HER 1629 - Anglo Saxon cemetery (inhumation and cremation 6th and 11th century), Guildford

Guildown Saxon Cemetery. Discovered 1929 and excavated by Lowther and Col North. Over 220 inhumation and cremation burials were uncovered during the excavation, of which less than 30 were attributed to the late 6th and early 7th century. The remaining proportion probably dates to the late Saxon or Saxo-Norman period, many of which displayed evidence of violent deaths, such as decapitation and mutilation and were randomly orientated in shallow graves. The site plan suggests that one or more barrows originally stood on the site, around which later burials are distributed. This suggests the site was an execution site, and that a gallows surmounted a barrow, as is frequently found on similar sites elsewhere (see HER 1123). There is a good selection of finds from this site in the Guildford Museum">Guildford Museum. They include pottery, glassware, weapons, personal ornaments etc.

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