Image Details

© Daniel Buxton Photography (www.danielbuxton.co.uk)

THE SPOILS OF WAR. Mostly military objects, not a single item in the hoard would traditionally be considered feminine or domestic. Most likely, the victors of a battle stripped these items from the armor of the defeated and kept them as trophies, including an intricately carved 3-inch-wide helmet cheek piece (pictured here). Some time later the war trophies were collected and buried for safekeeping—probably because the owner was under threat—only to be discovered in the 21st century.