Eddie Procter

Name: Eddie Procter
Institution: Department of Archaeology, University of Exeter
Contact: ep393@exeter.ac.uk
Project Details: PhD (2015-2018) The topographical legacy of the medieval monastery: evolving perceptions and realities of monastic landscapes in the southern Welsh Marches

Supervisor(s) Prof. Stephen Rippon and Prof. Oliver Creighton

Research Overview:

The research project examines to what extent elements of a medieval monastic landscape can be discerned within the historic landscape of today, both in terms of physical, topographical features and also how these landscapes have been perceived and experienced; exploring not only what mark has been left on the landscape, but also what embedded memory: recognising that the stories about landscape are as important as physical evidence. A hypothesis that the topographical legacy of monasticism has remained a central element (though sometimes hidden or unseen) of the sense of place or genius loci of several case studies is explored, examining how this has influenced the way in which these landscapes have been developed, experienced and remembered up to the present day. The tools of conventional landscape history and archaeology are deployed here, combined with approaches more commonly associated with cultural geography to provide a comprehensive analysis – a deep topography – of the perceptions and realities of these complex landscapes.

Further information on this research can be found on my Landscapism blog.