Mystery of “bowling alley” under Yorkshire abbey solved

The site would have been the focus of numerous industrial activities. Medieval structure discovered hidden beneath Fountains Abbey, England.

The quiet and peaceful Fountains Abbey in Yorkshire, England, was not so quiet in its heyday. New research has found that, in fact, the place was the hub of numerous industrial activities during the medieval period. A team of archaeologists, led by Chris Gaffney of the University of Bradford, has identified that the mysterious underground "bowling alley"-like structure just east of the ruined structure hides the buried remains of a medieval tannery, where monks and lay brothers turned animal hides into leather.

The Mystery Beneath Yorkshire Abbey

According to Gaffney, the discovery "changes the perception of the site" that has heretofore been thought to be a simple abbey with beautiful ruins, but instead "was actually a very industry-focused area, quite noisy and quite smelly." The team has been exploring the area since 2014 using non-invasive mapping techniques and conducting magnetic and radar surveys that penetrate the ground. A few years ago, a long bowling alley-shaped structure had been detected beneath the abbey. More recent work with ground-penetrating radar determined that it was a tannery that once covered the entire width of the valley floor around the abbey.

The "bowling alley"

The university's memo explains that the "bowling alley," included two major stone buildings, one of which was at least 100 feet (30 meters) long and more than one story high, tanks and other structures. The buildings were also next to the Skell River, which still flows through the valley, which would have provided the water needed by the tannery. Fountains Abbey was founded in 1132 AD by 13 Benedictine monks who joined the order of Cistercian monks the following year, and the establishment would go on to become one of the wealthiest monasteries in England.

Documents speak of about 60 monks living in the building in 1170 AD, as well as about 200 lay brothers, often skilled artisans, such as stonemasons, blacksmiths, and tanners, who were essential to the abbey's economy but were not educated enough to take holy orders. Gaffney believes that Fountains Abbey operated for more than 400 years, during which time it would grow larger and larger, with many sheep and cattle farms scattered throughout the region. But in 1559, the English crown seized the abbey and all of its land during Henry VIII's dissolution of the monasteries.

The monks were sent away and, according to the National Trust, which now owns the site, the abbey's beautiful building architecture was stripped of its components, such as stone, timber and lead sold as building materials. New research has shown instead that the tannery was razed to the ground. Also in England it was discovered that the ancient tomb connected to King Arthur is older than Stonehenge, whereas in Israel was found the oldest cellar of the Byzantine world. Also in Israel an heirloom of the Crusades has been found.

Stefania Bernardini