Archaeology and the Works of Alan Garner
The books of the Cheshire author Alan Garner are steeped in foklore, mythology and archaeology. His great skill has been to create a tapestry of tales with a deep connection to the Cheshire landscape. Beginning with The Weirdstone of Brisingamen, published in 1960, most of Garner’s works are set within a few miles of Alderley Edge.
Although Garner’s world of wizards, elves, mara, svarts and morthbrood is fantastical the landscapes which they inhabit is all too real. Much of that landscape has been shaped by man and, as such, there is the firm weight of archaeology behind his books.
This talk will follow Dr James Wright’s attempt to walk the locations from Garner’s Weirdstone Trilogy (The Weirdstone of Brisingamen, The Moon of Gomrath and Boneland) with an especial focus on archaeological sites. It will include prehistoric burial mounds, ancient standing stones, mediaeval houses, Victorian copper mines and the seventeenth century farm which was the inspiration for Highmost Redmanhey. Interwoven within the presentation will be a consideration for Garner’s own published fieldwork and research within the world of archaeology.
The speaker, James Wright (Triskele Heritage), is an award winning buildings archaeologist and a self-confessed Alan Garner fan. 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. He runs The Weirdstone Walk website which seeks to track down every location mentioned in the Weirdstone Trilogy. Alan Garner himself has described the venture as: “the first to give the subject a proper treatment.”
This lecture is a collaborative event by Triskele Heritage and Chester Heritage Festival. It is crowdfunded through donation. It will be the debut of a new bespoke talk. There is no minimum donation so it is 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.
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 19:30 GMT+1 on Wednesday 28 June 2023 .
Booking is now available via 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 ***