About this objectThis horse bit was discovered in Mound 17 at Sutton Hoo. Barely visible, the mound was excavated in 1991 and found to contain two grave pits, one containing a man of about 25 and the other a horse. The horse was a stallion or gelding, five or six years old, and about 14 hands high.
The young man was buried with several weapons, including a sword, knife, spears and a shield. The buckle of his sword-belt was bronze inlaid with garnets and a further seven garnets were found in a small leather pouch.
The bit comes from a horse harness inside his tomb. It has gilt-bronze cheek pieces, joined to reins, nose-band and brow-band. The strap connectors were gilt-bronze and covered in animal ornaments, decorated with axe-shaped bronze pendants. There was probably also a saddle, although only fragments of wood and leather remained.
PeriodAnglo-Saxon
Place MadeEngland
Subject and Association KeywordsDeath and burials
Subject and Association KeywordsHorses
Subject and Association DescriptionLearn More: Carver 1998, Nayland 2006-2009;
