Mottisfont priory's lost buildings revealed by dry weather

Parchmarks, which appear during dry conditions, indicate where grass over buried walls or archaeological sites dries at a different rate.

These marks offer a map of underground structures.

This year, they have been spotted at various locations, including Mottisfont in Romsey.

Parchmarks have appeared on the south lawn at Mottisfont. (Image: National Trust) Tom Dommett, the National Trust’s head of historic environment, said: "Parchmark visibility varies from year to year, historically only showing well every 15 years or so.

"This year parchmarks are showing more clearly, and have also been recorded earlier in the year, after an exceptionally dry spring.

"While we have seen parchmarks at our places for many years, in more recent years the frequency has noticeably increased, including in 2018 and 2022, as climate change increases the likelihood of hotter, drier weather in spring and summer."

At Mottisfont, the remains of 13th and 16th-century wall foundations have appeared on the south lawn.

These are the remnants of monastery buildings, including a cloister and various other structures, as well as later Tudor alterations.

Mottisfont was once a prosperous Augustinian Priory, founded in 1201 by William Briwere or Brewer.

It declined after the effects of the Black Death and was dissolved in 1536 by Henry VIII who gave it to a favoured statesman, Sir William Sandys - who died in 1540 - who turned the entire priory buildings into a Tudor house.

The foundations of buried 13th and 16th century wall at Mottisfont have re-appeared. (Image: National Trust) The house was remodelled into its present form in the 1700s, when some of the remains of the former priory as well as Tudor buildings would have been buried under the lawn.

National Trust archaeologist James Brown said: "These are intriguing glimpses into the oldest history of buildings known here at Mottisfont.

"We have carried out some geophysical surveys but the buildings have never been dug so their secrets remain hidden except for these rare moments when their outlines appear in the lawns."

At Fountains Abbey in North Yorkshire, the remains of lost buildings can be seen on the West Green.

The marks represent some important lost buildings of the abbey with the largest an aisled hall, believed to be a large guest hall.

The interior space was divided into aisles by rows of columns, which show up in the parchmarks.