In this episode Marc goes hunting for 6,000 year old Prehistoric Rock Art, with reknowned expert (and old friend) Dr. Aron Mazel (Director of the International Centre for Cultural and Heritage Studies at Newcastle University). Chatton Park Hill houses some of the most impressive and enigmatic rock art in the UK. The hill claims some of the most spectacular views in the region and encompasses  three sites of archaeological interest, all of which can be walked around in just a couple of hours: a huge panel of rock art on the summit of the hill, a small Iron Age Hillfort, and a rock shelter/overhang known as Ketley Crag. Ketley Crag was only discovered in the 1990s after curious badgers scratched away the turf  to reveal a stone floor decorated with astonishing  ‘Cup and Ring’ style symbols…

***Before listening, you should definitely take a peek at the photographs***

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The Lady’s Well is an ornate pool and natural spring in the beautiful village of Holystone, near Rothbury. The site has almost certainly been used since prehistoric times as a religious foci, with suggestions of it being a Celtic and Romano/British Shrine and later as an important  Christian site with legends of various Saints and the founding of a Nunnery dedicated to the Virgin Mary. This is one of the most tranquil, wholesome places I know of in Northumbria and is still used for ceremonies by Christians and Pagans alike. During the podcast I talk to Dr. Alan Rushworth, who has extensively researched the site for Northumberland National Park, producing a historic village atlas project.

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When it comes to the continuity of a sacred site through the ages and across different religions, this must be one of my favourite examples. In this episode Marc talks to reknowned Buildings Archaeologist Peter Ryder, about St. Michael & All Angels Church in Houghton le Spring near Durham. In 2008 Marc, Peter and Richard conducted an archaeological dig inside the church and discovered an extraordinary ritual complex, putting the history of the site back by thousands of years. Beneath the floor were remains of an earlier Saxon church, large re-used Roman stones under the tower, a possible insitu Roman building – which we speculated may be a temple, and finally a possible prehistoric ritual monument made from large whinstone boulders – could it have been a stone circle or a barrow cemetery?

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This month Marc talks to Dr. Stan Beckensall about Old Bewick, said to be the most complete archaeological landscape in Northumbria. The site includes Neolithic Rock Art, Bronze Age Burial Cairns, an Iron Age Hillfort, an early Medieval Church and an amazing abandoned Farmstead. Throughout the podcast Stan brings the site to life, by drawing upon his countless experiences here – of long walks, of excavations, and of the incredible social history belonging to this wild, remote place and the hardy people who call it home.

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In this second episode of the Sacred Sites Podcast, Marc explores the enchanting village of Hartburn, near Morpeth in Northumberland. Specific sites include St. Andrew’s Church, and the Hartburn Grotto – an c.18th folly but possibly a Romano-British Shrine.

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In this pilot episode Marc introduces the series; he discusses his passion for sacred sites, outlines the podcast’s aims and objectives, and gives a brief summary of the Northumbria region and it’s rich heritage.

Shownotes for Episode 01  >