The ship burial at Sutton Hoo was opened in 1939. Further work on the site was barred by it being in private ownership. This changed in I988 when the site was bequeathed to the National Trust.

Work has now started on a second site some 500 yards north of the ship burial. Here some 36 graves including 17 cremations remain from the cemetery of "high status" individuals. One grave has yielded a shield decorated in bronze appliqué, swords and spears.

This site puts the Royal site with the ship burial (there are other unexcavated ship burials here) into a community context.