16th April 2015
Rochester Cathedral may be older than previously thought. Development work in the crypt has unearthed completely unexpected finds including a Roman building, a stone face, a skeleton, possible pieces of the shrine of William of Perth (destroyed in the Reformation) and a Norman structure which was not on any of the building's plans.
The cathedral is England's second oldest, founded in 604, but the current building dates from the work of Bishop Gundulf in 1080 (very modern!). But the stone of a Norman pillar found in the crypt is from a quarry disused by the early part of the second millennium, meaning it may predate 1080. The skeleton is thought to be of a medieval individual who was buried in the crypt. Nothing had shown up on the scans so this is all a surprise for the team, who have had to relocate a planned lift for the disabled due to the pillar.
The crypt will house a new exhibition featuring the Textus Roffensis, a book of law and cathedral records dating from 1123, nearly a century before Magna Carta. Excellently for people who won't be able to visit, the book can be viewed in full online: http://enriqueta.man.ac.uk/luna/servlet/detail/Ma...
Thank you to Annie Tompkins and Aarti O'Leary who shared this with me. Image from Kent Online via Roman Britain News.