Pre-Christian Burial

[johndawsonjune1955]

Malcolm heres an interesting story for those interested in early Bedlington.

A discovery in Bedlington on Saturday September 15th, 1934, caused excitement within the community. A stone coffin was found while men were road marking at the then new Millfield housing site. Inside the coffin were the bones of a human being. The bones were taken away by the police for forensic examination by the South Northumberland Coroner, to whom the facts had been reported.

Many people were attracted to the site which was for the new council houses. The coffin was approximately eighteen inches below the ground when unearthed and was slightly broken. The vicar of Bedlington, Rev. J. B. Purvis, went to the site and commented on the discovery. "It would be a mistake for anyone not an expert to give a date, but everything points to a very early burial. It was not hurried as the appearance of the coffin shows and was probably not Christian, because of the fact that the church burial ground, which dates from Saxon times, is so near the burial site. A shaft from a Saxon cross was unearthed in the church yard in 1818, and the building is definitely early Norman.â€

The vicar continued to explain that the bones appeared to be those of an adult female, doubled up. He said, " There were comings and goings up the river, and much fighting at times from the river mouth up to Bedlington. It may be that a woman connected with one of these early parties was killed, or died, and was buried were the coffin was found. One of the bones of a leg is broken and it appears was not carefully set again.â€

The examination of the bones was carried out and then placed in the custody of the vicar for burial in the church yard.

The vicar emphasised that the original burial was undoubtedly pre - Christian, and might be as early as a thousand years, B.C.

[HIGH PIT WILMA]

The Chancel arch,inside St Cuthbert's,is the original archway to the altar,and was built by the Saxons,as was the original stone church...I say "Stone Church",cos the buildings before that would have been wood.

The Norman's came a few years later,and demolished the building,and built around the Chancel Arch,for unknown reasons,but history tells us that the Normans only built majestic cathedrals and other buildings to show off their prowess,and NOT because of any religious beliefs that they held...it was a symbol of power,and might.

When you look at the arch,as I have all my life since 5yrs old,you think to yourself,what great engineers they must have been!

[it wud tek a big mel ti bray that one doon in a hurry!!]

Aa think the Normans left it for two reasons.....

[A] To humiliate the Saxons by sticking the proverbial fingers up at them.....

They couldn't build one from scratch themselves,so they Zerox'd it...!!!!

Being from,[i like to think!] ,Saxon stock,I prefer to think of the latter as being thi most probable!

C'mon Malc!! Tell me the Normans were building masterpieces before the Saxons were born....!! Heh heh!

Come ti think on't,the Normans even copied the Saxon's zig-zag pattern,on their arches,only not so fancy.

John,was that the one found in the "Grassy Diamond" area in between the two streets?

There was one found over the "Twenty Acres",but a canna remember the date,and that one was put in the Hancock Museum.

Then there was the one I refer to in another thread,where my schoolfriend found ancient bones in the cave dooon the "Black Path",that leads from

Hollymount Terrace,down to the Furnace bank bridge.

Gotta lot of ancient history here in wor little toon..!

[HIGH PIT WILMA]

That Vicar was right in one way,but it seems he must have just been posted there not long before the find,and didn't sound as if he knew the history of the Church!

It was taught to us kids over and over by successive teacher's ,starting as a five year old,at the Infant school opposite the church,now a wreck,and then at the Whitley Memorial School.

[John Fox (foxy)]

The wreck!   

[Maggie/915]

There could well be a burial under the old school.

Digging down to road level.

Forget the land banking.

Compulsory purchase order.

Let's get to the bottom of it all!