shield

Norfolk is exceptionally rich in metalwork of the Late Bronze Age (c1,250 to c700 BC). The quantity, quality and variety of the metalwork is unsurpassed anywhere else in Britain and in fact provides the most profitable source of information about the Bronze Age period in Norfolk as a whole. In turn, the forms of artefact being made reflect the developments going on within society at that time. These objects include pieces of elaborate body armour and long slashing swords and spears, which collectively indicate that warfare was taking place. Swords are not common finds in Norfolk and tend to be found as fragments, most commonly in hoards. The most impressive item of weaponry found in Norfolk is the beautifully crafted Sutton Shield.