All new Saxon Hoard Gold Exhibition at the Potteries Museum + Gallery

More than 5 kilos of gold, one and a half kilos of silver and thousands of garnets pieces were unearthed in the summer of 2009.
The potteries museum &art gallery and Birmingham museum and art  gallery agreed to buy the Staffordshire hoard jointly, the art fund co-ordinated funraising and the asking price was raised in record time. 

Individual donations from the public amounted to nearly a million pounds.

It is believed that the Hoard was buried towards the end of the 7th century AD.

No traces of body were found with the Staffordshire hoard, it contains no jewellery, equipment or dress fittings associated with woman . nearly all of it is military .parts of a helmet, shield decorations and sword trappings.

Theres an important group of Christian objects, 3 crosses and a gold strip inscribed with a Latin text from the  Bible . Mercia was one of the last Anglo-Saxon regions to convert to Christianity in the mid 7th century.

Among the many decorative mounts and fittings are pieces of unsurpassed delicacy, decorated with gold filigree or garnet cloisonné .some are shaped like birds or animals.

The exhibition is  truly worth  visiting , you may have to queue  as this attract  1000s of visitor from around the country.

For visiting and more information, please visit the Staffordshire Hoard website, or learn more about how to donate so that the secrets of the hoard can keep being  unlocked.

 

Exhibition to be ‘largest ever’ display of glittering Anglo-Saxon gold

 

More glittering gold than has ever been publicly seen before from the Staffordshire Hoard is set to go on display this weekend.

 

A total of 226 ancient artefacts dating back to the seventh century will feature in the ‘Dark Age Discovery’ exhibition at The Potteries Museum and Art Gallery in Stoke-on-Trent from Saturday 21 July.

 

The 2,600sq ft exhibition features twice the number of items than has previously been displayed at the museum. Hoard items will be displayed in eight cases, with a further three cases featuring contextual Anglo-Saxon artefacts also found in Staffordshire from the museum’s extensive archives.

 

The display will be the first time ever in the UK that individual artefacts from the 3,500-piece collection have been seen fitted together. This includes a mystery item, and the hilt from a seax – short sword – featuring five separate hoard pieces joined together.

 

It is also the most technologically advanced exhibition that has ever been staged at a Stoke-on-Trent City Council-run museum. The display will feature eight iPads packed with interactive features including the most detailed images of the Anglo-Saxon treasure to date. The images, created by ‘stacking’ high-resolution photographs on top of each other, show the intricacy of the craftsmanship and decoration of sword pommels, helmet fragments and processional crosses in a level of detail that has never previously been seen.

 

The iPads also include a wealth of interactive and interpretative information about the artefacts on display in a new initiative by the museum to move away from text-heavy display panels.

 

The atmospheric exhibition space has been designed in shades of black, red and gold. It sets the hoard in context, using a giant timeline of Britain dating from 300AD to 1066. The discovery of the treasure by a metal detectorist in a farmer’s field in Staffordshire in 2009, the on-going conservation and research work, Christian and Pagan symbolism, and reconstruction are all themes. It also looks at what the hoard means to the public.

 

Replicas of Anglo-Saxon martial materials will also be displayed to show how the hoard artefacts were worn by ancient warriors, including a reconstructed sword, shield and helmet.

 

The exhibition, which has taken nine months to plan, has used a £40,000 grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund which the museum successfully bid for to tell the most comprehensive story of the treasure to date.

 

Councillor Mark Meredith, cabinet member for economic development, said: “This is simply the biggest and most detailed exhibition of the Staffordshire Hoard yet. It is the most ambitious exhibition we have ever staged in terms of its use of technology and number of items on display from this unparalleled treasure.

 

“The hoard has fascinated and enthralled experts and residents alike in equal measure since its discovery, and this is a fantastic and not-to-be-missed opportunity to see the treasure as it has never been seen before.

 

“A massive research project is underway at the same time as the exhibition is taking place, to piece together why the hoard was buried in a Staffordshire field and what is was used for. We have secured an English Heritage grant of £276,000 to help unlock these secrets, and we will look to provide updates as part of the exhibition when new discoveries are made. This is completely unique and puts visitors to our museum at the very forefront of latest breakthroughs and knowledge about this ancient treasure.”

 

Stoke-on-Trent City Council jointly owns the Staffordshire Hoard with Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery, and conservationists in Birmingham are continuing to work on artefacts at the same time as the research programme and exhibition in Stoke-on-Trent. The Mercian Trail partnership, which comprises Stoke-on-Trent City Council, Birmingham Museums, Lichfield District Council, Staffordshire County Council and Tamworth Borough Council, has also contributed £68,000 to the research programme.

 

‘Staffordshire Hoard: Dark Age Discovery’ opens on Saturday 21 July and runs until 1 September 2013. Visitors to the museum will also be greeted by a nine-foot tall Saxon warrior, guarding the exhibition. Built by local artist Andy Edwards, the sculpture towers over the museum foyer, and is adorned with 17 hoard-inspired pieces including a sword pommel and buckles.

 

The Potteries Museum and Art Gallery is open 10am – 5pm Monday to Saturday and 2pm – 5pm on Sundays.