Iron Age shield found with Yorkshire chariot burial and called 'the most important British Celtic object of the millennium' to go on display at Malton Museum

An Iron Age shield found during an archaeological dig in Pocklington in 2017 is to go on display at Malton Museum for one month only in April.

The shield was discovered in a grave alongside a chariot and the skeletons of two ponies during the excavation of a site earmarked for housing development.

It belonged to a man of high social status who lived to the relatively old age of 46, and was possibly older when he died between 320BC and 174BC. The horses were positioned to look as it they were leaping out of the burial plot in an indication of the ‘spectacular’ nature of the ceremony. No evidence of any similar grave customs has ever been found in the UK before, with the nearest example being in Bulgaria. The style of the shield’s decorations is that of early Celtic art.

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Although the shield has a sword mark likely to have been sustained in battle, it is believed the warrior was not injured and died of old age. Six piglets were also buried with him.

Archaeologist Paula Ware with the shield she dug up in Pocklington as part of an amazing chariot burial pictured at MAP, Malton, North Yorkshire. Picture by Simon Hulme 14th February2023Archaeologist Paula Ware with the shield she dug up in Pocklington as part of an amazing chariot burial pictured at MAP, Malton, North Yorkshire. Picture by Simon Hulme 14th February2023
Archaeologist Paula Ware with the shield she dug up in Pocklington as part of an amazing chariot burial pictured at MAP, Malton, North Yorkshire. Picture by Simon Hulme 14th February2023

A younger man, aged between 17 and 25, was buried nearby, and he appeared to have been ritually killed with spears.

The first time the shield will go on public display is at Malton Museum from April 1. It will be open from Tuesday-Sunday from 10.30am-3.30pm for viewings of the exhibit.

It has been described by a leading archaeologist as ‘one of the most significant finds in recent history and the most important British Celtic art object of the millennium’.

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Malton Museum staff are also holding a lecture about the excavation of the shield at St Michael’s Church, Malton, on Friday March 31 at 7.30pm. Tickets for the event, which includes a private viewing and a talk by an archaeologist, are £10 and can be purchased from the museum’s website.

Archaeologist Paula Ware with the shield she dug up in Pocklington  pictured at MAP, Malton, North Yorkshire. Picture by Simon Hulme 14th February2023Archaeologist Paula Ware with the shield she dug up in Pocklington  pictured at MAP, Malton, North Yorkshire. Picture by Simon Hulme 14th February2023
Archaeologist Paula Ware with the shield she dug up in Pocklington pictured at MAP, Malton, North Yorkshire. Picture by Simon Hulme 14th February2023

The Celtic tribes that lived in East Yorkshire before the Roman Conquest were called Parisi, and it is thought that they may have originally migrated from northern France.

East Riding Museums now have possession of the shield after it was donated to them by the developers.