Mediaeval parish churches are some of the oldest and most loved buildings in the British Isles. However, relatively few of them have been archaeologically surveyed and many unverified stories have grown up around them. This talk will look at some of the commonly repeated tales about the architecture of churches, which are widely assumed to be true, but which ultimately fall into the realm of folklore and myth.
These stories include doorways apparently blocked to keep the Devil out, churches alleged to be aligned to the sunrise on their saint’s day and windows said to allow lepers to watch the mass. These are tales repeated in good faith but are not based in the lived reality of the mediaeval world. Instead, we will look at the how churches were used before the Reformation. By applying contextual archaeological and historical evidence the architectural functions of churches will be investigated and unlocked.
The speaker, James Wright (Triskele Heritage), is an award winning buildings archaeologist. He has two decades professional experience of ferreting around in people’s cellars, hunting through their attics and digging up their gardens. He hopes to find meaningful truths about how ordinary and extraordinary folk lived their lives in the mediaeval period. He is the author of the popular Mediaeval Mythbusting Blog.
All you need to do is register via Eventbrite and – when the time for the talk rolls around – grab your favourite beverage of choice, get comfy and enjoy.
The event will take place at 19:00 GMT on Thursday 23 February 2023 .
Booking is now available via Eventbrite:
This lecture is crowdfunded through donation. It will be the debut of a new bespoke talk. There is no minimum donation so its possible to contribute as little or as much as you want. Your donation is your ticket and you will be sent a link to access the event by Eventbrite.
Please note that this live event will not be recorded and made available online afterwards.
If you have a question about the event – in the first instance please see our FAQs section. The answer will almost certainly be in there.
*** If you have any problems accessing the events please email with your booking reference to james@triskeleheritage.com ***