In a workshop on the bank of the River Deben, opposite Woodbridge in Suffolk, a 90ft reconstruction of the Sutton Hoo ship is taking shape. When it is finished, it will slide down the slipway and into the water in May 2027, powered by 40 volunteer rowers. Anyone can watch the work: the Longshed is open free to visitors every working day. The Art Newspaper

The Sutton Hoo Ship's Company, established in 2016, is leading the build. Around 170 volunteers are involved, using traditional materials and techniques to create an authentic replica of an early seventh-century vessel. The project raises and spends around £250,000 a year and has received support from Sizewell C, the nuclear power station developer. The Art Newspaper; Sizewell C

Martin Carver, emeritus professor of archaeology at the University of York, chairs the company. He is scheduled to discuss the reconstruction at the York Festival of Ideas on 31 May 2026. The Art Newspaper; York Festival of Ideas

The original Sutton Hoo ship was dragged up from the river and laid into a trench in the soil in the early seventh century, where it served as a burial vessel for a warrior king surrounded by treasures — the famous helmet, a gold buckle, shoulder clasps and more. Edith Pretty, the landowner who commissioned the 1939 excavation, gave all the finds to the British Museum in London, where they remain. The Art Newspaper

The reconstruction is built from what survives of that first dig: drawings by Basil Brown, the self-taught archaeologist who first excavated the mound; the British Museum's records; and photographs taken by two local women. The wood itself rotted away centuries ago, leaving only an impression in the sand — a ghost of a hull that these sources have allowed modern builders to trace. The Art Newspaper

This is not a tourist attraction. The project is a research experiment, designed to test theories about Anglo-Saxon shipbuilding and whether the Anglo-Saxons were a genuine sea-going power. Every timber cut and rivet set is a question put to the archaeological record. The Art Newspaper

The timeline has shifted. Plans to launch in Woodbridge were delayed until 2026 as of May 2024, according to the BBC, and the current target is late spring 2027. A large team is already planning the launch event, which requires careful crowd control both on and off the water. BBC News; Sutton Hoo Ship's Company

The ship still needs a name. The Sutton Hoo Ship's Company is running a public campaign to choose one — details are on their website. For a project rooted in the seventh century, the naming is distinctly twenty-first century. Sutton Hoo Ship's Company

What makes this build unusual is what happens after launch. The point is not to moor the ship as a display piece but to row it, to feel how it handles in water, and to learn from the answers the original builders left embedded in the shape of the hull. The Longshed's doors are open while the work goes on.