Archaeologists piece together fragments from Anglo-Saxon gold hoard revealing stunning relics

Researchers in England have pieced together about 1,500 metal fragments, including gold and silver, to reconstruct a 7th century AD helmet and a sword pommel from the Staffordshire Hoard.

The artifacts, part of a cache of 4,000 items in the hoard, are on display in Birmingham's Museum and Art Gallery. The items comprise the largest Anglo-Saxon hoard of gold, silver, other metal and garnet ever found.

Conservators pieced together the sword pommel (pictured above), which is decorated with gold filigree, from 26 fragments. They reconstructed the dismantled helmet from about 1,500 fragile silver pieces. Some of the silver pieces were just 10 mm across, and conservators took a long time to reassemble the helmet along corrosion lines or deliberate cut lines.

The hoard was found in a field in Burntwood, Staffordshire, in 2009 and is worth an estimated £3.2 million (about $5 million). The hoard has been declared a national treasure and therefore belongs to the British Monarchy.