Silver ladles from the Hoxne hoard

The Hoxne (pronounced 'Hoxon') hoard is the richest find of treasure from Roman Britain. Alongside the approximately 15,000 coins were many other precious objects, buried for safety at a time when Britain was passing out of Roman control. Small ladles or spoons with deep round bowls and straight handles occur in several late-Roman hoards, such as the Mildenhall treasure. However, the twenty examples from Hoxne, in two sets of ten, form the largest collection. One set has rather roughly engraved decoration on the handles incorporating the monogram cross. The other set has gilded handles and bowls and distinctive chip-carved ornament which foreshadows decorative styles and techniques in Britain in the early medieval period.