ecclesiastical objects in the hoard appears to have been of a potential military character.
As reported by The Guardian, the lead academic on the project, Chris Fern said that among 700 discovered items, about 80% are fittings from weapons and most of them from swords. In addition, he mentioned, "What this hoard really shows us for the first time is a golden age in this period of Anglo-Saxon England – and I mean that literally. This was a period when gold was suddenly much more available and was converted into beautiful objects for the warrior elite."
