Abbeys and Priories, 1990, 160 p., 115 ill. -

Before the dissolution of the monasteries in 1536, there were more than 500 abbeys and priories in England. Yet, although excavation over the last 100 years has greatly increased our understanding of this aspect of medieval society, this is the first general study to cover this extensive specialist research in a single volume. The author looks at the archaeological clues that reveal why many changes, both modest and substantial, occured in the physical surroundings of monastic life : the development of monastic archaeology, the expansion of the monastic church, the changing role of the cloister, the sophistication of sanitation, the precinct, the conversion of monastic sites to secular use. With overs 100 maps, plans, reconstructions and photographs, as well as an informative gazetteer detailing the accessibility of those sites visible today.