Medieval Studies Forum

Join National Trust archaeologist James Brown and assistant archaeologist Harry Farmer on site at their Ankerwycke excavations this month for a guided walk around the site, sharing the most recent findings and insight as well as the wider story. The site is a hive of intrigue with both a Medieval nunnery, a Tudor mansion and possibly more sited within the investigation area.

The Medieval Studies Forum will be hosting a full study day devoted to pottery studies, looking at its historical, technical, social and economic aspects. The interesting programme covers a wide range of topics and will include a tribute to Steve Nelson, a member of the Society and the Forum who contributed a great deal to the study of Medieval Pottery. 

The Medieval Studies Forum have arranged a special lecture by Professor Alexandra Sanmark (University of the Highlands and Islands) on 'Medieval Sites of Power and Assembly in the Thames Valley', which includes a look in detail at the sites of both Kingston and Runnymede.

After Prof Sanmark's lecture, the National Trust team will provide a short presentation and update on the Runnymede Explored project.

This talk will be held online, via Zoom.

Although welcome to all, the event is free for SyAS and MSF members, with a fee of £2 from non-members.

On Thursday 16 December at approximately 19:00, the MSF AGM will be preceded by an online Zoom lecture from James Wright FSA on ‘The Folklore and Archaeology of Historic Buildings’. James, a buildings archaeologist and historic stone specialist, will explore some of the most common misconceptions surrounding historic buildings, outlining the legends, explaining the origins of the myths and revealing the underlying truth behind each story to understand a little more about their former occupants.

In recent years, the early inscriptions and carved artworks in churches have become the subject of large-scale surveys, not least for the fascinating pictures which are represented - heraldic designs, word puzzles, ships, architectural plans, figural scenes and cartoons, etc - and the insight they shed on the artists themselves. This online study day will look at recent studies of medieval graffiti in both Surrey and Kent, focusing not only on some of the captivating scenes which have been discovered, but the methodologies involved in undertaking such work.

The Medieval Studies Forum will be holding their annual general meeting online this year, via Zoom, which will be preceded by a free special lecture by Dr Ben Jervis (Cardiff Univ) on 'The Material Culture of Medieval Rural Households'. 

The talk will last for about 45 minutes, to be followed by questions and a short break. The AGM will start approximately at 1130 and is open to all MSF members.

As part of the Sustainable Impact project, the Medieval Studies Forum are organising a study day for Saturday 14 March at Surrey History Centre which will centre around the medieval landscape and some of the less obvious and more specialist forms of research, including the use of primary documentary sources, name studies and non-settlement based landscape archaeology.

The programme for the day will include a number of informative talks:

10:00    Intro