All Saints, Kingston
Geophysical survey underway on the southern side of All Saints.
The Kingston University forensic archaeology students who have served time at Damerham first get to hear about the project through Helen’s teaching of archaeological survey methods.
In recent years, outdoor practical sessions have taken place in the churchyard of All Saints, Kingston-Upon-Thames. There, the students have their first encounter with Damerham staples such as geophysical survey equipment, tape measures and bamboo canes.
One of the features of interest at All Saints is the site of an old chapel, no longer standing, its location rather uncertainly identified during some poorly-recorded excavations in the 1920s. This chapel has been claimed to be the site of the coronation of up to seven Saxon kings, including Aethelstan, first King of England. One of Aethelstan’s successors, Edmund the First, was crowned at Kingston in 940AD. Four years later, he married a woman called Aethelflaed of Damerham.
Geophysical survey within an urban setting offers a contrast to the
relative peace and quiet of Damerham.