A SAXON king’s spectacular burial chamber has been unearthed in a suburb of Southend.

The chamber, dating from the early 7th century, is remarkably intact. All that is missing is the body of the king, whose remains have dissolved over the centuries.

Among the treasures recovered are the copper buckles from his shoes. They were found alongside 60 beautifully preserved pieces, including gold buckles and brooches, glass vessels and copper bowls: all that a king needed to take him into the next world. Two gold foil crosses indicate that he was an early convert to Christianity.

The significance of the find is being likened by experts to Sutton Hoo in Suffolk, one of Britain’s most important archaeological sites. The quality of the grave goods, as well as their quantity, has astonished archaeologists. Bronze cauldrons and flagons, a sword and shield, drinking vessels and personal items such as a boardgame, were fastened to the walls of the chamber with the original iron nails.

What makes the discovery unique is that all the objects were found in their original positions, just as they had been arranged on the day of the king’s funeral nearly 1,400 years ago.

The wood-lined burial chamber on the Essex coast lies beneath a roadside verge near the railway line at Prittlewell. Archaeologists from the Museum of London archaeology service were asked by the local authority to evaluate the site before workmen began improving the road because, when the road was built in the 1920s, workmen found some Saxon spears, swords and bones.

Ian Blair, the senior archaeologist on the site, said: “To find an intact chamber grave and a moment genuinely frozen in time is a once-in-a-lifetime discovery.”

Dave Lakin, the project manager, said that despite the king’s apparent conversion to Christianity he was also taking with him everything he might need to carry on his life of feasting and lavish display — “a vestige of previous pagan beliefs”. He added: “It contains incredible objects that are providing a fascinating glimpse into the life and death of the super-rich of the Dark Ages.”

The identity of the king is unknown. Speculation points to the rulers of Essex: Saebert, who converted in 604 and died in 616, and Sigeberht II, who adopted Christianity in 653. Little is known about either, although current research suggests that they lived at a time when settlements were beginning to consolidate and early tribal groupings were becoming more formal.

The chamber measures about 13ft (4m) square by 5ft and contained treasures imported from the farthest corners of the known world.

The most exotic finds are a decorated flagon and at least one bowl that were imported from the Eastern Mediterranean, possibly Asia Minor. There is a hanging bowl decorated with metallic strips and medallions, and two cauldrons, one small and one vast, measuring 29½ in (75 cm) across. There are also two pairs of coloured glass vessels, eight wooden drinking cups decorated with gilded mounts, buckets and the remains of a large casket that may have originally contained textiles. A particularly unusual item is the frame of a folding stool, which could be from Asia Minor or Italy.

The contents were held in place because sand from the mound sealing the grave seeped into the chamber, silting up the air spaces and supporting the roof timbers. Although the king’s body has dissolved in the acid soil, two bone dice from a boardgame that resembles backgammon survived.

Mr Lakin said: “There was an awful lot of stuff with him. The really exciting part is that we don’t have to reconstruct how it looked. It’s all there. The hanging bowl was still hanging on the nail. Glass vessels were stacked up by the side of the coffin. The cauldron was leant up against the wall. The assemblage as a whole is astonishing. We have a shopping list of what such a grave would contain: weapons, feasting paraphernalia, drinking horns, cups, personal items like a lyre and gaming pieces.”

The burial was probably carried out at about the same time as the Sutton Hoo burial. However, while robbers got to the Suffolk site centuries before archaeologists, so that a reconstruction had to be done from the remaining objects, the Essex chamber is complete. Mr Lakin said: “Those who have seen this so far have said this is not the sort of thing they’d expect to see in their lifetime. I’d wholly agree with that.”

Howard Briggs, the leader of Southend council, said: “It’s hard to believe that for hundreds of years a king has been lying in Southend, untouched by all the things going on around him. The opportunity for the public to see these spectacular finds is a real bonus.”

Conservation and study of the treasures is continuing, but a selection will be displayed at both the Museum of London, from February 6 to 17, and the Southend Central Museum, from February 21 to March 21.

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