The cult of saints is one of the most fascinating manifestations of medieval piety. It was intensely physical; saints were believed to be present in the bodily remains that they had left on earth. Medieval shrines were created in order to protect these relics and yet to show off their spiritual worth, at the same time allowing pilgrims limited access to them. English Medieval Shrines traces the development of such structures, from the earliest cult activities at saintly tombs in the late Roman empire, through Merovingian Gaul and the Carolingian Empire, via Anglo-Saxon England, to the great shrines of the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries. The greater part of the book is a definitive exploration, on a basis that is at once thematic and chronological, of the major saints cults of medieval England, from the Norman Conquest to the Reformation. These include the famous cults of St Cuthbert, St Swithun, and St Thomas Becket - and lesser known figures such as St Eanswyth of Folkestone or St Ecgwine of Evesham.
John Crook, an independent architectural historian, archaeological consultant, and photographer, is the foremost authority on English shrines. He has published numerous books and papers on the cult of saints.
Reviews
This comprehensive and authoritative book demonstrates once again John Crook's pre-eminent position as a scholar of the material history of the cult of the saints in the Medieval West. [It] shines a searchlight on this elusive but important subject. ECCLESIOLOGY TODAY
Effortlessly combines archaeology, art, architecture, hagiography and other documents to produce a compelling narrative. MEDIEVAL ARCHAEOLOGY
John Crook, Britain's foremost expert on shrines, here distils a lifetime's research into an essential synthesis. BRITISH ARCHAEOLOGY This is a valuable resource for church historians and archaeologists, with its 53 black-and-white photos of excellent quality, mostly the work of the author. CHURCH TIMES This book will be warmly welcomed by readers with a specialist interest in medieval shrines, their origins, locations, associated ceremonies, designs, and fates. Dr Crook is the foremost authority on the subject, and this volume amply shows why. VIDIMUS
