I had a couple of good looks at the exhibition and also spoke to some of the staff. One of the first things I noticed was that there were some wild inaccuracies in the information made available to the public, as well as some misinterpretation of some objects (such as scabbard mouths misinterpreted as sword hilts).
The assemblage is most likely to be the spoil from a battlefield, collected for its bullion value. Looking through Bede and given the general location of the find, as well as the treatment of certain objects in the assemblage, the most likely occasion for its deposition would be the battle in cAD679 near the river Trent between King Ecgfrith of Northumbria and King Aethelraed of Mercia. We can be sure that the (Christian) Northumbrians lost the battle and that the (pagan) Mercians won. Christian altar crosses have been folded up without regard for religious significance and what appear to be book and reliquary mounts are also present. Most of the cloisione decoration looks similar to that of other items known from the early to mid seventh century and at least one piece has decoration which is very similar in style to the style of some of the decoration in the Book of Durrow, which is generally dated to around AD650.
Dating
The assemblage is most likely to be the spoil from a battlefield, collected for its bullion value. Looking through Bede and given the general location of the find, as well as the treatment of certain objects in the assemblage, the most likely occasion for its deposition would be the battle in cAD679 near the river Trent between King Ecgfrith of Northumbria and King Aethelraed of Mercia. We can be sure that the (Christian) Northumbrians lost the battle and that the (pagan) Mercians won. Christian altar crosses have been folded up without regard for religious significance and what appear to be book and reliquary mounts are also present. Most of the cloisione decoration looks similar to that of other items known from the early to mid seventh century and at least one piece has decoration which is very similar in style to the style of some of the decoration in the Book of Durrow, which is generally dated to around AD650.
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