Oldest Door In Britain At Westminster Abbey

This door at Westminster Abbey in London is the oldest door in Britain.

This oak door, which is more than 1,000 years old, is also the only Anglo-Saxon door in Britain.

Hidden within the walls of Westminster Abbey, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, the oldest door in Britain has been remarkably preserved since its creation in the 1050s.

Constructed during the reign of Edward the Confessor, this door is a living relic of the abbey's earliest days.

Over a thousand years old, it is a living testament to the enduring faith, architectural prowess, and craftsmanship of the medieval era.

For centuries, it has been used for various purposes, from allowing access for worshippers and monks to providing protection during tumultuous times in British history, such as the English Civil War.

The door is made of five vertical oak planks held together with three horizontal battens and iron straps.

Most unusually the battens are recessed into the planks so that the door is flush on both sides.

Normally medieval doors have a flat front and the back has projecting ledges and braces.

The construction of this door is unique and shows that it was intended to communicate between spaces of equal importance in the Abbey.

But its original position is not known.

The boards are from a single tree and rings on them show growth during the years from AD 924 to 1030.

As the bark was trimmed when the planks were made into a door it means the exact year of felling cannot be known.

The door has been cut down and now measures 6.5 feet high and 4 feet wide and leads into a small narrow room.

The top was almost certainly round-arched and would have been around 9 feet high originally.

After the planks were fitted together probably both faces were covered with cow hide, added to provide a smooth surface for decoration (no trace of painting remains).

Then the ornamental iron hinges and decorative straps were fixed. Only one of the original straps survives today with hide trapped underneath it (on the inner face of the door).

If you're intrigued by the idea of witnessing history first-hand, a visit to Westminster Abbey is a must.

The abbey's doors are open to the public, and you can admire the oldest door, along with its awe-inspiring surroundings, as part of a guided tour.

Westminster Abbey attracts over 1 million visitors every year, eager to explore 1,000 years of history.

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