Abstract

The plan of the late medieval hall in England is well known from the evidence of buildings of the thirteenth century and later. However, examination of excavated timber buildings suggests that the main elements of the hall plan can be identified from at least the late tenth century. The persistence of the plan over a period of at least 600 years may obscure the fact that the conception of the hall and details of its form were in a state of continuous change. Instead of beginning with an examination of the form of the hall, the study starts by considering what the room represented in social terms. An appreciation of the changing conceptions of lordship, community and honour allows a more subtle analysis of the development of the hall in the period before 1200. A combination of written sources with excavated remains to elucidate complex problems is one of the distinguishing features of medieval archaeology.