Archaeologists stumped by Anglo-Saxon artefact ‘completely unlike’ any other

London: A mysterious Anglo-Saxon object has been unearthed that is “completely unlike” any other artefact discovered, an expert has said.

Detectorists in Norfolk, England, found the gilded silver relic, which is 19.4mm in diameter with intricate designs depicting a stylised animal looking over its shoulder.

The Anglo-Saxon mystery object unearthed in the UK. Credit: Andrew Williams/Norfolk County Council

Despite the skill which would have been required to make it, the roughly 1200-year-old object has no apparent purpose and remains a mystery to archaeologists.

Dr Helen Geake, Norfolk’s finds liaison officer, who is also an expert on television show Time Team, believes the ornate trinket reveals the skill of Anglo-Saxon craftsmen.

She told the BBC: “It was made by someone with a real eye for loveliness.

“It’s so tiny and yet it was created just as carefully as something like a Bible or piece of jewellery.”

The Anglo-Saxon mystery object unearthed in the UK.Credit: Andrew Williams/Norfolk County Council

The mysterious object was found in a crumpled condition, but is round with shallow sides forming a dish-like shape.

Elaborate pattering similar to the insular geometric design on the Lindisfarne Gospels and the Book of Kells adorn the tiny object, and a stylised horse-like outline on the “top” of the piece is shown looking back over its shoulder.

It is believed the design would have been created using gold and mercury imported from Spain.

While the skill and expense suggest the object was as important as personal jewellery and the ornaments added to sacred texts, experts do not know what the artefact was used for.

Several others of a similar design have been found in the past, but organic material which may have provided clues as to their use has long since perished.

Geake has suggested that the objects may have been placed at the top of a staff whose wood has decayed.

Artefacts are consistently churned up from the Norfolk soil, and in 2022 official figures confirmed that the county was the UK’s number one for treasure finds, with 98 discoveries deemed to be legally treasure by the coroner’s office.

The largest collection of Anglo-Saxon gold coins ever found in England was unearthed in a field in west Norfolk over several decades.

The Telegraph, London

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