REMARKABLE ground-penetrating radar has unearthed the graves of more than 500 Cistercian monks and lay brothers who once lived at Fountains Abbey.
Some of the graves at the World Heritage Site near Ripon, North Yorkshire, date back almost 800 years.
The amazing images not only identify the cemetery’s exact location but the formation of the graves suggests the monastic community’s burial rituals and beliefs surrounding resurrection were unusual for medieval times.
The National Trust has been working for over two years on the project with experts from the University of Bradford, Geoscan Research, and Mala Geoscience to research the country’s largest monastic ruins – using geophysical techniques and ground penetrating radar.
They reveal a ‘bunk-bed’ formation with bodies clearly separated by stone partitions within the same grave.
This together with regular organisation of the graves, sited well away from each other, indicates the importance given to keeping the remains separate from later burials.
This supports the theory they believed in literal or corporeal resurrection, whereby a person’s physical remains would rise from the grave on the Day of Judgement.
It was believed that if the body was damaged, the soul would be too.
This was unusual in medieval Christian communities which focused on the welfare of the departed’s soul rather than their mortal remains.
Analysis of the images shows multiple burials in each grave cut, up to four in some cases, suggesting there could be up to 2000 bodies in total. This accounts for the majority of the monks and lay brethren that died at the site.
National Trust archaeologist Mark Newman said: “This work has brought a startling and moving reconnection with the monks who once lived and prayed at this extraordinary site.
“Our conclusions about the formation of the graves are supported by reports from Victorian workmen at the site who uncovered some of the graves in several tiers which had already suggested multiple burials in the same grave cut.
“However, until now we did not know the exact location or scale of the cemetery.”
The images reveal the graves laid in regular, curving rows running east from the abbey church, measuring approximately 80 metres by 60 metres.
Dr Chris Gaffney of University of Bradford says: “The results at Fountains are little short of remarkable. Archaeologically they are among the most complete graveyards uncovered using geophysical techniques.
Mr Newman added: “These findings are a profound and unexpected reminder that the monks have never really left Fountains Abbey. They’ve been here, at rest, some of them for almost 800 years.
“Thanks to this remarkable modern technology and research, we now know fascinating and hitherto unknown details of the life of the monastic community which we can share with our visitors.”
The discovery of the monks’ cemetery features in one of the National Trust’s new series of podcasts ‘Ten Places, Europe & Us’ presented by Bettany Hughes which is available from November 14 via iTunes and all other major podcast platforms.
The abbey existed from the early 12th century to its closure in 1539 during the Dissolution of the Monasteries.
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