Where is Sutton Hoo and what happened to the treasure in Netflix’s film The Dig?

THE Dig reimagines the events of the 1939 excavation of Sutton Hoo prior to the First World War.

The film, which is based on the 2007 novel of the same name by John Preston, has been a hit with viewers since it arrived on Netflix.

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Where is Sutton Hoo?

The story revolves around the discovery of the Anglo-Saxon ship burial site at Sutton Hoo in Suffolk.

The Dig has done an excellent job of capturing the beautiful and picturesque countryside and director Simon Stone is pleased with the end product.

He shared: “You go to Suffolk once and visit the estuary lands and you see such a unique landscape, like a world that you just don't recognise as quintessentially English, and so I thought to myself this is a real opportunity to show a side of England that you don't usually see. 

“As you see, it's constantly through the film. We keep cutting back to shots that were shot in the environment where it took place.”

Is The Dig on Netflix based on a true story?

The Dig is based on a true story as it re-enacts the discovery of the Sutton Hoo burial site, which can be found on the property of Edith Pretty.

Young widow Edith decided to contact the local archaeologist to dig up the mounds in her garden.

Assuming they were part of a huge old graveyard, it would turn out to be something completely different.

They would discover a massive Anglo-Saxon longship, and possibly the resting place of the ancient King Rædwald of East Anglia.

Who stars in The Dig?

Pride and Prejudice star Carey Mulligan, 35, leads an impressive cast.

• Carey Mulligan as Edith Pretty
• Ralph Fiennes as Basil Brown
• Lily James as Peggy Piggott
• Johnny Flynn as Rory Lomax
• Ben Chaplin as Stuart Piggott
• Ken Stott as Charles Phillips
• Archie Barnes as Robert Pretty
• Monica Dolan as May Brown

What happened to the treasure?

The King's Mound treasure is displayed in Room 41: Sutton Hoo and Europe, AD 300-1100 at The British Museum, London.

Edith Pretty donated the important discovery to the famous London-based museum in London.

To keep the priceless treasures safe during the Second World War, they were stored underground in the capital's rail tunnels.

Today the British Museum credits Basil Brown with “making the discovery of a lifetime” when he first unearthed the burial mound in 1939.