Key learning points

1. All the coins found at Sutton Hoo were Frankish, showing how well connected Kent and East Anglia were to Europe.
2. Roman influence continued: Offa made coins making him look like an Emperor with Romulus, Remus and a wolf on the back!
3. Whilst major towns collapsed after the Romans left, evidence of coins suggested they grew again under the Anglo-Saxons.
4. Anglo-Saxon kings such as Offa began to mint their own coins at growing towns in places like London and Canterbury.
5. These, along with lots of pottery, show how towns grew due to the increasing wealth and trade in Anglo-Saxon Britain.

Keywords

• Franks - the Franks were a Germanic tribe that were very powerful in early medieval Europe, particularly in modern-day France

• Mint - to mint means to make a coin by stamping metal; it can also be used as a noun to describe where coins are made

• Pottery - pottery refers to objects made of clay that are shaped and then fired at high temperatures to harden them

Common misconception