The Cambridgeshire village where the largest-ever discovery of Bronze Age swords and axes was made

More than 6,500 well-preserved Bronze Age items were discovered in the village

There have been many historical discoveries across Cambridgeshire, marking the importance of the county in periods of history. There are remnants of the Romans, but also from the Iron Age.

In Isleham near Ely, one of the largest ever Bronze Age discoveries was made. The Isleham Hord was a discovery of more than 6,500 pieces of worked and unworked bronze. It was found in 1959 by William Houghton and his brother Arthur. It’s thought to be the largest Bronze Age hoard ever discovered in England, as well as one of the finest.

The hoard included swords, spear-heads, arrows, axes and palstaves, as well as knives, daggers, armour and decorative equipment mainly for horses. The items are believed to date back to the late Bronze Age, which was around 1,000 BCE.

With the find being so precious, the thousands of items were handed over to different authorities. They were entrusted to St Edmundsbury Borough Council Heritage Service and the West Stow Anglo-Saxon Village near Bury St Edmunds. Other items are held by the Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology at the University of Cambridge.

Besides important Bronze Age discoveries, Isleham has much more on offer. There is another standout historical site in the village – Isleham Priory Church – which is a rare surviving Norman priory church from the 12th century. The church is “surviving in a surprisingly unaltered state despite later conversion into a barn”, as stated by English Heritage.

There is also lots going on in the village, making it a great place to visit. There are a number of old pubs, including The Griffin, The Rising Sun and The Merry Monk. The village has also been the inspiration for a book. Fenwomen, written by Mary Chamberlain in 1975, is a look at the lives of rural women in the Fens during the 1970s.

Like many other villages in Cambridgeshire, Isleham has a name that is hard to pronounce. People may think it’s pronounced like Is-le-ham, however it’s pronounced like Eyez-lum.