The Hove Amber Cup is one of Britain's most important Bronze Age finds. It was discovered in 1856 when a burial mound was excavated to make way for the building of Palmeira Avenue, in Hove, Sussex. Inside the burial mound was an oak coffin carved from a tree trunk. It contained bone fragments, a copper-alloy dagger, whetstone and an axe-head as well as the precious amber cup. These grave goods are over 3,200 years old.
The cup is made from amber from northern Europe. Its burial in Hove suggests early trade links between England and the Baltic. The presence of this unique and valuable object may signify that the Hove burial mound was the grave of a very important person.
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