Remains of Medieval Priory and Anglo-Saxon Monastery: Hexham Abbey (Hexham Priory) (Hexham)
St Andrew's Church, Hexham. Photo Northumberland County Council, 1971.
[Centred NY 93516409] ABBEY [GT] (AUGUSTINIAN) [GT] (Remains of). (1)
The church at Hexham was built, AD 674-8, by St Wilfrid, Bishop of York. It was dedicated to St Andrew and, in 681, became a cathedral. After 821 it was placed under Lindisfarne and became a monastery. In 875 it was burnt by the Danes. Subsequently it was appropriated by Durham and, after the conquest, it passed to York and was constituted as a priory of Canons Regular of St Augustine, in 1113. A strong gatehouse was built, pre-mid 12th century and new church begun c.1189. It was suppressed in 1536, but only after resistance which lead to the Pilgrimage of Grace.
There are three Roman stones here:-
(i) A Roman tombstone nearly 9ft in height was found below the ground in the Slype. It bears the figure of a mounted Roman of high rank, carrying a standard and riding down an enemy. The panel below the figure is inscribed:-
DIS MANIBVS FLAVINVS
EQ ALAE PETR SIGNIFER
TVR CANDIDI AN XXV
STIP VII H.S.
It is now in a recess at the foot of the night stair in the south transept.
(ii) The arch of the doorway to the north passage of the crypt is a Roman altar stone bearing the inscription:- APOLLO MAPONO
(iii) In the flat roof at the end of the north passage of the crypt is a portion of an Imperial inscription. When the soil above was being removed in 1907 a fragment of this inscription was discovered. This fragment is now in the wall behind the NW door. The inscription with the addition of this fragment reads:-
IMP CAES L SEP SEVERVS PI
PERTINAX ET IMP CAES M
AVR ANTONINVS PIVS AVG
VS ET PVB SEPTIM
CAES COHORTEM ..... M
VEXILLATIONEM
FECERVNT SVB
The name of the Emperor Geta has been erased from the slab. (2)(3)(4)(5)
The church is in normal use. Furnishings also include two Roman altars at the west end of the nave (one inscribed) and a portable Roman altar in the north wall. See map diagram for subordinate components. (6)
Additional references. (7-33)
5334 MARKET PLACE
The Priory Church of St Andrews'
NY 9364 1/1 2.10.51.
A GV
2.
Former Augustinian Priory. Originally founded by St Wilfrid circa 673 - the crypt dates this period. The choir, transepts and tower are circa 1180; the nave was burnt 1296 and rebuilt in 1908 by Temple Moor. Much recent restoration. Embattled crossing tower. 5 bay aisled chancel, the easternmost taken down and rebuilt slightly higher circa 1858; fragments of possibly late-Saxon apse below. 3 bay transepts with eastern aisles. South bay of south transept has slype with gallery to night stairs above. 6 bay nave. Exterior uniformly early English, apart from decorated tracery of nave windows. Lancets, corbel table etc.
Interior also chiefly Early English, much restored and altered. Wooden ceiling, vaulted aisles, with dado arcades, to transepts and chancel. High stilted arches on west wall of north transept with clustered shafts. 2 chantries - to Prior Ogle (d. 1410), and to Prior Leschman (1480-91), the latter with a cowled effigy and much rude stone sculpture. Early C15 sedilia with painted panels, including the dance of death. Delicate Rood Screen (1491-1523) with panel painting and rich woodwork. Misericords in stalls. Font at west end of nave with, for base, part of a pilier cantonne from the north transept with a dog tooth central shaft. Interior also contains several monuments: relief of a Roman standard bearer; St Acca's Cross [C7], cross base with Crucifixion from the Spital, the Frith Stool, or St Wilfrid's chair and various fragments built in the nave walls.
St Andrew's Church together with the listed buildings in the Market Place, form a group, of which Nos 8, 10 and 16 are of local interest. (34a)
NY 9350 6410. Remains of Medieval Priory and Anglo-Saxon monastery under and around Hexham Abbey and its precincts. Scheduled. (34b)
Detailed description of excavations from 1984-93, with phase plans and interpretations of the sequence of priory buildings from the Anglian period until the Dissolution. (34c)
General association with HER 10117 (St Mary's Church). (34)
The church at Hexham was built, AD 674-8, by St Wilfrid, Bishop of York. It was dedicated to St Andrew and, in 681, became a cathedral. After 821 it was placed under Lindisfarne and became a monastery. In 875 it was burnt by the Danes. Subsequently it was appropriated by Durham and, after the conquest, it passed to York and was constituted as a priory of Canons Regular of St Augustine, in 1113. A strong gatehouse was built, pre-mid 12th century and new church begun c.1189. It was suppressed in 1536, but only after resistance which lead to the Pilgrimage of Grace.
There are three Roman stones here:-
(i) A Roman tombstone nearly 9ft in height was found below the ground in the Slype. It bears the figure of a mounted Roman of high rank, carrying a standard and riding down an enemy. The panel below the figure is inscribed:-
DIS MANIBVS FLAVINVS
EQ ALAE PETR SIGNIFER
TVR CANDIDI AN XXV
STIP VII H.S.
It is now in a recess at the foot of the night stair in the south transept.
(ii) The arch of the doorway to the north passage of the crypt is a Roman altar stone bearing the inscription:- APOLLO MAPONO
(iii) In the flat roof at the end of the north passage of the crypt is a portion of an Imperial inscription. When the soil above was being removed in 1907 a fragment of this inscription was discovered. This fragment is now in the wall behind the NW door. The inscription with the addition of this fragment reads:-
IMP CAES L SEP SEVERVS PI
PERTINAX ET IMP CAES M
AVR ANTONINVS PIVS AVG
VS ET PVB SEPTIM
CAES COHORTEM ..... M
VEXILLATIONEM
FECERVNT SVB
The name of the Emperor Geta has been erased from the slab. (2)(3)(4)(5)
The church is in normal use. Furnishings also include two Roman altars at the west end of the nave (one inscribed) and a portable Roman altar in the north wall. See map diagram for subordinate components. (6)
Additional references. (7-33)
5334 MARKET PLACE
The Priory Church of St Andrews'
NY 9364 1/1 2.10.51.
A GV
2.
Former Augustinian Priory. Originally founded by St Wilfrid circa 673 - the crypt dates this period. The choir, transepts and tower are circa 1180; the nave was burnt 1296 and rebuilt in 1908 by Temple Moor. Much recent restoration. Embattled crossing tower. 5 bay aisled chancel, the easternmost taken down and rebuilt slightly higher circa 1858; fragments of possibly late-Saxon apse below. 3 bay transepts with eastern aisles. South bay of south transept has slype with gallery to night stairs above. 6 bay nave. Exterior uniformly early English, apart from decorated tracery of nave windows. Lancets, corbel table etc.
Interior also chiefly Early English, much restored and altered. Wooden ceiling, vaulted aisles, with dado arcades, to transepts and chancel. High stilted arches on west wall of north transept with clustered shafts. 2 chantries - to Prior Ogle (d. 1410), and to Prior Leschman (1480-91), the latter with a cowled effigy and much rude stone sculpture. Early C15 sedilia with painted panels, including the dance of death. Delicate Rood Screen (1491-1523) with panel painting and rich woodwork. Misericords in stalls. Font at west end of nave with, for base, part of a pilier cantonne from the north transept with a dog tooth central shaft. Interior also contains several monuments: relief of a Roman standard bearer; St Acca's Cross [C7], cross base with Crucifixion from the Spital, the Frith Stool, or St Wilfrid's chair and various fragments built in the nave walls.
St Andrew's Church together with the listed buildings in the Market Place, form a group, of which Nos 8, 10 and 16 are of local interest. (34a)
NY 9350 6410. Remains of Medieval Priory and Anglo-Saxon monastery under and around Hexham Abbey and its precincts. Scheduled. (34b)
Detailed description of excavations from 1984-93, with phase plans and interpretations of the sequence of priory buildings from the Anglian period until the Dissolution. (34c)
General association with HER 10117 (St Mary's Church). (34)
N8722
Roman (43 to 410)
Early Medieval (410 to 1066)
Early 20th Century (1901 to 1932)
Medieval (1066 to 1540)
Early Medieval (410 to 1066)
Early 20th Century (1901 to 1932)
Medieval (1066 to 1540)
EXCAVATION, ST WILFRID'S CHURCH, HEXHAM PRIORY 1908; HODGES, C C
FIELD OBSERVATION, Ordnance Survey Archaeology Division Field Investigation 1966; R W Emsley
EXCAVATION, HEXHAM PRIORY (over St Wilfrid's Crypt) 1978; Society of Antiquaries of Newcastle
EXCAVATION, HEXHAM PRIORY (VESTIBULE) 1984
FIELD SURVEY, Archaeological Survey of Hexham 1988; ARCHAEOLOGICAL UNIT FOR NORTH EAST ENGLAND
WATCHING BRIEF, BRITISH TELECOM TRENCHES IN THE MARKET PLACE AND BEAUMONT STREET, HEXHA 1990; S Beckensall
RESISTIVITY SURVEY, Hexham Abbey 1991; The Archaeological Practice
TEST PIT, Hexham Abbey 1991; The Archaeological Practice
EXCAVATION, HEXHAM PRIORY 1993; The Archaeological Practice
WATCHING BRIEF, HEXHAM ABBEY (SOUTH-EAST AND EAST OF THE PRIORY CHURCH) 1993; P RYDER
WATCHING BRIEF, HEXHAM ABBEY CROSSING 1996; P Ryder
WATCHING BRIEF, St Wilfrid's Gate 1997; Tyne and Wear Museums
DESK BASED ASSESSMENT, HEXHAM ABBEY VISITOR CENTRE 1997; The Archaeological Practice
GEOPHYSICAL SURVEY, HEXHAM ABBEY CHURCH 1998; Dept Electronics, University of York
DESK BASED ASSESSMENT, Hexham Abbey grounds 1999; TYNE AND WEAR MUSEUMS
TRIAL TRENCH, Hexham Abbey grounds 2000; TYNE AND WEAR MUSEUMS
WATCHING BRIEF, Hexham Abbey grounds 2000; TYNE AND WEAR MUSEUMS
WATCHING BRIEF, Hexham Abbey Grounds 2001; TYNE AND WEAR MUSEUMS
WATCHING BRIEF, HEXHAM ABBEY: FLOODLIGHTS INSTALLATION 2003; Alan Williams Archaeology
WATCHING BRIEF, 3 to 7 St Mary's Chare 2005; Alan Williams Archaeology
WATCHING BRIEF, HEXHAM ABBEY WATER MAIN 2007; Tyne and Wear Museums
WATCHING BRIEF, HEXHAM ABBEY GROUNDS 2007; North Pennines Archaeology Ltd
WATCHING BRIEF, St Mary's Chare and St Mary's Wynd 2009; Pre-Construct Archaeology
DESK BASED ASSESSMENT, LAND AT HEXHAM PRIORY 2012; The Archaeological Practice Ltd
WATCHING BRIEF, Hexham Abbey - nave floor ramp (Area B) 2014; The Archaeological Practice Ltd
TRIAL TRENCH, Hexham Abbey - new entrance porch (Area D) 2014; The Archaeological Practice Ltd
WATCHING BRIEF, Hexham Abbey - service trench (Area G) 2014; The Archaeological Practice Ltd
WATCHING BRIEF, Hexham Abbey - service trench north of Carnaby Building (Area A) 2014; The Archaeological Practice Ltd
WATCHING BRIEF, Hexham Abbey - service trench on north side of Prior's Court (Area E) 2014; The Archaeological Practice Ltd
WATCHING BRIEF, Hexham Abbey - west range floor and monastic workshop (Area C) 2014; The Archaeological Practice Ltd
TEST PIT, Prior¿s Court, Hexham Abbey 2015; The Archaeological Practice
WATCHING BRIEF, HEXHAM ABBEY CAR PARK 2017; AD Archaeology Ltd
WATCHING BRIEF, The Priory Gatehouse, Hexham 2018; The Archaeological Practice Ltd
DESK BASED ASSESSMENT, Hexham Abbey - The Garden of Remembrance 'The Calefactory' 2019; P Ryder
WATCHING BRIEF, Hexham Memorial Garden, Hexham Abbey ; The Archaeological Practice Ltd
GROUND PENETRATING RADAR SURVEY, HEXHAM ABBEY ; GeoQuest Associates
GEOPHYSICAL SURVEY, HEXHAM TOWN CENTRE ; Durham University
FIELD OBSERVATION, Ordnance Survey Archaeology Division Field Investigation 1966; R W Emsley
EXCAVATION, HEXHAM PRIORY (over St Wilfrid's Crypt) 1978; Society of Antiquaries of Newcastle
EXCAVATION, HEXHAM PRIORY (VESTIBULE) 1984
FIELD SURVEY, Archaeological Survey of Hexham 1988; ARCHAEOLOGICAL UNIT FOR NORTH EAST ENGLAND
WATCHING BRIEF, BRITISH TELECOM TRENCHES IN THE MARKET PLACE AND BEAUMONT STREET, HEXHA 1990; S Beckensall
RESISTIVITY SURVEY, Hexham Abbey 1991; The Archaeological Practice
TEST PIT, Hexham Abbey 1991; The Archaeological Practice
EXCAVATION, HEXHAM PRIORY 1993; The Archaeological Practice
WATCHING BRIEF, HEXHAM ABBEY (SOUTH-EAST AND EAST OF THE PRIORY CHURCH) 1993; P RYDER
WATCHING BRIEF, HEXHAM ABBEY CROSSING 1996; P Ryder
WATCHING BRIEF, St Wilfrid's Gate 1997; Tyne and Wear Museums
DESK BASED ASSESSMENT, HEXHAM ABBEY VISITOR CENTRE 1997; The Archaeological Practice
GEOPHYSICAL SURVEY, HEXHAM ABBEY CHURCH 1998; Dept Electronics, University of York
DESK BASED ASSESSMENT, Hexham Abbey grounds 1999; TYNE AND WEAR MUSEUMS
TRIAL TRENCH, Hexham Abbey grounds 2000; TYNE AND WEAR MUSEUMS
WATCHING BRIEF, Hexham Abbey grounds 2000; TYNE AND WEAR MUSEUMS
WATCHING BRIEF, Hexham Abbey Grounds 2001; TYNE AND WEAR MUSEUMS
WATCHING BRIEF, HEXHAM ABBEY: FLOODLIGHTS INSTALLATION 2003; Alan Williams Archaeology
WATCHING BRIEF, 3 to 7 St Mary's Chare 2005; Alan Williams Archaeology
WATCHING BRIEF, HEXHAM ABBEY WATER MAIN 2007; Tyne and Wear Museums
WATCHING BRIEF, HEXHAM ABBEY GROUNDS 2007; North Pennines Archaeology Ltd
WATCHING BRIEF, St Mary's Chare and St Mary's Wynd 2009; Pre-Construct Archaeology
DESK BASED ASSESSMENT, LAND AT HEXHAM PRIORY 2012; The Archaeological Practice Ltd
WATCHING BRIEF, Hexham Abbey - nave floor ramp (Area B) 2014; The Archaeological Practice Ltd
TRIAL TRENCH, Hexham Abbey - new entrance porch (Area D) 2014; The Archaeological Practice Ltd
WATCHING BRIEF, Hexham Abbey - service trench (Area G) 2014; The Archaeological Practice Ltd
WATCHING BRIEF, Hexham Abbey - service trench north of Carnaby Building (Area A) 2014; The Archaeological Practice Ltd
WATCHING BRIEF, Hexham Abbey - service trench on north side of Prior's Court (Area E) 2014; The Archaeological Practice Ltd
WATCHING BRIEF, Hexham Abbey - west range floor and monastic workshop (Area C) 2014; The Archaeological Practice Ltd
TEST PIT, Prior¿s Court, Hexham Abbey 2015; The Archaeological Practice
WATCHING BRIEF, HEXHAM ABBEY CAR PARK 2017; AD Archaeology Ltd
WATCHING BRIEF, The Priory Gatehouse, Hexham 2018; The Archaeological Practice Ltd
DESK BASED ASSESSMENT, Hexham Abbey - The Garden of Remembrance 'The Calefactory' 2019; P Ryder
WATCHING BRIEF, Hexham Memorial Garden, Hexham Abbey ; The Archaeological Practice Ltd
GROUND PENETRATING RADAR SURVEY, HEXHAM ABBEY ; GeoQuest Associates
GEOPHYSICAL SURVEY, HEXHAM TOWN CENTRE ; Durham University
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Please note that this information has been compiled from a number of different sources. Durham County Council and Northumberland County Council can accept no responsibility for any inaccuracy contained therein. If you wish to use/copy any of the images, please ensure that you read the Copyright information provided.