The Anglo-Saxon weekend was organised by Jo Heron, secretary of the Yorkshire Archaeological Society, Christiane Kroebel, and Chair Dr Gill Cookson.

Dr Cookson told the Gazette that the weekend had been a great success with people travelling from all over the country to attend.

Speakers were Dr Alan Thacker, Reader in the Institute of Historical Research, University of London.

He also has interests in local and regional history and towns in the earlier middle ages.

Steve Sherlock, a freelance archaeologist based in York, Steve shot to fame when his excavation at Street House, Loftus, produced what has been described as the most dramatic find of Anglo-Saxon material for generations.

After identifying a promising Iron Age site from aerial photographs, he directed the Loftus excavations from 2005, using volunteers and members of the Teesside Archaeology Society.

The graves he found turned out to be high status Anglo-Saxon, some containing treasures such as weapons and unique jewellery.

Dr Julian Harrison is Curator of Medieval Manuscripts at the British Library.

He was joint editor of The Chronicle of Melrose and is editing a new edition of Medieval Cartularies of Great Britain (which includes the Whitby Abbey cartulary now in the keeping of the Whitby Literary and Philosphical Society). He lectured on the Whitby cartulary to the Friends of Whitby Abbey last November.

Christiane Kroebel is well-known in Whitby as honorary librarian and archivist to the Whitby Lit and Phil Society, Christiane has curated the exhibition at the museum which accompanied the weekend conference.

“It has been quite a week – Christiane learned that she has won an award from the British Association for Local History for an article On The Origins Of St Oswald’s Church, Lythe Parish,” said Dr Cookson.

Two senior archaeologists from English Heritage travelled from Portsmouth to share their knowledge of the excavations on Whitby headland.

Sarah Jennings was project director for the excavations, Tony Wilmott was director of fieldwork there, and has previously directed excavations at Birdoswald on Hadrian’s wall.