Episode 04

Episodes – Sacred Sites of Northumbria

Episode 04 – St. Michael & All Angels, Houghton le Spring.

When it comes to the continuity of a sacred site through the ages and across different religions, this must be one of my favourite examples. In this episode Marc talks to reknowned Buildings Archaeologist Peter Ryder, about St. Michael & All Angels Church in Houghton le Spring near Durham. In 2008 Marc, Peter and Richard conducted an archaeological dig inside the church and discovered an extraordinary ritual complex, putting the history of the site back by thousands of years. Beneath the floor were remains of an earlier Saxon church, large re-used Roman stones under the tower, a possible insitu Roman building – which we speculated may be a temple, and finally a possible prehistoric ritual monument made from large whinstone boulders – could it have been a stone circle or a barrow cemetery?

Download Episode 04 > Running time 25 mins 7 secs. File size 23 MB.

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