[MR] BBC Travel: Tintern Tunnel Redux

[Garth Groff and Sally Sanford]

Noble Friends,

A few weeks back I reported on the discovery of a previously unknown tunnel
in the vicinity of Tintern Abbey in Wales. BBC Travel has just reposted
this story (which means it will be available for a looooong time). The
repost has only minimal additional information, but Hey!, the
archaeologists need a bit of time for their work. That said, with this
repost you get a spectacular view of the ruined abbey from the air, well
worth the wait while the site loads. The very interesting bridge in this
photo is not medieval (sigh!), but rather a 19th century railway bridge
which carried a track over the River Wye to a wire works near the abbey.

Here is the reposted story with the overhead photo:
https://www.bbc.com/travel/article/20210902-the-mysterious-medieval-tunnel-found-by-accident
.

While thrashing around the web for more information on the aforementioned
bridge I discovered there is another Tintern Abbey in County Wexford,
Ireland. This abbey was founded in 1200 by the famous knight William
Marshal, Earl of Pembroke, to fulfill a vow he made when his boat was saved
from a storm nearby. Known as Tintern de Voto ("Tintern of the Vow"), it
was a daughter house of the more famous Welsh Tintern Abbey ("Tintern
Major") to which Marshal was also a patron:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tintern_Abbey,_County_Wexford .

Near Tintern de Voto there is another very interesting bridge, this one
dating to the 16th century:
http://irisharchaeology.ie/2014/03/a-rare-16th-century-bridge-at-tintern-wexford/
.

Yours Aye,


Lord Mungo Napier, Laird of Mallard Lodge  🦆