Medieval Stonemasons and their Sculptures with Dr James Wright

An assessment and analysis of how stonemasons worked with their patrons to create meaningful imagery upon buildings which can give us a unique insight into the mediaeval mind. By looking at both sacred and secular architecture we can begin to understand the fascinating, disturbing and sometimes comedic messages imparted to the viewer. Ideas connected to religious texts, morality, lordship, politics and personal identity are covered as we explore how one simple image may have many complex meanings…


Dr James Wright
Hailing from Staffordshire, James has been involved with the world of archaeology for over twenty years. Following graduation from the Department of Archaeology at the University of Nottingham, he began his career working for Trent & Peak Archaeology prior to retraining as a conservation stonemason under the master mason Mark Stafford with formal qualifications obtained from Weymouth College.
His principle interest is buildings archaeology and he has experience of working on properties from the eleventh to twentieth century including castles, great houses, ecclesiastical sites, civic structures, industrial and vernacular architecture. He has led major projects at sites including the Tower of London, Palace of Westminster, Southwark Cathedral, Knole (Kent), King John’s Palace (Nottinghamshire), St Mary’s Warwick and Tattershall Castle. Recent projects have found James working from Lancashire to Kent and from Wiltshire to Norfolk.

St Mary Magdalene Church, Newark
St Mary Magdalene is a Grade One listed church dating back to the 12th century. It is a nationally significant building which is currently on Historic England’s Heritage at Risk Register. A grant of £2,565,628, along with an emergency grant of £249,498 from National Lottery players through The National Lottery Heritage Fund, support from Historic England, the Church of England, and the UK Shared Prosperity Fund will enable vital repairs to be made to the Church, removing it from the Heritage at Risk Register, breathing new life into the visitor experience, and saving the building for future generations.