Forget Liam, Noah, Olivia and Emma; the new name on the block could be Eadruf.
An early medieval gold pendant with a runic inscription, recently discovered in Northumbria, has added an “etymologically mysterious name” to the chronicles of Britain’s past.
The rare runic inscription has been translated as “Eadruf” which, according to experts in medieval European history, is likely to be a personal name that was previously unknown in the annals of British history.
The pendant, which dates to around AD700-900, is one of the most interesting discoveries of “treasure” by Britain’s amateur army of metal detectorists in 2020.
The British Museum, which administers the Portable Antiquities Scheme (PAS), which was set up in the 1990s to record archaeological finds made by members of the public, said today that more than 1 million items had now been logged on the PAS database.
Advertisement
The millionth item logged was a medieval harness pendant, made of a copper-alloy metal, which was found in Lincolnshire in October and dates from the late 14th century.
Nearly 50,000 archaeological discoveries — ranging from gold coins to Roman settlements — were logged during 2020, despite the pandemic affecting the ability of officials to record finds.
Under the Treasure Act 1996, any prospective detectorist is required to report a finding of something that could be considered “treasure” to their local coroner within 14 days.
If the item meets the criteria, an independent board of experts in antiquities, called the Treasure Valuation Committee, suggests a suitable price for the object. The finder is then required to offer the item for sale to one of the country’s museums, with the proceeds usually shared equally between the metal detectorist and landowner.
Of the 50,000 archaeological discoveries in 2020 more than 1,000 have been classed as “treasure”, including a hoard of almost 1,000 Iron Age gold coins found in Essex.
Advertisement
Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay, the arts minister, today paid tribute to the 50-plus finders of treasure who had “waived” their right to a reward this year.
According to Professor John Hines of Cardiff University, pendant crosses — in this case comprised of around 50 per cent gold and 36 per cent silver — were often inscribed with the name of the person with whom it had been associated.
He said the cross, discovered in Northumbria in early 2020, could pre-date the renowned mid-8th century Ruthwell Cross, which is also carved with runic inscriptions.
Hines said that while Old English personal names beginning Ead-, meaning happiness or fortune, were common at the time, the only two known names with a second element beginning r- were Eadred and Eadric.
“No personal-name elements ‘ruf’ can be identified in any Germanic language and Eadruf would therefore be a hitherto unknown and etymologically mysterious name,” he wrote in a report for the PAS.
Advertisement
Another unusual discovery during 2020 was a silver seal matrix dating to the early 13th century, which was inscribed with the name Matilda de Cornhill.
The British Museum said that seal matrices of the period were usually copper or lead alloys and belonged to men.
It said it was likely that de Cornhill was a “person of status” and suggested it could have belonged to Maud de Cornhill, the former steward of St Augustine’s Abbey in Canterbury.
According to the PAS annual report East Yorkshire had the most successful metal detectorists during 2020 with 5,584 finds, followed by Norfolk and Suffolk. With 104 cases, however, Norfolk, had the most “treasures” logged.
Hartwig Fischer, the director of the British Museum, paid tribute to the PAS scheme, which was gradually introduced in England, Wales and Northern Ireland following the introduction of the Treasure Act 1996.
Advertisement
He said the archaeological finds were “adding to our knowledge of the past” and would benefit the collections in museums across the country.
