Archaeology of the Early Kentish Church
Canterbury, England
Summer 2010
Participate in an innovative project that aims to find fresh archaeological evidence in the Anglo-Saxon monastery of Lyminge, founded in 633 A.D. Located some 10 miles from the historic city of Canterbury and less than two miles from the English Channel, Lyminge lives up to the reputation of a quintessential English village, nestled in the stunning rolling landscape of the North Downs. You'll have the opportunity to participate in open-area excavations beside the medieval parish church, standing on the site of the Anglo-Saxon monastery, and survey work designed to establish the extent and character of contemporary settlement within this wider landscape.
Kent, at the extreme southeastern tip of England, is perhaps best known internationally as the landing place of St. Augustine’s mission to convert the heathen Anglo-Saxons in 597 A.D. Within a generation of this formative moment in Western Christianity, the Kentish royal house had sponsored the establishment of a network of monasteries within the borders of their kingdom. Surprisingly little is known of the physical appearance of these Anglo-Saxon monasteries and how they impacted the contemporary landscape. For further information on the project, visit the project Web site.