East Anglia and Suffolk
Though much of my trip was focused on Norfolk, I did spend some of my visit in the other half of East Anglia– visiting Suffolk County. I spent two days exploring a bit into Suffolk, visiting Sutton Hoo and the historic city of Cambridge, which I’ll cover in a separate post. You can certain use Norwich as a home base for both of these day trips– but break them down into two separate trips. You can’t really visit both sites in one day unless you have a car and only want to make the most cursory of visits.
Get on your inner archaeologist at Sutton Hoo
When I was ten years old, my school principal asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up. I told him either a nurse (surprise) or an archaeologist. “An archaeologist!” he said, very surprised. I was fascinated with the King Tut exhibit touring the US. OK, I was also fascinated with the Shazam/Isis Hour TV show that I watched religiously every Saturday morning. Does that show ring a bell with any traveler over 50?
Cool stuff for a ten year old.
So I’ve always been a bit of an archaeology nerd all my life and have read about the Sutton Hoo treasures. That knowledge, along with the Netflix movie, The Dig, inspired me to visit the site.
What Is Sutton Hoo?
In a nutshell, the excavation in 1938, just on the cusp of WWII, revealed a royal burial chamber and the shape of a ship buried in one of the mounds. It was the burial chamber of an Anglo-Saxon king and many artifacts were found at the site, including the very famous Sutton Hoo gold helmet. The bulk of the archaeological findings, including the gold mask found at the site, reside in the British Museum in London, but I wanted to experience the dig site first hand.
Sutton Hoo is important not just for its finds, which are stunning to be sure, but for proving that Britain had a lot of trade contact with its neighbors in Scandinavia and beyond. The coins found at the site date to about 625 AD, when Christianity was just beginning to replace other older religions. Even burial chambers after Christianity took hold never looked like the one found at Sutton Hoo. Sutton Hoo is a snapshot of civilization at the crossroads– on the brink of replacing one way of looking at the world with another– and nothing is the same after that.
Getting to Sutton Hoo
Sutton Hoo from Norwich:
There are a couple of different train stations you can use to visit Sutton Hoo. If using Norwich as a home base, use the Greater Anglia train from Norwich to either Melton Station or Woodbridge Station. When looking at Google Maps, it seems clear that the Sutton Hoo site sits right between the two stations. However there are some differences…
If arriving at the Melton Station: It is a quick 1 mile walk from the station to the Sutton Hoo entrance. It’s well marked with good sidewalks.
If arriving at the Woodbridge Station: You can take the #71 bus from the station to the entrance. If you forgo the bus and walk, it’s actually 2.8 miles to Sutton Hoo! And ironically, the walking route takes you right by the Melton station! I’ve added the walking route displayed on Google maps for your reference. Now knowing what I know about public footpaths in England, I would have thought that there would be a more direct footpath taking you across the River Deben and directly to the site. But it is certainly not marked that way, nor is there a shortcut listed on the Sutton Hoo website.
I choose to walk from Melton over to the site to see a bit more of the area.
Sutton Hoo is approximately 250 acres and in addition to the burial site, there are two buildings you can explore– Edith Pretty’s home, Tranmer House, and High Hall. Off season, these buildings are only open on weekends, but my schedule had me visiting firmly during the week. I was less interested in the Pretty estate; I wanted to see the site itself.
As I walked around the Sutton Hoo burial site, I couldn’t help but wonder what Mrs. Pretty thought as she looked out over the site from her house. All those mounds– about 13 of them in all, some small, some quite large– just begging to be explored.
Visiting Sutton Hoo was a stand out experience in my trip to Norfolk, speaking to my inner archaeologist. The site is beautifully preserved with minimal distraction. There is also a 17 m high viewing tower you can climb for a birds-eye look at the site.
Beyond the site, Sutton Hoo has plenty of woodland trails for exploration. Don’t confine yourself to viewing the site, definitely explore the walking trails for stunning views of the Suffolk countryside.
Staying in Norwich Home Base
If you haven’t yet arranged your accommodations in Norwich, here is a hotel map for you to use.
The Least You Need to Know About Visiting Sutton Hoo
- This is a great day trip for people who enjoy history or archaeology.
- Remember that the bulk of the original artifacts found at Sutton Hoo are now part of the British Museum (Room 41, I believe). This includes the bronze helmet most people recognize from photos. The star of the show here is the actual burial site. If you’re more interested in the artifacts, then you might prefer the collection on display at London’s British Museum.
- If visiting the Sutton Hoo site in the off season, the buildings are only open on weekends. Otherwise, you are welcome to walk out to the burial site and around the trails without charge.
- If visiting by train, I think it’s easiest to use the Melton station and walk about a mile to the site.
- If this post piques your curiosity but still not sure about visiting, consider reading or watching The Dig (Netflix).
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