Friday 19th July 2024, 3 pm, TCA.

“Historic Building Mythbusting"

A talk by archeologist and author, James Wright

Go to any ancient building and there will be interesting, exciting, and romantic stories presented to the visitor. They are commonly believed and widely repeated – but are they really true? These stories include those of secret passages linking ancient buildings, spiral staircases in castles giving advantage to right-handed defenders, ship timbers used in the construction of buildings on land, blocked doors in churches which are thought to keep the Devil out and claims to be the oldest pub in the country. James will explain the development of such myths and investigate the underlying truths behind them.

Sometimes the realities hiding behind the stories are even more interesting, romantic, and exciting than the myth itself. Copies of the book will be available, and James will be doing signings after the talk.

James Wright is an award winning buildings archaeologist. He has over 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 and his book Historic Building Mythbusting will be released via The History Press in June 2024.

Members £5.00, guests £6.00 at the door.