Archaeologists digging 'wider and deeper' to uncover ancient Cookham monastery

Archaeologists are once again unearthing the site of an 8th-9th century monastery in Cookham.

The land adjacent to Holy Trinity Church in Cookham is home to a rare, well-preserved Anglo-Saxon monastery first discovered in 2021 by staff from the University of Reading’s Archaeology Department.

In subsequent years, students and staff returned to excavate further and discoveries have included a cemetery, a well, a potential watermill and a preserved wooden barrel-lined shaft containing wooden artefacts.

Professor Gabor Thomas, University of Reading’s early medieval archaeology professor and leader of the excavations at Cookham said the team are ‘going wider and deeper’ than before.

Since Monday, the team have reopened two of last year’s trenches and will expand one northwards and eastwards.

Professor Thomas said: “At the end of last season, several pieces of archaeology were either half excavated, or we’d only just started excavating so their significance was unclear.

“In the area of the cemetery, we uncovered a sample of the burials but there’s many more and this year we’ll get the opportunity to get a fuller picture.

“We’ve got so much archaeology here – we’ve got buildings, we’ve got structures, we may have other wells – this is the tip of the iceberg.

“So much of this site remains unexplored so we can’t predict – that’s the exciting thing.”

He said the uncovered well required far more digging below the water table and the team are now recovering ‘amazing wooden artefacts’.

The professor said it was ‘undoubtedly’ more exciting to return every year as their confidence has grown in terms of ‘knowing what’s here’ and the team can ‘excavate more simultaneously’.

“There’s far more here than we ever could’ve imagined back then,” he added.

The excavations are on the site of a monastery led by Queen Cynethryth, who ruled the kingdom of Mercia with her husband King Offa in the late 8th century.

A network of more than 20 monasteries was established along the route of the Thames in the Anglo-Saxon period.

More than 70 people including students and volunteers have been on site every day and, since kicking off on Monday, the excavations are set to run daily until Saturday, August 31.

Maidenhead resident Nicola Stingelin-Giles, 66, is a volunteer digger and the ethicist for the Holy Trinity Church – ensuring uncovered burials on the consecrated church land are done ‘respectfully’.

She said being on site was ‘a dream come true’, adding: “The incredible trust you’re given as an amateur to use a trowel, to get in the trenches and the incredible experience of making an interesting find.

“This is something that hasn’t seen the light of day since 750AD. And the people are fascinating – everybody in the trenches has the most amazing personalities.”

Jonathan Baker, a 21-year-old second-year archaeology student, said: “After spending the academic year doing really cool studies inside, getting the opportunity to do a full month outside working on such brilliant pieces of archaeology – the well, the cemetery – is really fascinating and really fun.”

Jonathan said he unearthed one of the first skeletons in the cemetery last year and it ‘gave him chills’ to uncover something that had ‘been in the ground for a very long time’.

Site tours led by a senior archaeologist start today (Thursday) and places can be booked via www.ticketsource.co.uk.