Klemperer, the principal collections officer at the Potteries Museum and Art Gallery, is among the officials traveling to Washington from Stoke-On-Trent in Staffordshire, England, to display at the National Geographic Museum the largest find of Anglo-Saxon gold and silver. What is the Staffordshire Hoard?
There is nothing else like it in the world. It’s 1,500 pieces of war booty found in the soil of our county, Staffordshire. A man using a metal detector found it; I have been in archeology for 35 years, and this is by far the find of my lifetime. It’s such a powerful link to the past.
The hoard is on display Oct. 29 to March 4; what should area residents expect?
A hundred pieces are going on display. A lot are very small — they can fit into hand luggage. There are sword pommels (the counterweight at the tip of the handle), a lot of crosses, Christian artifacts. Have you seen “The Lord of the Rings”? These are the items the kings rewarded to their top followers — oftentimes after men were killed in battle in the seventh century. Modern-day jewelers say, “We don’t know how they did it.” We’re still learning. A lot of the objects, we still don’t know what they are.
What did you think when you saw the loot for the first time?
I’ve been to Machu Picchu, all over the British countryside and Scandinavia. Nothing compares to this. I felt like Howard Carter at the tomb of [King] Tutankhamun. It just captures the imagination. A find like this can really galvanize a town.
So you would urge Washingtonians to get off the couch and check it out?
To date, about a half a million people have seen it. They all come away amazed. We just want to grow that audience. You’re going to see it, right?
– Brian Hughes
