While photographing some of the metallic finds from the burials at Three Kings, Haddenham, Cambridgeshire, our RTI specialist Ryan noticed that the decoration and overall shape of one of the small finds, a shield decoration, looked very similar to a sturgeon in its overall morphology.
Sturgeon have lines of bony plates (scutes) which run from their head to their tail, along their lateral, dorsal, and ventral sides. The decorated pattern on this small find is very reminiscent of the pattern of scutes on sturgeon (save for the collar). Sturgeon are considered to be high status/royal fish throughout the Anglo-Saxon and subsequent medieval periods, which suggests the individual was someone of significant social status.
