Coventry: Medieval Art, Architecture and Archaeology in the City and its Vicinity

Description

The British Archaeological Association's 2007 conference celebrated the material culture of medieval Coventry, the fourth wealthiest English city of the later middle ages. The nineteen papers collected in this volume set out to remedy the relative neglect in modern scholarship of the city's art, architecture and archaeology, as well as to encompass recent research on monuments in the vicinity. The scene is set by two papers on archaeological excavations in the historic city centre, especially since the 1970s, and a paper investigating the relationships between Coventry's building boom and economic conditions in the city in the later middle ages. Three papers on the Cathedral Priory of St Mary bring together new insights into the Romanesque cathedral church, the monastic buildings and the post-Dissolution history of the precinct, derived mainly from the results of the Phoenix Initiative excavations (19992003). Three more papers provide new architectural histories of the spectacular former parish church of St Michael, the fine Guildhall of St Mary and the remarkable surviving west range of the Coventry Charterhouse. The high-quality monumental art of the later medieval city is represented by papers on wall-painting (featuring the recently conserved Doom in Holy Trinity church), on the little-known Crucifixion mural at the Charterhouse, and on a reassessment of the working practices of the famous master-glazier, John Thornton. Two papers on a guild seal and on the glazing at Stanford on Avon parish church consider the evidence for Coventry as a regional workshop centre for high quality metalwork and glass-painting. Beyond the city, three papers deal with the development of Combe Abbey from Cistercian monastery to country house, with the Beauchamp family's hermitage at Guy's Cliffe, and with a newly identified stonemasons' workshop in the 'barn' at Kenilworth Abbey. Two further papers concern the architectural patronage of the earls and dukes of Lancaster in the 14th century at Kenilworth Castle and in the Newarke at Leicester Castle. Plans vii Preface x List of Abbreviations xii Editors’ Introduction xv Colour Plates following page xx An Introduction to the Archaeology of Medieval Coventry / Iain Soden 1 Recent Archaeological Work in Medieval Coventry and Future Opportunities / Chris Patrick 21 The Built Environment and the Later Medieval Economy: Coventry 1200–1540 / Richard Goddard 33 The Romanesque and Early Gothic Cathedral of St. Mary, Coventry / Richard Plant 48 The Gothic Architecture of Coventry Cathedral and Priory: Keeping Up Appearances? / Richard K. Morris 67 The Redevelopment of the Cathedral Priory Site from the Dissolution to the Present Day / George Demidowicz 104 St. Michael’s, Coventry: The Architectural History of a Medieval Urban Parish Church / Linda Monckton 135 The Development of St. Mary’s Hall, Coventry: A Short History / George Demidowicz 164 Made in Coventry? Seals from Coventry as Evidence of Local Craftmanship in the Late Middle Ages / John Cherry 182 Coventry: A Regional Centre of Glass-Painting in the 14th Century? The Glazing of Stanford on Avon Church, Northamptonshire, and the Taxonomy of English Medieval Stained Glass Studies / Richard Marks 190 The Doom in Holy Trinity Church and Wall-Painting in Medieval Coventry / Miriam Gill 206 John Thornton of Coventry: A Reassessment of the Role of a Late Medieval Glazier / Heather Gilderdale Scott 223 The Charterhouse of St. Anne, Coventry / Julian M. Luxford 240 A 'bodi ful of woundis': The 15th-Century Mural at St. Anne’s Charterhouse, Coventry / Mellie Naydenova-Slade 267 Combe Abbey: From Cistercian Abbey to Country House / Warwick Rodwell 286 The Chantry Chapel at Guy’s Cliffe, Warwick / John A. A. Goodall 304 The College of St. Mary in the Newarke, Leicester / John A. A. Goodall 318 Kenilworth Abbey Barn: Its Construction and Uses / Jennifer S. Alexander and Harry Sunley 327 Sidelights on the 14th-Century Architecture at Kenilworth Castle / Richard K. Morris 344