Credit: Mistervlad, Shutterstock
Look, I know it’s something you’ve all been wondering. Where is the oldest door in Britain? Well, you’ll be able to rest easy tonight, folks. Because I’m about to tell you. Tucked away inside one of the most historically significant buildings in London (Westminster Abbey, of course) is a door that – to be quite honest with you – would be fairly easy to miss, if you weren’t keeping an eye out for it. You certainly should be keeping an eye out for it, though, because it dates back almost 1000 years – making it the oldest door in the whole country.
The oldest door in Britain
The door in question can be found in the passageway that leads to the Abbey’s Chapter House. You can tell that the door is pretty darn old just by looking at it, but it wasn’t until twenty years ago that experts discovered exactly how old. In 2005, the door was dated for the very first time, using a process called dendrochronology. The thorough study revealed that the door’s wood was felled in approximately 1032, and the door was constructed at some point in the 1050s. Blimey.
Credit: amanderson2 via Wikimedia Commons / CC BY 2.0
The ring pattern on the timber signifies that it came from a tree that would have grown somewhere in eastern England (please don’t ask me how they could have possibly worked that out). The door is made up of five vertical planks of oak, held together by three horizontal battens. And the way in which it was constructed is really rather unique.
Whilst most medieval doors have a smooth front but a back with protruding ledges and braces; this door is completely flat on both sides. This indicates that the door was initially made to stand between two spaces of equal importance. Although, the door’s original position and purpose remain unknown.
Having originally been approximately nine feet tall, the door has been cut down over the years, and now measures around 6.5 feet-high and 4 feet-wide. It’s considered to be the only surviving Anglo-Saxon door in Britain, and certainly has some stories to tell. So, next time you’re popping into Westminster Abbey, be sure to have a closer look at this fascinating piece of British history.