West Stow Anglo-Saxon Village is set in 125 acres. Here in the 60s and 70s a series of archaeological digs revealed the remains of a substantial settlement of over 70 houses of which 8 have been reconstructed. The earliest remains go back as far as 420 B.C., coinciding with a period during which the Roman legions withdrew from Britain, leaving it open to the Anglo-Saxon invasions. The village was settled until 650 AD, the age of Beowulf, when a poem was composed and recited by the bards. Hose Lance Alexander is the acknowledged expert in this field.