Ship Burials

The Sutton Hoo ship excavation in 1939, early Anglo-Saxon, early 7th century, Suffolk, England 

Ship burials were common in paganistic cultures, commonly seen in Germany, Norway, and other Germanic/Scandanavian societies. These ships would be fully equipped with money, jewelry, personal items, and other things that are deemed necessary for the person to have a good afterlife. Boats are a vessel of travel for many individuals, and during this time period, they were believed to be a trusted safe passage for many. Because they were believed to be so safe and so reliable, they symbolized a safe passage to the afterlife. Not only were they buried in ships, but they were buried in ships that they have used to travel during their days amongst the living. 

Because of the origin of these burial rituals, it is rare to see them outside of Scandanavian and Germanic countries, however, Sutton Hoo was an exception. Believed to be buried in the early seventh century, Sutton Hoo has several mounds of grassland that were designed as gravesites. Buried in one of the mounds was King Raedwald. His burial was unlike the others, instead of being in a normal tomb-like grave with his belongings, he was buried in a ship. This is important to note because of the fact that Raedwald was pagan before converting to Christianity, making it seem like he reverted back to his original belief system. 

The ship Raedwald was buried in was 88 feet long, the longest to date for Ship Burials. This provides insight into his role as a king and how the people around him viewed him as a political figure.  The larger the ship was, the more important and renowned by the people they were. Within the burial site were Byzantium silver dishes, solid gold coins, a bronze bowl from the Middle East, along with cups and spoons inscribed with Greek lettering. These were all placed in the site to show the contacts this king held across the world, how important they were seen to other cultures. Because Medieval Anglo-Saxon kings were predominantly Christian, the way this king was buried is important. When Christianity began to sweep its way across Europe, Paganists were viewed as heathens who were not tolerated by the church, especially the Byzantine, who had laws describing punishments for those found out to be pagans in secrecy. 

So why is any of this important to history? Why should we care? The main answer to both of these is the insight provided by examining burials and how the individuals were treated. Burials were always a symbol of importance to society. Whether it be something as simple as cremation, or the act of burying your dead in a tomb, there is significance to the act of caring for the dead. Rituals provide ways for individuals to express their grief in culturally acceptable ways, it provides a sense of support for the mourners and allows the beliefs of the dead and the living to carry on. The key takeaway for this is how beliefs are carried on through burials, but also finished with them. This was one of the last kings to be buried in a paganistic fashion while the rest of Europe converted to Christianity.

Citations: 

 The British Museum, "Sutton Hoo Ship Burial," in Smarthistory, March 3, 2017, accessed October 3,                  2020, https://smarthistory.org/the-sutton-hoo-ship-burial/.

The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica. “Sutton Hoo.” Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica, inc., March 13, 2020. https://www.britannica.com/place/Sutton-Hoo.