Finglesham

An early Saxon cemetery in Kent, used between the early 6th and mid-7th centuries. The large inhumation cemetery has produced an impressive collection of material including a pattern-welded sword, garnet-inlaid bird brooches made in Kent, radiate brooches from the continent, and a richly decorated square-headed brooch. Wooden boxes with bronze binding, strings of beads, corroded buckets, and bone objects of the period were also found. Some of the female burials seem to have been interred alive.

An early Saxon cemetery situated close to the former mouth of the Wansum estuary in Kent, in use between the early 6th and mid-7 th centuries. The large inhumation cemetery was partially excavated at the beginning of this century; the main research excavation took place in the 1960s, and over 40 graves have been investigated. These have produced an impressive collection of material including a pattern-welded sword, rich garnet-inlaid bird brooches made in Kent, Continental radiate brooches and a magnificently decorated square-headed brooch. Wooden boxes with bronze binding, strings of beads, corroded buckets and bone objects of the period were also found. One gruesome aspect is that some of the female burials seem to have been interred alive.