The Anglo-Saxon Way of Death: Burial Rites in Early England

by Sam Lucy

An up-to-date and accessible account of death and burial in Anglo-Saxon England. The book offers insights into the society and customs of the Anglo-Saxons and provides clues about their way of life and their understanding of the world. Through a detailed study of cemeteries, gravegoods and human remains, the author seeks to offer a review of this emotive subject. Samantha Lucy looks first at the background to the evidence and at prehistoric and Roman traditions. She then considers the discovery and excavation of Anglo-Saxon cemeteries and at the rites and practices of death, which included cremation and burial. She also describes what we can learn from the layout and siting of the cemeteries themselves, and demonstrates that the surviving evidence - in particular changes in costume and gravegoods - can be used to show how Anglo-Saxon customs of burial developed over 400 years.

Genres: History, Archaeology

Hardcover

First published January 25, 2001

Reviews

[Geof Sage · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was clearly a PhD thesis or similar - the number of times that the author wrote "this will be addressed in [the final chapter]" was a dead giveaway. It needed some more thorough editing - chapter 3 is one big rabbit hole.

[Jo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very interesting