Arrivals

As Buddhism and Christianity spread from their heartlands to the edges of the Eurasian continent, they introduced not only a new system of faith with new gods, but also a well-established material culture. Although there are later written accounts of conversions, they are not always apparent in the art and archaeology. Their influence can, however, be seen on the landscapes, aesthetics and cultures of the converted lands.

Most obvious were new forms of buildings and art: churches, monumental crosses, temples and stupas that were decorated with sculptures and paintings of the new gods. Burial architecture was also transformed  (see the Death and Burials story ) and relics became objects of veneration ( read more in our Relics story ).

The religions each came with an established canon and book culture; Christian codices written on parchment and Buddhist scrolls on paper, both mainly written in the language of the respective continent: Latin and Literary Sinitic ( see our Books story ).

This story explores this period of conversion, focusing on how religion manifested itself through its material culture as it made converts to Buddhism in Korea and Japan and to Christianity in northwestern Europe.

As Buddhism was spreading in Korea and Japan, Christianity started gaining converts in Britain, although Britain had seen Christianity during the Roman occupation. Christianity came both from Ireland, which had not been occupied by the Romans and had gained many converts in the 5th century, and from continental Europe: Augustine (d. 604) [ EXH15 ]  landed in Britain in 597, although there had been relationships with Frankish Christians for decades before this, reinforced by Aethelberht, King of Kent (r.589–616) taking a Christian Frankish wife. As with Buddhism, Christianity introduced new forms of architecture and art. Churches, such as that at Bradwell-on-Sea, and monumental crosses, such as Ruthwell [ EXH13 ], and Gosforth ( see our Encounters Story ), were to transform the built landscape.

But conversion was often a long and fitful process during which the old and new religions each had their ascendancies, conflict, and assimilation, as we discuss in  our Encounters story . As with Buddhism in Korea and Japan, conversion was often helped by royal patronage. Bede [ EXH14 ], 8th-century chronicler of the early history of Christianity in Britain, records that St Cedd, founder of the Bradwell-on-Sea church [ EXH16  and pictured above], baptised a king of the East Angles around 660. Yet there is little sign of Christianity at the site of royal Rendlesham [ EXH17 ] in Suffolk, one of the centres of the 7th century Kingdom of the East Angles and site of a recorded royal baptism, showing that early conversion is not always apparent in the landscape.

One of the main indicators of early conversions are finds of crosses—representing the crucifixion—which sometimes challenge the written narratives ( see our Crosses story ). The runestone at Jelling [ EXH8 ] records the conversion of the Danes in 965, following the mission of Ansgar (801–865), ‘Apostle of the North’, which also records his church-building in Ribe in 860. But, the discovery at Ribe of cross amulets [ EXH6 ] dating to the previous century suggests that some of the local population were already Christian.

Ansgar's life was recorded in Vita Ansgarii [ EXH7 ]; the earliest extant manuscript is pictured above, and a translation can be read below.

Personal crosses dating from the 10th century such as those from Havreholm [ EXH3 ], Funen [ EXH4 ] and Birka [ EXH5 ] show the continuing process of conversion in Scandinavia over this period. There are many more finds in Britain, such as the simple gold foil crosses possibly placed on the eyes of corpses at Prittlewell ( see our Death and Burial story ). More common are elaborate gold and garnet jewellery crosses such as that of St. Cuthbert [ EXH10 ], who was finally buried in Durham after having to flee Lindisfarne at the Viking invasion in 793. Many have also been found in the graves of elite women, indicating their role in early Christianity ( see our Crosses story ).

The Trumpington cross [ EXH11 ] was discovered in the grave of a teenage girl who was also buried with a set of gold and garnet pins and who had been laid out on a wooden bed with carved decoration. Bed burial was a rare practice, usually given only to young women who were accompanied by other valuable grave goods, and so the manner of burial identifies her as a member of wealthy and important family—someone of the same background as the noble and royal abbesses who feature in Bede's narrative [ EXH14 ]. The cross is unusual: most known examples were worn suspended as pendants, but this one is unique in having been sewn to her clothing. It serves to show how Christian symbolism was expressed through the expert craft skills and costly materials favoured by nobility and royalty, and marks her out as a member of an aristocratic family that had adopted the new religion.

The University of Cambridge has conducted extensive research on the Trumpington cross. Learn about their findings in the video below.

Crosses also featured on jewellery such as pendants, brooches, and necklaces. The Desborough Necklace [ EXH12 ], pictured right, is strung with an alternating sequence of irregular gold and garnet pendants, gold lockets and gold wire spacer beads.

Though necklaces with similar beads have been discovered in other contemporary elite burials, the interest in the Desborough necklace lies in the cross, an explicit indicator of the adoption of Christianity. In this way, similar to Buddhism in Korea and Japan, the promotion of Christianity by society’s elite through material culture assisted in its spread in Britain and Scandinavia.

Below are three more examples of the cross on jewellery: the Harford Farm Brooch, the Winfarthing Pendant, and the Kingston Brooch. Again, the presence of the cross suggests that the wearers may have been early Christian converts.

In  our Origins story , we learnt that Buddhism had become established in central Asia by the Kushan empire (1st to 3rd centuries). From there, it was transmitted—by monks, merchants and diplomats—to the regimes ruling the Yellow and Yangzi river valleys and plains in northern China. Buddhist teachings reached the northern kingdom in the Korean peninsula: Gogoryeo (37 BC–AD 668) in the late fourth century; moved southward to Baekje (18 BC–AD 660); and finally to Silla (57 BC–AD 935) by the 6th century. It was also at this time that Buddhism reached Japan.

As in Europe, later texts gave accounts of the conversion to Buddhism. The Samguk yusa (三國遺事, Memorabilia of the Three Kingdoms) [ EXH18 ] names three Buddhist monks who travelled from various kingdoms in China to the Three Kingdoms of Korea, namely Sundo (順道) to Goguryeo in 372, Malananta (摩羅難陀) to Baekje in 384, and Ado (阿道) to Silla, also around this period.

Buddhism and Christianity not only introduced new gods, but also a whole new material culture. This is seen in personal objects such as crosses, to objects which changed public spaces, such as churches and stupas. Creating these objects and buildings often required new techniques and materials, and they were to transform the material world of both converts and others.

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