Getting the dates right – Tree-ring dating Bishops’ House – 1pm Sunday 10th September 2017
How old is Bishops’ House? We thought we had a good idea, but the more Ken Dash, our resident local historian, mulled over the structure of the house, the more he began to wonder if the research done in the 1970s had given us the right answers.
With listed building consent in place we commissioned tree ring dating experts to remove samples of wood and get us the facts. Using the latest scientific methods of tree-ring dating (called dendrochronology) we got some very clear (and surprising!) answers. It is fair to say our understanding of the age of Bishops’ House and the sequence of its construction has been transformed.
On Sunday 10th Sept at 1pm, as part of Heritage Open Days, we we will have Robert Howard, from Nottingham Tree-ring Dating Laboratory, at Bishops’ House with the first opportunity for the members of the public to find out the news that surprised us, first hand from the experts. Robert will be giving a short talk at 1pm and shall be around on Sunday afternoon until 3pm for anyone that would like a chat. We hope to see you there.
We will also have guided tours at 11.30am and 2.30pm. All these activities will be free but do come along early as we have only limited space. There will be more information online very soon about the findings of the study.
