Trumpington girl: Experts reconstruct the face of an Anglo-Saxon teen
More than a decade ago, British archaeologists were stunned when they found the remains of a 16-year-old Anglo-Saxon girl in Cambridgeshire.
The girl was buried in the village of Trumpington between about 650 and 680 AD while wearing a beautiful gold and garnet cross.
Now scientists have analyzed the girl’s skull to create a lifelike reconstruction of what she looked like before her untimely death.
The new reconstruction shows that she had a pale face with pale skin, a small nose, strong cheekbones and one eye slightly lower than the other.
Little is known for certain about the “Trumpington Girl,” but experts believe she migrated to England from Germany as part of an early Christian group to spread the teachings of Jesus as a young girl.
The reconstruction of the Trumpington girl (pictured) was created by forensic artist Hew Morrison using measurements of the woman’s skull and tissue depth data for white women
Artifacts from the woman’s burial, including her famous cross, will be revealed in a major new exhibition at Cambridge’s Museum of Archeology and Anthropology. The cross combines gold and beautiful gemstones known as garnets
Previous analyzes indicated that the Trumpington girl was ill, but her cause of death remains unknown.
But her graceful cross — which combines gold with beautiful inset gems known as garnets — suggests she was a member of aristocracy, if not kingship.
Along with the cross, the facial reconstruction will be on display in a new exhibition at the University of Cambridge’s Museum of Archeology and Anthropology, opening on Wednesday (June 21).
The facial reconstruction was created by forensic artist Hew Morrison, based on measurements of her skull and tissue depth data for white females.
The lack of DNA analysis means Morrison couldn’t be sure of her exact eye and hair color, but it is hoped that further DNA tests will reveal this with certainty.
“It was interesting to see how her face developed,” said Morrison, who also recently reconstructed the face of a pregnant ancient Egyptian mummy.
“Her left eye was a little lower, about half an inch, than her right eye; that would have been very noticeable in life.’
Isotopic analysis of her bones and teeth reveals that the girl moved to England somewhere near the Alps sometime after she was seven years old.
Once the girl arrived in England, the proportion of protein in her diet decreased by a small but significant amount – although there is still no evidence to suggest that this had anything to do with her death.
The rare ‘bed burial’ was unearthed more than a decade ago in the Cambridgeshire village of Trumpington
Pictured is the Trumpington Cross and skull during the burial excavation in 2012
“She was quite a young girl when she moved, probably from part of southern Germany, close to the Alps, to a very flat part of England,” says Dr Sam Leggett, formerly part of the Cambridge team and now on the University of Edinburgh.
“She was probably quite unwell and she traveled a long way to a place she was completely unfamiliar with — even the food was different. It must have been scary.’
Trumpington Cemetery made headlines in 2012, following a series of excavations by Cambridge’s Archaeological Unit at Trumpington Meadows.
It became one of 15 known Christian ‘bed burials’ – in which the deceased is placed on a bed – in the UK, although this number has since risen to 18.
Based on evidence from the small number of bed burials discovered, the custom was probably reserved for women of high status during the early Anglo-Saxon period (7th century).
The presence of the cross in the tomb still raises the question of whether the young woman had an official role in the fledgling Christian church.
It was generally accepted that Christianity originated in Britain when Saint Augustine came on a pope-approved mission in 597 AD to convert the pagans.
“It appears she was part of an elite group of women who probably traveled from mainland Europe, most likely Germany, in the 7th century, but they remain a bit of a mystery,” said Dr Leggett.
Front view of the still to be excavated skull with the cross. Trumpington cemetery made headlines in 2012, following a series of excavations by Cambridge’s Archaeological Unit at Trumpington Meadows
Were they political brides or perhaps brides of Christ? The fact that her diet changed when she arrived in England suggests that her lifestyle may have changed quite a bit.’
Upcoming DNA analysis could also reveal traces of an infection or genetic disease that could determine her cause of death, Dr Leggett said.
Artifacts from the woman’s burial, including her famous cross, will be displayed in the new exhibition at Cambridge’s Museum of Archeology and Anthropology (MAA).
Also shown are delicate gold and garnet pins connected by a gold chain, which were found near the teen’s neck and likely attached a long veil to an outer garment of fine linen, and the decorative headboard of the burial bed.
The free exhibition ‘Beneath Our Feet: Archeology of the Cambridge Region’ will run from June 21 to April 14 next year.
WHEN WILL CHRISTIANITY COME TO BRITAIN?
In the first century AD Britain had its own gods: pagan gods of the earth and Roman gods of the sky. But soon after, Christianity came to the British Isles.
Although people tend to associate the arrival of Christianity in Britain with the mission of Saint Augustine, who was sent to England by the Pope to convert the pagan Anglo-Saxon kings, Christianity arrived in 597 AD long before that, in the 1st century AD.
It began when Roman craftsmen and traders arriving in Britain began spreading the story of Jesus along with stories of their pagan gods.
Marble head representing Emperor Constantine the Great, in the Capitoline Museums
At the time, Christianity was one cult among many, but unlike Roman cults, Christianity demanded exclusive allegiance from its followers.
This led to Roman authorities persecuting Christians, who were then forced to meet and worship in secret.
But the Roman Emperor Constantine saw attraction in a single religion with a single God, and he saw that Christianity could be used to unify his empire.
From 313 AD, Christian worship was permitted within the Roman Empire.
During the 4th century, British Christianity became more visible, but it was not yet widespread. Pagan beliefs were still common and Christianity was a minority faith.
It seemed that paganism would dominate Christianity when, after the departure of the Romans, new invaders arrived: Angles, Saxons and Jutes.
Yet Christianity survived on the western edges of Britain. Missionary activity continued in Wales and Ireland, and in western Scotland, Saint Columba helped bring a distinctly Irish brand of Christianity to mainland Britain.
It can also be argued that it was the famous mission of Saint Augustine in 597 AD. From the Pope in Rome to King Aethelbert of Kent, it definitively shaped the future of Christianity in Britain, creating an alliance between Christianity and royalty.