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Eynsham Heritage News

Abbey Heritage Trail 1 Jan 2003 A walk into the past, around the precinct of Eynsham Abbey

A walk into the past, around the precinct of Eynsham Abbey. It was created in 2002 to mark the bounds of the former precinct, with carved stone from the abbey built into the engraved ‘stations’.

By following the trail along the footpaths around the boundary of the Abbey precinct, you will retrace the steps of the mediaeval monks. Cairns and further information boards on the way will tell some of the story of the Abbey, the monks' lives and the influence of the Abbey on Eynsham. Each of the cairns is built with stones from the Abbey buildings. The trail will take you past the farm, the fishponds, the gardens and the pastures which surrounded the central core of the Abbey.

Some of our knowledge of the Abbey and what was here before comes from surviving documents and some from recent archaeological excavations in the churchyard. These excavations, in the yard of St Peter's Roman Catholic church, revealed part of the cloister, the kitchens and other domestic buildings of the Abbey.

A huge quantity of finds were recovered, including pottery, roof and floor tiles, and bones from cattle, sheep and pigs. Remains of more than 30 different buildings were traced, the earliest dating from the Bronze age ...

  • The excavations were first reported in Eynsham Record 10, 1993 pages 5-17.
  • Creation of the Heritage Trail was funded by Abbey Properties; Eynsham History Group; Eynsham Parish Council; Harry Lange; Heritage Lottery Fund; West Oxfordshire District Council.

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