Here be dragons! - by Ally Sherrick

I do like a good dragon! The fearsome, treasure-loving Smaug in The Hobbit has got to be one of the best ever. His creator, the celebrated writer and Oxford Professor of Anglo-Saxon, J.R.R. Tolkien modelled him on the vengeful, treasure-hoarding dragon in the epic Old English poem, Beowulf which the legendary monster-slayer and hero must face in the final, epic battle of his life.

The fire-breathing Smaug from ‘The Hobbit’ by J.R.R Tokien,
in an illustration by the author. Can you spot Tolkien’s hobbit hero,
Bilbo Baggins bravely doffing his cap to him? (Authors own photo of postcard)

My own wartime adventure, The Buried Crown has a dragon or two in it too. The book tells the story of two brave children – London evacuee, George Penny and German Jewish refugee, Kitty Regenbogen – who get caught up in a desperate race against time to find and rescue a priceless piece of Anglo-Saxon treasure before a bunch of Nazi treasure-thieves can get their hands on it in a bid to change the course of the war.

 

It was inspired by the discovery of the now famous Anglo-Saxon Sutton Hoo Ship Burial treasure in the summer of 1939, a few weeks before the outbreak of war. Excavating at a site just outside the town of Woodbridge in Suffolk, archaeologists unearthed the remains of what turned out to be an early 7^th century long-ship buried deep beneath the largest of a series of ancient burial mounds belonging to local woman, Edith Pretty.  

The archaeological excavation of the largest burial mound at Sutton Hoo
revealed the impression of a ghostly ship the length
of two double-decker buses (Author’s own photo of postcard)

Though the timbers of the ship itself had rotted way to leave nothing but a ghostly imprint and lines of rusty rivets in the soil, a wooden shelter inside contained goods which ranged from humble domestic objects such as cups, bowls and spoons, to weaponry and gorgeous items of treasure including a purse filled with gold coins, a great golden belt buckle and a magnificent helmet. At the time it was described as the British equivalent of the celebrated Tutankhamun discovery and remains one of the richest archaeological finds in Northern Europe.

Following decades of research by archaeologists and historians, the most widely-held belief today is that the ship was the burial site of the pagan ruler, Redwald, King of the East Angles and High King of Britain and that the goods it contained were intended for use by the king in the afterlife.

One of the many fascinating things about the treasure is the appearance on some of the most precious items, including the famous Sutton Hoo helmet, shield and sword-belt, of dragons. These are very stylised and not at all like the modern idea of dragons as depicted in the movie version of The Hobbit and HBO’s Game of Thrones. But, if you know how to look, they will reveal themselves to you, emerging as creatures with red garnet eyes, beak-like faces and wings either tucked along the length of their body or spread wide, as in the case of the helmet, to form the eyebrows of its awe-inspiring, mask-like face. They are also a part of the celebrated animal interlacing – a trademark feature of much Anglo-Saxon art – and of which the priceless Sutton Hoo belt buckle is a stunning example.

 

Shield boss – Replica of the boss from the king’s shield ringed
by a circle of ‘beaked’ dragons heads with red garnet eyes (Author’s own photo)

Gold and garnet dragon - This highly stylised dragon is one of the shield
mounts and features a fearsome set of spiked jaw, a red garnet eye
and a line of ‘winglets’ fringing both sides of its body. (Author’s own photo)

Replica of the famous Sutton Hoo helmet -
Can you spot the dragons? (Author’s own photo)

The Anglo-Saxons loved – or perhaps I should say lived in dread – of dragons. They believed there were two types. ‘Drakes’, who breathed fire and could fly like Tolkein’s Smaug, and wingless ‘wyrms’ who slithered across the landscape like giant reptiles. The creatures lived inside burial mounds like the ones King Redwald’s ship was discovered beneath at Sutton Hoo, and guarded the treasure buried inside them, exacting the most dreadful revenge on anyone who dared try and steal it away from them.

 

Beware a burial mound like this one at Sutton Hoo – it might be the home of a dragon!
(Photo used by kind permission of The National Trust)

This idea of an ancient and angry treasure-guardian, so powerfully depicted in the Anglo-Saxon epic poem, Beowulf, provided the inspiration for my own ‘story within a story’ in The Buried Crown. Known as The Legend of the Dragon-Headed Crown, it became the ‘foundation myth’ for the magic which leaks into the world of my heroes, George and Kitty as the story progresses.

And the dragons depicted on the treasures at Sutton Hoo – perhaps as protection against thieves? –  gave rise to my own piece of dragon treasure which – spoiler alert! – might just have special powers of its own.

You can visit the real-life treasures found at Sutton Hoo in the Early British Medieval Galleries at the British Museum in London. Or if you can’t make it there in person, check them out on the excellent museum website. And if want to visit the site of the excavations at Sutton Hoo, view the burial mound field and see more exhibits on the treasures and the life and times of the Anglo-Saxons who made and buried them there, why not take a trip to Sutton Hoo itself, now in the property of the National Trust.

Writing prompt

Take a look at dragons in other cultures – either writings or images; historical or modern. How might their depiction inspire you to create a dragon of your own? What might you borrow and what would you discard? What is their purpose, their power, their name? Happy dragon-hunting! 

Ally Sherrick is the author of books full of history, mystery and adventure including Black Powder, winner of the Historical Association’s Young Quills Award 2017, The Buried Crown and Tudor-Set adventure, The Queen’s Fool. She is published by Chicken House Books and her books are widely available in bookshops and online. You can find out more about her and her books at www.allysherrick.com and follow her on Twitter: @ally_sherrick

 

Christmas Traditions - by the Time Tunnellers

 In our final blog post before Christmas, the Time Tunnellers explore some favourite traditions.

Jeannie Waudby: My Christmas tradition is something we used to do as children. We always made our own decorations, usually from scrap paper or crepe paper bought from a fantastic tiny stationer’s. It was only big enough for a long counter behind which an old man perched on his stool with wonderful things around him: rolls of shiny paper, glitter, pots of paste…

A paper snowflake

We made window snowflakes by folding paper circles in half again and again and then snipping little triangles out. Once unfolded they formed a snowflake pattern.

The nice thing about this decoration is its use of low-key materials – paper and scissors. In a short time you can make enough snowflakes to cover a window. You can make them more dramatic by using silver paper or by varying the sizes, and you can experiment with different shapes.

Scissors and paper is all you need

We also made paper chains out of cut-up magazines and old wrapping paper and draped them across the doors and walls. These were also quite quick and easy to make. People would have made these throughout the last century and even the one before. Here are the Fossil sisters from Ballet Shoes by Noel Streatfield with their paper chains, illustrated by Ruth Gervais.

 

Ballet Shoes by Noel Streatfield, illustrated by Ruth Gervais

Susan Brownrigg:When I was little, my family received lots and lots of Christmas cards. I remember helping my mum drawing pin long pieces of red wool on the walls of the living room and hall and placing the open cards over them. Their would be cards from distant relatives, former work colleagues and loved ones who lived over seas. 

 

The first commercially produced Christmas card suggested by
Sir Henry Cole and drawn by John Calcott Horsley

The cards would often feature snowy scenes, golden bells, cute animals, Father Christmas and nativity scenes. They would look so cheery and festive as we counted down the days to Christmas.

A vintage Christmas card (Author's collection.)

Sadly, I don't have any of those cards anymore, but I do have a lovely small collection of cards from the 1930s which I use when visiting schools to talk about my new children's book, Gracie Fairshaw and the Trouble at the Tower, which is set at Christmas, 1935. 

The cards are much smaller than those my mum put up in the 1980s, but they feature many of the same scenes. 

1930s Christmas cards (Author's collection)

I love looking at the old verses and personal messages in side them, and they really give a sense of the times. 

A Victorian influenced Christmas card (Author's collection)

I especially like one design I own that features a very 1930s Fox Terrier on it!

 

1930s Fox Terrier Christmas card (Author's collection)

I wonder what future generations will make of card designs from the 2020s!

A 2021 Christmas card

 

Catherine Randall: The first sign that Christmas is coming in our house is when we get out our wooden nativity set, which doubles as an Advent calendar. I’ve shown this on the Time Tunnellers YouTube video. 

Wooden nativity set

Here I’d like to share with you two more unusual Christmas traditions. Like lots of Christmas traditions, they’re both associated with the Victorians.

The first one is a song. Every Boxing Day, my mum’s family would stand around the piano and sing a song called ‘Christmas Boxes’ from an old Victorian song book. 

 

Little Songs for Little Voices songbook

I think the tradition started when my granny was a child, over a hundred years ago, but it may be even older as the book is from the 1870s. 

 

Christmas Boxes

The tradition has passed down to me, my cousins and our families (though the quality of the piano-playing has declined somewhat!) I know Christmas is coming when I get out our Advent nativity scene, but I know it is really here when I hear the first few chords of ‘Christmas Boxes’.

 

Come Back, Lucy by Pamela Sykes

The other thing I do most Christmases is reread an old children’s book - Come Back, Lucy by Pamela Sykes. First published in 1973 and now sadly out of print, it is a wonderful Christmassy time-slip story about a lonely girl who moves into a Victorian house with a new family and is haunted by the girl who lived there in 1873, with dramatic results. It is one of the most imaginative, evocative books I have ever read. I only have to open it to get that lovely, enveloping Christmas feeling!

Ally Sherrick: Christmas wouldn’t be Christmas without present-giving, no matter how big or small the gift. Of course, the Christian Nativity has a gift-giving scene at its heart – when the three wise kings travel from afar bearing gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh to give to the infant Jesus. But the tradition of present-giving in December began long before the emergence of Christianity.

Christmas present

For example, the Roman festival of Saturnalia, held to honour the god Saturn, and which took place in the dark days leading up to the winter solstice, was a time of great feasting and merry-making, and of gift-giving too.

But modern gift-givers beware! Extravagant presents were looked down on as not being in the spirit of the season. If you really wanted to show the recipient you cared, simple gifts were judged to be the best. Things like combs, toothpicks, moneyboxes and lamps. 

 A Roman lamp

And, usefully for budding authors, writing tablets! People also gave small wax and clay statues known as sigillaria and joke gifts too.  Meanwhile, if you fancied yourself a bit of a poet you might include a line of verse or two – much like we do in Christmas cards today.

Happy Saturnalia! And remember: the best things often come wrapped in small parcels ... 

Barbara Henderson: I love Christmas and the fact that there are so many different traditions, past and present. 

Last week, I took a train to Edinburgh to research my latest manuscript, a story set during the reign of Mary, Queen of Scots. 

Barbara in Edinburgh

I timed my visit so I could catch a talk about Christmas at the Court of the ill-fated Mary – these sorts of things add such wonderful colour to a historical novel.

Mary was certainly no party-pooper! She was used to lavish Christmas celebrations in Catholic France where she was brought up, but on her arrival, the Scottish protestants soon slammed on the brakes, forcing Mary to move some of her more extravagant celebrations to the 6^th of January instead. 

Her musicians were so intimidated by the protestant Lords that they refused to perform – the pressure was just too much. 

One thing we do know the Queen conducted is a celebration called ‘The Queen of the Bean’. A cake was baked for Christmas, and a bean was added to the dough. The Queen’s companions would each cut a slice of the cake, and whoever found the bean was allowed to be queen for the day. The Queen’s friend Mary Fleming won it one year, and was given a silver dress and a necklace of rubies belonging to the Queen to wear, while the famous monarch donned humble clothing instead. It echoes God making himself lowly in Jesus’ birth, but it also sounds great fun!

The Time Tunnellers would like to wish our readers a Happy Christmas, we will return in the new year.