If Walls Could Talk…Ancient graffiti on church walls

TONY Hack of the Wiltshire Medieval Graffiti Survey will be presenting the findings of its recent survey of the graffiti found on the walls of All Saints’ Church Westbury at a talk in Westbury on Saturday 13th November.  

Members of the survey found medieval marks, names of the people who worked on the building in the past and even caricatures of the people they knew, on the walls, doors and windows of Westbury’s ancient parish church.  

Members of the survey together with local volunteers spent hours on the roof, dusty towers, nooks and crannies of the building recording what they found.  

Tony said, “The marks left by the people who worked on and used ancient buildings provide fascinating evidence of the lesser known history of our communities and Westbury’s All Saints’ Church is no different. Our work helps us to understand the past through decoration, inscription and basic art forms.” 

Beth Thomas, Churchwarden of All Saints’ Church said, “The work that Tony and his team have done this year is part of our ongoing commitment to open up the Church to everyone by using it in new ways. It’s been fascinating working with Tony to discover the hidden past of the building. I’m really looking forward to hearing what he found tells us about the history of Westbury.” 

Anyone with an interest in the history of Westbury and its people will find this talk fascinating.  

The talk is at All Saints’ Church and will begin at 7pm and tickets are available at £5 in advance from Eventbrite or by calling 07790 870 247 or £7 on the door. All proceeds go to Church funds.