Exploring Kent's Past

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Monument details

Summary

Early-medieval cemetery was found pre- 1800 "on the hill to the side of the London Road, near the lime kilns at Old Park", containing at least 6 graves, each with a skeleton and associated grave goods, swords and spearheads. Also a 6th century A.D silver-gilt mount and 13 ivory casket mounts were found pre-1915. 1952 two coins of Pada (Pa IIB, Pa III), dated c.660-80. Then 1989 a double inhiumation cut into chalk, a man with 2 spears and a woman with a button brooch and beads. Two graves were found 1997.

The site is situated on the lower west facing slope of Whitfield Hill, a spur overlooking the River Dour. OD 75-85m.

Monument Types

• CEMETERY (CEMETERY, Early Medieval or Anglo-Saxon - 410 AD to 1065 AD)

Associated Finds

• PERSONAL ORNAMENT (Early Medieval or Anglo-Saxon - 410 AD to 1065 AD)

Full description

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A late 6th century AD silver-gilt mount, probably the rim of a cup about 3 ins. Diam. was found at Old Park, (centred TR 301442) Dover, and is now in Dover Museum. Ivory casket mounts of the same date and same location are also in the museum. [Kendrick implies that these objects were found together in a Jutish cemetery.] Smith notes that several enamelled discs and escutcheons in Dover Museum were found at Old Park in 1861. (1,2,3,4) The mounts, discs and escutcheons are on display in Dover Museum, accession numbers DA/1 1220, 1261-2. They were presented by Rev. W Vallance. No further information concerning the circumstance of discovery was gained during fieldwork. (5) (TR 3044) Anglo-Saxon Inhumation cemetery? Old Park, Dover. In 1861 some hanging-bowl escutcheons were found in Old Park. (See illustration card no. 1). The two larger escutcheons, with hooks, areenamelled in different patterns and belong to different bowls, but there are three other discs, without frames or hooks, similar to one of them. There are also the remains of a flat ring, with an outside diamter of 5.2". (See illustration card no. 2). Part is in the Dover Museum part was found by S. Lysons in the early 19th century and givento the British Museum. Before 1915 an embossed silver-gilt mount of the late 6th century was found in Old Park. (See illustration card no. 2). Its ornamentation consists of "an even spread of zoomorphic details". In 1950 an Anglo-Saxon cemetery was cut into by excavations for a housing estate. (6)

Early-medieval cemetery was found pre- 1800 "on the hill to the side of the London Road, near the lime kilns at Old Park", containing at least 6 graves, each with a skeleton and associated grave goods, a swords and spearheads. Also a 6th century A.D silver-gilt mount and 13 ivory casket mounts were found pre-1915. 1952 two coins of Pada (Pa IIB, Pa III), dated c.660-80. Then 1989 a double inhiumation cut into chalk, a man with 2 spears and a woman with a button brooch and beads. Two graves were found 1997.
The site is situated on the lower west facing slope of Whitfield Hill, a spur overlooking the River Dour. OD 75-85m.

Kent Archaeological Rescue Unit, 1989, Kent archaeological review, 96, p 121 (Unpublished document). SKE55656.

Andrew Richardson, 2000, Gazetteer of Anglo-Saxon Cemeteries and Burial-Sites in Kent (Unpublished document). SKE29253.

<1> Ant J 17 1937 77 488 illusts (T D Kendrick) (OS Card Reference). SKE33142.

<2> VCH Kent 1 1908 379 AS Remains (R A Smith) (OS Card Reference). SKE50860.

<3> PSA 2 22 1907-9 77-8 illust (R A Smith) (OS Card Reference). SKE48763.

<4> Arts in Early Eng 3 1915 342 (G Baldwin Brown) (OS Card Reference). SKE37359.

<5> F1 ASP 25.05.64 (OS Card Reference). SKE42272.

<6> Gaz of Early AS Burial sites 1964 117 (A L S Meaney) (OS Card Reference). SKE43529.

<7> Field report for monument TR 34 SW 49 - May, 1964 (Bibliographic reference). SKE5997.

Sources and further reading