Wearmouth and Jarrow: Northumbrian Monasteries in an Historic Landscape

In 2009 Newcastle and Durham Universities initiated a project aimed at exploring the landscape setting of the early Christian monastic sites of Wearmouth and Jarrow, from their foundation some seven centuries after the birth of Christ, to their place in contemporary society. Bringing together a large team of professionals with funding from English Heritage, the project established new evidence for the form, layout and location of these early monasteries and the extent and preservation of associated archaeology, surviving above and below ground. The project also revealed insights into the impact of these foundations in the local region, exploring their enduring meaning and value to the past and contemporary communities inhabiting the land between the rivers Tyne and Wear.