Photos and items from collection of schoolmistress who documented Sutton Hoo dig to be conserved at public event

A collection of photos and ephemera from the Sutton Hoo dig will be officially conserved at a public event next week.

On October 11 and October 12, visitors to the National Trust’s Sutton Hoo site in Woodbridge will be able to watch as specialists in a makeshift lab work to preserve 25 items from the personal collection of Mercie Lack.

Ms Lack was a schoolmistress, remembered for her role documenting the excavation of the Sutton Hoo ship with her pictures.

She carried out the work alongside her friend and collaborator, Barbara Wagstaff.

Laura Howarth, Sutton Hoo's archaeology and engagement manager, said: “Mercie Lack was staying with her aunt when she heard the exciting news of the discovery of an Anglo-Saxon ship burial nearby.

“She visited the site and obtained permission from lead archaeologist Charles Phillips to return with Barbara Wagstaff in order to photograph the excavation.

“Both had a keen interest in history and archaeology and, during previous holidays, had travelled across the country photographing Anglo-Saxon stone sculptural details for the British Museum, such as at Lindisfarne.

“Present on site between the August 8 and August 25, 1939, Mercie Lack and Barbara Wagstaff took approximately 60 per cent of the total number of recorded contemporary negatives from the excavation.

“Whilst the treasure had been removed from site by this point, their contribution to the archaeological record remains hugely significant.

“This ‘ghost ship,’ as Mercie Lack referred to it, is something that no longer exists today, but we can still experience it through their photographs.”

More information on the event can be found on the National Trust’s website.