A project centered on the Anglo-Saxon burial ground at Sutton Hoo, Suffolk, England, has attempted to identify and chemically characterize organic residues from archaeological contexts. Very acid sandy soils at Sutton Hoo have caused serious deteriorattion of organic materials which have been preserved as mere traces. A quick and simple analytical method is required to find a chemical signature for the various visually identifiable organic residues (e. g., human remains, wood, etc.), and hence permit identification of unknown, or even non-visible traces of organic material. To this end, inductively coupled plasma atomic emission (ICP-AE) spectrometry was used to analyze the elemental/trace-elemental content of a number of samples from an inhumation at Sutton Hoo, to see if the organic remains could be clearly differentiated from the grave fill without recourse to more complex organic analysis. The approach is promising but needs further development.