Table Of ContentIllington: A Study
of a Breckland
Parish and its
Anglo-Saxon
Cemetery
by Alan Davison,
Barbara Green and
Bill Milligan
with contributions by
Steven Ashley, Andrew D. Russel and
Calvin Wells
East Anglian Archaeology
Report No.63
Field Archaeology Division
Norfolk Museums Service
EASTANGLU\NARCHAEOLOGY
REPORT N0.63
Published by
Field Archaeology Division
Norfolk Museums Service
Union House
Gressenhall
Dereham, Norfolk NR20 4DR
in conjunction with
The Scale Archaeological Committee
Editor: Peter Wade-Martins
EAA Managing Editor: Jenny Glazebrook
Scale Editorial Sub-Committee:
David Buckley, County Archaeologist, Essex Planning Department
Keith Wade, County Archaeological Officer, Suffolk Planning Department
Peter Wade-Martins, County Field Archaeologist, Norfolk Museums Service
Stanley West
Set in Times Roman by Joan Daniells using ®Ventura Publisher
Printed by Crowes of Norwich
©FIELD ARCHAEOLOGY DIVISION
ISBN 0 905594 09 6
for details of East Anglian Archaeology, see last page
This volume is published with the aid of a grant from the Historic Buildings
and Monuments Commission for England
Cover Ulustration
Aerial view of Illington, 1993 (TL 9489/J/FYCl)
Photo: Derek A.Edwards
Contents
List of Contents V Part 11: The Anglo-Saxon Cemetery
List of Plates V Chapter 2. Introduction, by Barbara Green
I. Introduction 12
List of Figures vi
Il. The excavation of the cemetery 13
Ill. Method of excavation and recording 14
List of Tables VI N. The numbering of the urns 16
V Cremated bones 16
Contents of Microfiche VII VI. The dating of the cemetery 17
VII. The Illington/Lackford Workshop 17
Preface VII
Chapter 3. Catalogue of Cremations and
Contributors vii Inhumations, by Barbara Green with
Bill Milligan
Acknowledgements vii
I. Notes on the catalogue 18
Il. Cremations 22
Summary Vlll Ill. Inhumations 45
N. Stray finds 46
Part 1: The Parish Survey
Chapter 4. Specialist Reports
I. Human remains, by the late Calvin Wells 100
Chapter 1. The Changing Pattern of
Appendix I: Cremation urn bone catalogue
Settlement in a Breckland Parish, by (microfiche)
Alan Davison 1 Il. Pottery fabric analysis, by Andrew D.
I. Summary 1 Russel 107
Il. The parish of lllington 1 Appendix II:Detailed pottery fabric descriptions
Ill. Geology and topography 1 (microfiche)
N. Soils and land use 1
V. The field survey 1 Bibliography 112
VI. Documentary evidence 6 Index 113
VII. The evidence reviewed 9 Microfiche
List of Plates
Pl.I Marsh settlement; the valley floor Pl.IX The almost entire urn 51 with urn
under plough, c. 1988. 1 50 and urn 49. 47
Pl.II View of the valley floor in 1949, PI. X Urn 126, an example of the
with a spring-fed pond. 2 lllington/Lackford workshop
Pl.III St Andrew's Church, Illington. 10 (Stamp Group 1). 47
Pl.IV View of cemetery with excavations PI. XI The bossed and stamped urns 166
in progress. 12 and 167 during excavation. 47
PI. V The digging team relaxing. 13 PI. XII Urn 175 with the sherds of urn 174
PI. VI A 'burning ghat'. 14 above. 47
PI. VII Grid VIII showing inhumation Hl PI. XIII Grid IX with inhumation H2 and
and a number of urns. 16 urns. 48
PI. VIII Urn 44, an example of the Illington/ PI. XIV The fragmentary remains of urn
Lackford workshop (Stamp Group 204, a sheet bronze vessel. 48
1). 47 Pl.XV Grid IX with inhumation H2, and
urns 168B, 168A and 169. 48
V
List of Figures
Fig.1 Location map viii Figs 14-17 Bossed and linear decorated pots 55
Fig. 2 Map of parish with site of cemetery X Figs 18-23 Stamped decoration 59
Fig. 3 Pre-Roman and Romano-British Figs 24-37 Stamp-linked pots 65
finds in Illington 3 Figs 38-48 Grave goods and stray finds 79
Fig. 4 Saxon and Early Medieval finds in Fig. 49 Dendrogram produced using data
Illington 4 from a sample of Illington urns 108
Fig.5 Medieval and Late Medieval{rransi- Figs 50-57 Dendrograms showing relationships
tional finds in Illington 5 within fabric groups (microfiche)
Fig. 6 The past landscape 7 Fig. 58 Degree of dispersion in the urn
Fig. 7 Cemetery: location of 1982 field- groups 109
walking grid 13 Fig. 59 Dispersion of Illington/Lackford
Fig. 8 Plan of Anglo-Saxon cemetery 15 fabrics across the cemetery 110
Figs 9-13 Undecorated pots 50
List of Tables
Table 1 Urns and associated material from Table 10 Summary of urns, their contents,
cremation burials 21 fabric and sherd movements (micro-
Tables 2-4 Pottery stamp motifs 91 fiche)
Table 5 Stamp-linked Group 1 the Illington/ Table 11 Cremations: sex determination 101
Lackford potter 94 Table 12 Cremations: age determination 102
Table 6 Stamp-linked Groups 2-5 96 Table 13 Sexed cremations classified accord-
Table 7 Stamp-linked Groups 6--14 97 ing to age 102
Table 8 Stamp-linked Groups 15-23 98 Table 14 Adult cremations classified accord-
Table 9 Stamp-linked Groups 24-30 99 ing to sex 102
Table 15 Presence/Absence of inclusions in
the Illington pottery (microfiche)
Contents of Microfiche
Table 10 Summary of urns, their contents, Appendix 11 Detailed pottery fabric descriptions,
fabric, and sherd movements by Andrew D.Russel
Appendix I Cremation urn bone catalogue, by Figs 50-57 Dendrograms showing relationships
Calvin Wells within fabric groups
Table 15 Presence/Absence of inclusions
vi
Preface
This volume began as a report on the excavations of the felt that a catalogue should be produced and that synthetic
Illington Anglo-Saxon cemetery carried out by Group work should be left until all the cemeteries can be studied
Captain G.M. Knocker in 1949. However, it was decided in detail. Other cemeteries in this series include Bergh
that Alan Davison's study of Illington parish, based on Apton, Morning Thorpe, Spong Hill in North Elmham and
documents and field-survey, set the cemetery in its local West Garth Gardens in Bury St Edmunds. Very brief sug
context, and the two are now published together. gestions about the date of the cemetery have been
As with the other Norfolk and Suffolk Anglo-Saxon published in the Introduction.
cemeteries published in EastAnglianArchaeology, it was
Major Contributors
Steven Ashley, F.C.S.D., A.IF.A., Bill Milligan,
Illustrator, Norfolk Archaeological Unit Assistant Keeper of Archaeology, Norwich Castle
Museum
Alan Davison, M.A., F.S.A. Scot.
Andrew D. Russet, B.A., Ph.D., M.IF.A.
Barbara Green, B.Sc., F.S.A., F.M.A., The late Calvin Wells, F.R.A.I., Ph.D., M.R.C.S.,
formerly Keeper of Archaeology, Norwich Castle L.R.C.P.,
Museum Consultant Anthropologist
Acknowledgements
Part 1: Alan Davison is grateful to the staff of the Norfolk microfiche. John Davies of the Archaeology Department
Record Office for making available the maps and docu in Norwich Castle Museum re-drew the cemetery plan. The
ments consulted, to Mr R. Johnson and Mr P. Southgate for fabric analysis of the pots was carried out by Dr AD.
permitting access to their fields in lllington, to Andrew Russet in the early 1980's. J.D. Richards, now of the
Rogerson and John Wymer, then (1989) of the Norfolk Department of Archaeology, University of York, solved the
Archaeological Unit, for identifying the finds, and to mystery of the curious clinker found in some of the urns
Edwin Rose for information from the Norfolk Sites and after many others in Britain and on the Continent had tried.
Monuments Record. Lady Briscoe, who, with the help of her daughter Diana,
Part II: Barbara Green and Bill Milligan must begin set up a national archive of Pagan Anglo-Saxon pottery
their acknowledgements with Group-Captain G.M. stamps, has generously allowed full use to be made of her
Knocker, who excavated the site; Dr J.N.L. Myres, who casts and has provided her conclusions on the Illington
contributed so much to the study of the pottery; Dr Calvin material and on stamp-linked pots from other sites. The
Wells, who carried out a pioneering study of the human elephant ivory rings were studied by Barbara Green in the
remains; and R. Rainbird Clarke, who contributed much to 1960's as part of a larger survey. To all these contributors
the early post-excavation studies. None have lived to see the authors express their grateful thanks. In addition they
the report in print and this volume is dedicated to their wish to record their gratitude to many colleagues and in
memories. All did much after World War II to set archaeo particular to Andrew Rogerson and Kenneth Penn of the
logy in Norfolk on a firm footing. Norfolk Field Archaeology Division and to Stanley West,
A report such as this is inevitably a team effort. Resto until recently the Suffolk County Field Archaeologist, for
ration of the pots and conservation of the finds was carried much help, both practical and in discussion. Special thanks
out in Norwich Castle Museum. Most of the published are due to Sue Margeson of the Archaeology Department,
drawings of pots and grave goods are by Steven Ashley, Norwich Castle Museum who helped in the final stages of
while Bill Milligan was responsible for the stamp draw the production of the volume in many ways and not least
ings. Figures 1-7 are by Dave Fox, after Alan Davison and in the final months, in protecting the authors from phone
Bill Milligan. Jon Maxwell of the Display Department, calls and routine work.
Norfolk Museums Service produced the tables of the The majority of the plates are from the 1949 excavation
stamp-linked groups. Rosemary O'Donoghue of the Castle archive and were taken by Guy Knocker, or by Roy Hughes
Museum typed, with great patience, the tables of associated who assisted him. Plate I was taken by Alan Davison, who
objects from cremation burials and the summary tables in retains the copyright.
vii
Summary
The excavation of part of an Anglo-Saxon cemetery at 1960). A general survey of the finds suggests that the
Illington was carried out in 1949. The excavator was con cemetery began in the 6th century AD and continued into
vinced that be bad discovered the eastern and western the 7th century.
boundaries and thought that the cemetery did not extend The site has been much quoted and, despite certain
far either north or south beyond the limits of the excavated problems with the records, it was felt that the evidence
area. He plotted the location of about 200 cremation urns should be made generally available.
and three inhumations; be also recovered sherds of c. 200 A! an Davison's parish study based on systematic field
further vessels. About half of the urns have stamped dec walking and documentary research, failed to locate any
oration and a fifth of these belong to the Illington/Lackford Early Saxon domestic sites in the parish. It is thought that
workshop (Stamp Group 1). The cremated human bones the original Saxon landholding may have been larger than
from this site were used by the late Dr Calvin Wells for his the medieval parish, and that further surveys are needed in
pioneering study of cremated Anglo-Saxon remains (Wells the surrounding area.
t
N
t
Little 0
Wilb•ra ham
0
Figure 1 Location map. The following codes are used in Tables and Figures; Caistor by Norwich: CBN; Earsham:
EAR; Lackford: LAC; Little Wilbraham: LTW; Markshall: MAR; Spong Hill: SPO; St. Johns: STJ; West Stow:
WST.
viii
