The Buildings Archaeologist reveals the secrets of ancient buildings hidden in plain sight

SOUTHWELL MINSTER LECTURES:

The Buildings Archaeologist – Discovering the Secrets of Britain's Ancient Buildings

Tuesday 26th January 2027, 2:30-3:45pm

Abstract: Visit any settlement in the land and there will be ancient buildings hidden in plain sight. Behind a Victorian façade is a Tudor house. Underneath a Georgian frontage is a mediaeval cottage. What is now a modern farm may once have been a castle. We know relatively little about the ancient buildings that surround us, yet buildings archaeology can offer us so many clues for discovering the secrets of hidden historic houses. This talk looks at the ways in which ancient buildings have been studied and conserved, the puzzling ways that some buildings became listed whereas others were overlooked, and how we can really understand the age and development of a structure. With over a quarter of a century of field experience, James Wright uses case studies drawn from his career to explain the fascinating, enigmatic, and surprising world of The Buildings Archaeologist.

Speaker: James Wright, Triskele Heritage

James is an award-winning buildings archaeologist. 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 Historic Building Mythbusting and The Buildings Archaeologist (The History Press).

Tickets cost £8 (plus booking fee)

Tickets may be bought in advance through the Minster website, or the Cathedral shop, or on the door.

FIND OUT MORE: Talks Programme | Southwell Minster (https://www.southwellminster.org/project/talks-programme/)

Description supplied by the event organiser.