Scott here with another episode of the History Unplugged Podcast.

The Lynchpin of a medieval village was the church.

As early as the 13th century in England, there were as many as 15,000 parish

churches that created a fully developed one church per rural settlement pattern.

Basically, if you didn't have a church, you couldn't qualify as a village. That's because churches

weren't just centers of worship and contemplation. The church was the center of

community life, function as a gathering place for social events, where judges

would give rulings, education took place, housed art, illuminated

manuscripts, and the more famous ones that had the bones of a saint could be a pilgrimage

site. Churches in England, almost without exception, up to the 18th century were made of stone and the architecture

evolved significantly from simple Anglo-Saxon designs to the huge Gothic cathedrals.

How did Stonemasons build these enormous structures a thousand years ago?

What kind of choices do they make when they weren't just making a building build these

structures a thousand years ago.

But what kind of choices do they make when they weren't just making a building for

worship, but something for everyone in the community?

To answer these questions, we're joined by today's guest, Andrew Zaminsky,

who's been a stonemason for three decades and a professional conservator in England.

He's worked on the Tower of Salisbury Cathedral, the dome of St Paul's in London, and for good measure

has restored gargoyles.

He's the author of the book Churchgoing is Stonemason's guide and has an active

understanding of what was once one of the most important professions in a village.

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