This book contains a comprehensive coverage of all aspects of the abbey in question and features several phases of excavations carried out in connection with conservation works by the Office of Public Works at the site.
Founded by William Marshal, Tintern and c. 9,000 acres of land were granted to the Cistercians in the early thirteenth century. Colclough is a family surname, pronounced Cokelee in Ireland. The Colclough connection arises in the mid-sixteenth century, when Anthony Colclough purchased the lease and was subsequently instructed to fortify the site of the abbey. A wall memorial to Sir Anthony Colclough was erected on the wall of a small church where he is buried. The Colcloughs resided at Tintern until 1959. In 1963 the abbey and its associated buildings were vested in the Commissioners of Public Works.
Section 2 of the monograph describes in detail the architecture of the abbey and the conservation and consolidation work required before it could be opened to the public. The excavations that were carried out at various locations throughout the complex are described in Section 3. There is much detail here of the findings, and the results are placed in the context of what is known about Cistercian monasteries and the impact of subsequent ecclesiastical upheavals.
Section 4 presents details of the burials and grave-markers found in the course of excavations. The burials date from the thirteenth–sixteenth centuries and include some interesting stone-lined examples. Over 1,900 separate finds were recovered, apart from architectural fragments. Slates, floor tiles, roof tiles and glass loom large in the catalogue and are beautifully illustrated by the hand of Patricia Johnson. Section 6 contains the conclusions and the discussion of the abbey, and is illustrated with detailed drawings and artist’s visualisations of the development stages of the monastic