Bronze Age necklace found by Leicester students features on Isle of Man treasure stamps

A 4,000-year-old jet necklace found by students from the University of Leicester and Newcastle University, and a team of volunteers is one of six designs in a new collection of stamps celebrating the Isle of Man’s most significant national treasures.

The stamp is part of The Manx National Treasures collection unveiled by the Isle of Man Post Office earlier this month. 

The necklace was found at a burial mound near Kirk Michael in 2018 during excavations led by University of Leicester archaeologist Dr Rachel Crellin and Prof Chris Fowler (Newcastle University) as part of the Round Mounds of the Isle of Man project, which began in 2017. It is the first necklace of its kind to be found on the island.

The project was set up to investigate Bronze Age funerary practices on the Isle of Man and its surrounding islands. It was in one of these ‘round mounds’ that the necklace was found.

Made up of 122 beads, the necklace was worn by a woman buried at the site. The larger beads are decorated with geometric designs made by incising tiny holes. The necklace was also found with a matching bracelet.

The necklace was brought back to the University of Leicester for analysis in 2024 and has been dated to around 2000BC. The jet may have come from Whitby in Yorkshire, revealing a Bronze Age link between the island and Britain.

The necklace is now on display at the Manx Museum in Douglas.  

Dr Rachel Crellin, who co-directed the digs, said: “The jet necklace is an incredible find. It is a technically stunning object demonstrating an exquisite level of crafting and understanding of materials. From the moment I saw the first bead of the necklace I knew this was going to be a find that I would work with for years to come. I don’t think any of the students, volunteers or staff digging at the site ever imagined we would find something worthy of appearing on a stamp!"