National Geographic Museum Blog

The St Chad Gospels are older than the Book of Kells, and only a little younger than the Lindisfarne Gospels. They date from about the year 730 AD. They contain the Gospels of Matthew and Mark in full, and the beginning of the Gospel of Luke. There are 236 pages, including eight illuminated pages.

The Lichfield Angel dates from around 800. It was discovered in 2003, during excavations in the Nave. It had been ritually buried face down, suspended on pillars of rubble in a dry void – which is why the carved detail and even painted pigments have survived so well. It almost certainly formed part of the tomb-chest of St Chad’s shrine. It depicts the Archangel Gabriel – and we think a figure of the Virgin Mary would have made up the right hand side of the panel which is now missing. We believe the scene would have been an illustration of ‘the Annunciation’, when it was announced to Mary that she would be the mother of Jesus.

So, the St Chad Gospels and the Lichfield Angel belong to the same world as the Staffordshire Hoard. Like items of the Hoard, the Gospels and the Angel are works of exquisite craftsmanship. They show what an important cultural centre Mercia was in the 7th to 9th centuries.

And while there is absolutely no evidence of any direct connection between St Chad and the Staffordshire Hoard, the ecclesiastic items in the hoard, like the crosses and the inscription, do show the kind of treasures which would have been used by St Chad and his colleagues in that first Christian community in Lichfield.

Source: http://www.staffordshirehoard.org.uk/history/key-characters/st-chad

1.) Eels can swim backwards.
2.) A housefly can turn somersaults in the air.
3.) Earthworms have 5 hearts.
4,) A queen bee can lay 2,000 eggs a day in the spring.
5,) Detached sea star arms sometimes grow new bodies.

Experts believe the Staffordshire Hoard was most probably buried some time around 650-675 AD. If they are right, then it dates from around the time that St Chad arrived in Lichfield. St Chad was bishop of Mercia, based in Lichfield between 669 and 672 AD.

St Chad was the first Bishop of Mercia to make Lichfield the centre of his diocese. It was largely through his work that Mercia became a Christian kingdom. Considering he was in Lichfield for such a short time, his impact is amazing. Written sources from the period show that he impressed everyone with his humility, gentleness and courage.

His impact was so great that when he died in 672, people began to flock to his burial place and Lichfield quickly became a pilgrimage centre. It was as a result of this pilgrim traffic that a Cathedral was built to accommodate his shrine.

That Saxon cathedral was dedicated on New Year’s Eve, 700. In due course it was replaced by a Norman cathedral, built around 1085. The Norman building was then replaced, from around 1185, by the present, Gothic building – much of which has been standing for 800 years.

The two great artefacts in Lichfield Cathedral’s Chapter House, the St Chad Gospels and the Lichfield Angel, were probably created to adorn St Chad’s first shrine in the Saxon cathedral.

Source: http://www.staffordshirehoard.org.uk/history/key-characters/st-chad

In July 2009, Terry Herbert, a metal detector enthusiast decided to try his luck in farmland close to his home in Hammerwich parish, near Lichfield in Staffordshire. Hammerwich is a village and civil parish in Lichfield District, Staffordshire, England. It is situated to the south east of Burntwood. The name may derive from the Old English hamor (by a hill) and wic (place), or possibly, ‘a smith’s workshop’ or ‘a hammer-making workshop’.
Charcoal burning, nail making, agriculture and coal mining have all been prevalent in the village over the years. Amenities in the village at present include a post office, community centre, a Women’s Institute hall and a church called St.John the Baptist. There are also numerous green lanes, footpaths and streams in the surrounding countryside

Source: http://hammerwich.com/

1.) Skunks have striped skin under their fur.
2.) Cats communicate using at least 16 known “cat words.”
3.) A cat has about 20 muscles in each ear.
4.) A fifteen-year-old cat has probably spent ten years of its life sleeping.
5.) Some snails can sleep for three years.

The height of wassailing could be said to have occurred during the 17th century, at a period when magnificent bowls elevated on a stemmed foot graced many a magnificent table. Wassail bowls were traditionally turned from Lignum Vitea, a newly discovered timber from South America. The function of a wassail bowl is to hold ‘wassail’, a hot punch like beverage of which there are many recipes, most will contain amongst other ingredients, Wine, Ale, Ginger, Apples, Honey and beaten egg whites. ‘Wassailing’, the tradition of drinking wassail took many forms.’ Wassail’ is a corruption of the Anglo-Saxon phrase waes hael, a term often used as a toast meaning, be hale or good health.

There are innumerable-wassailing traditions, many of them centered around Christmas time and New Year. It was the aristocracy and landed gentry along with institutions like the guilds that would have possessed the grand vessels, often embellished with fine engine turned decoration. Somerset fruit growers used to serenade their trees with wassail at the end of harvest time.

Source: http://www.stuartking.co.uk/index.php/making-a-wassail-bowl/

At the National Geographic Museum we offer a variety of educational options to make your visit more hands on.

One of these activities is out archaeology backpack.

When entering the Anglo-Saxon Hoard exhibit children are encouraged to put on their explorers hats and accept the mission of exploration and discovery.

Throughout their mission children are encouraged to brainstorm why they believed the Hoard was buried.

Here are this week’s winners:

“The Hoard was buried because the people could use it as ransom. One man found a good spot for the Hoard to be buried then the people had a religious ceremony. They were not Christians so they bent the crosses.”

Name: Nicole H

Age: 11

“To hide it from the invading armies”

Name: Nathan

Age: 11

 ”Maybe a rich King or Queen was selfish and buried the gold they had found. Sort of like “I’m dying, bury all my soldiers gold and jewels” and maybe a soldiers gold was not his but represented his leader.”

Name: Sebastian W.

Age: 11

Don’t see your theory here? Check back again!

The Gloucestershire Wassail dates back to the middle ages and was a popular Christmas carol. Find all the words below:
Wassail! wassail! all over the town,
Our toast it is white and our ale it is brown;
Our bowl it is made of the white maple tree;
With the wassailing bowl , we’ll drink to thee.

Here’s to our horse, and to his right ear,
God send our master a happy new year:
A happy new year as e’er he did see,
With my wassailing bowl I drink to thee.

So here is to Cherry and to his right cheek
Pray God send our master a good piece of beef
And a good piece of beef that may we all see
With the wassailing bowl, we’ll drink to thee.

Here’s to our mare, and to her right eye,
God send our mistress a good Christmas pie;
A good Christmas pie as e’er I did see,
With my wassailing bowl I drink to thee.

So here is to Broad Mary and to her broad horn
May God send our master a good crop of corn
And a good crop of corn that may we all see
With the wassailing bowl, we’ll drink to thee.

And here is to Fillpail and to her left ear
Pray God send our master a happy New Year
And a happy New Year as e’er he did see
With the wassailing bowl, we’ll drink to thee.

Here’s to our cow , and to her long tail,
God send our master us never may fail
Of a cup of good beer : I pray you draw near,
And our jolly wassail it’s then you shall hear.

Come butler, come fill us a bowl of the best
Then we hope that your soul in heaven may rest
But if you do draw us a bowl of the small
Then down shall go butler, bowl and all.

Be here any maids? I suppose here be some;
Sure they will not let young men stand on the cold stone!
Sing hey O, maids! come trole back the pin,
And the fairest maid in the house let us all in.

Then here’s to the maid in the lily white smock
Who tripped to the door and slipped back the lock
Who tripped to the door and pulled back the pin
For to let these jolly wassailers in.

1.) Owls can’t move their eyeballs.
2.) Some salamanders regrow their tails, legs, and even parts of their eyes.
3.) Some fish can walk on land.
4.) Some spiders catch and eat fish.
5.) All cats are born with blue eyes.

Share your favorite gross animal facts in the comments section below!

The tradition of Wassailing falls into two distinct categories: The House-Visiting wassail and the Orchard-Visiting wassail. House-Visiting wassail, very much similar to caroling, is the practice of people going door-to-door singing Christmas carols. The Orchard-Visiting wassail refers to the practice of singing to trees in apple orchards in cider-producing regions of England to promote a good harvest for the coming year. To make your own wassail cider, refer to the recipe below.

INGREDIENTS:

3/4 cup sugar
2 quarts apple juice
1 pint cranberry juice
1 teaspoon aromatic bitters
1 cup rum
2 cinnamon sticks
1 teaspoon whole allspice
1 small orange, studded with cloves

PREPARATION:

Source: http://www.cdkitchen.com/recipes/recs/212/Christmas-in-England-Wassail117252.shtml