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Loading... King Arthur's Avalon: Story of Glastonbury (original 1957; edition 1986)by Geoffrey Ashe (Author)
Work InformationKing Arthur's Avalon by Geoffrey Ashe (1957)
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Sign up for LibraryThing to find out whether you'll like this book. No current Talk conversations about this book. A controversial history of Glastonbury, which makes great claims for it to be the sacred site of the "glass island" of the druids, of King Arthur's grave, and of the Holy Grail. First written in 1957, republished in 1972 with a revised introduction. An interesting read for the general public, visitors to Glastonbury, and "new age" seekers, but not accepted by academic historians. no reviews | add a review
2007 was the 50th anniversary of the publication of King Arthur's Avalon, which sold 100,000 copies, and is credited widely with a major share in the growth of Glastonbury's fame and the international renewal of Arthurian interests. This edition gives the original text, unchanged and unabridged, with a new Preface by the author putting it in a present-day perspective. He reviews developments in the past half-century and his own contributions to them. No library descriptions found. |
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Google Books — Loading... GenresMelvil Decimal System (DDC)274.23Religions History, geographic treatment, biography of Christianity Europe England; WalesLC ClassificationRatingAverage:
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If however you don’t fall prey to that magic, see the town as ordinary or – worse – tawdry, doubt that legends are anything other than the product of Rumour and Time, suspect that the tomb of Arthur may have been a publicity stunt by medieval monks and believe that the existing archaeology is at best ambiguous, then King Arthur’s Avalon still stands as a testimony to the ability of a young writer to capture a contemporary yearning for past glories, a zeitgeist that remains attached to Glastonbury well over half a century later and looks certain to be a powerful force for many years to come.
There have been many other books on Glastonbury since, most, I have to say, full of woolly mystical thinking and little else. An excellent survey of the archaeology, history and mystery by the late Philip Rahtz entitled, unsurprisingly, Glastonbury (published jointly by English Heritage and Batsford in 1993) is one of the very few I would recommend for its mix of historical accuracy and informed speculation. King Arthur’s Avalon’s very title, on the other hand, makes assumptions about the existence of Arthur, his status as monarch, his connection with Glastonbury and, indeed, the town’s original name, while the style is a little patronising and certainly of its time; but there is much that one can still profit from, particularly its survey of the part the medieval abbey played in contemporary politics, religion and culture.
Ashe himself has gone on to be a successful writer on a range of other subjects (he received an MBE in recognition of his contributions as a cultural historian), but still comes back to re-visit many of themes he first set out over five decades ago in this seminal book.
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