With contributions from John Allan, FSA, Ron Baxter, FSA, Stuart Black, Paul Courtney, FSA, C. Pamela Graves, FSA, Jane Harcourt, Elizabeth Gardner, Jerry Sampson, FSA, Claire Stephens, Hugh Willmott, FSA, and Kate Welham, and reports on finds by Phil Andrews, FSA, Katherine Barclay, FSA, R. Barnett, Hugo Blake, FSA, Chris Caple, FSA, Dana Challinor, John Cherry, FSA, David Dawson, FSA, Jennifer Durrant, Hella Eckardt, FSA, Geoff Egan, FSA, Alejandra Gutiérrez, Lorrain Higbee, David A Higgins, Michael J. Hughes, FSA, Oliver Kent, Peter Marshall, Ray McBride, Elaine Morris, FSA, Tim Phillips, Roger T. Taylor and Jane Timby, FSA.
Glastonbury Abbey was renowned in the Middle Ages as the reputed burial place of the legendary King Arthur and the site of the earliest Christian church in Britain, believed to have been founded by Joseph of Arimathea in the first century AD. New insights into the abbey's origins and historical development have been revealed by thirty-six seasons of archaeological excavation that took place at the site during the twentieth century, directed by such iconic figures as Sir William St John Hope, Sir Charles Peers, Sir Alfred Clapham and Dr. Courtenay Arthur Ralegh Radford.
The results of these antiquarian excavations, only published in the past in the form of brief interim statements, can now be examined critically for the first time, thanks to a joint project by the University of Reading and Glastonbury Abbey, funded principally by the Arts and Humanities Research Council. This volume reports on the comprehensive study of the archaeological archives and artefact collections and a new geophysical survey. Previous interpretations are challenged and new evidence is presented for the Saxon and later medieval phases of the abbey, including an important complex of early glassworking furnaces, dated c 700. For the first time, archaeological evidence is revealed for the Norman and later medieval monastic ranges and the luxurious abbot's hall and court. The rich assemblage of material culture includes devotional objects, fine imported vessels, locally produced ceramic floor tiles and stained glass and sculpture of the highest quality. Many retrospective elements are evident in the architecture of Glastonbury Abbey, perhaps suggesting a deliberate strategy to cultivate memory and to promote the antiquity of its Christian heritage.
Author(s): Roberta Gilchrist, Cheryl Green
Publisher: The Society of Antiquaries of London
Year: 2015
Language: English
Pages: XXII+494
Figures and tables vii
Preface and acknowledgements xii
Summary xiii
Phasing and figure conventions xxi
1. Excavations at Glastonbury Abbey / Roberta Gilchrist 1
2. Methodology and geophysical survey / Cheryl Green, with a contribution from Claire Stephens 20
3. A sense of place: history, buildings and landscape / Roberta Gilchrist 51
4. The cemetery and church / Cheryl Green and Roberta Gilchrist 80
5. The cloister / Cheryl Green and Roberta Gilchrist, with a contribution from Peter Marshall 124
6. The inner court and precinct / Cheryl Green and Roberta Gilchrist 189
7. The Saxon glass furnaces / Hugh Willmott and Kate Welham 218
8. The finds / Edited by Roberta Gilchrist 239
Prehistoric lithics / Tim Phillips 239
Prehistoric pottery / Elaine L. Morris 241
Roman pottery / Jane Timby 243
Roman tile / Jennifer Durrant, with a contribution from Roger T. Taylor 246
Roman small finds / Hella Eckardt 248
Post-Roman pottery / John Allan, David Dawson and Oliver Kent, with contributions from Katherine Barclay, Hugo Blake, Alejandra Guitérrez, Michael J. Hughes, R. McBride, Roger T. Taylor and Jane Timby 250
Medieval floor tiles / Jane Harcourt, with contributions from Michael J. Hughes and Roger T. Taylor 278
Small finds / Paul Courtney, Geoff Egan and Roberta Gilchrist, with a contribution from John Cherry 293
Vessel glass / Hugh Willmott 311
Slag and metal residue samples / Stuart Black, with a contribution from Phil Andrews 313
Stained and painted window glass / C Pamela Graves, with contributions from Chris Caple and R. Barnett 320
Ex situ painted wall-plaster / Chris Caple, with a contribution from C. Pamela Graves 337
Clay tobacco pipes / David A. Higgins 340
Animal bone / Lorrain Higbee 342
Wood and charcoal / Dana Challinor 345
9. The medieval worked stone assemblage 347
Romanesque carved stones / Ron Baxter 347
Gothic sculpture and worked stone / Jerry Sampson 358
10. Chronological summary / Roberta Gilchrist and Cheryl Green 383
11. Conclusions / Roberta Gilchrist 415
Appendix 1: Concordance of Radford’s excavations / Cheryl Green 436
Appendix 2: Concordance of Wedlake’s excavations / Cheryl Green 442
Appendix 3: Concordance of 1908–39 excavations / Cheryl Green 444
Notes 450
Abbreviations and bibliography 466
Index 487
Plans 494
1. Phased Saxon plan 495
2. Late eleventh-century plan 496
3. Phased twelfth-century plan 497
4. Phased medieval plan 499
5. Phased post-Dissolution plan with early twentieth-century postcards 500
