This collection of papers follows on from a conference, held in Sherborne in June 2005, marking the thirteen-hundredth anniversary of the founding of the bishopric by Aldhelm of Malmesbury. This volume looks at the work of Aldhelm and the foundation of the see of Sherborne in the wider context of his career and his world. At the Sherborne symposium, Katherine Barker commissioned a performance of Aldhelm's Carmen rhythmicum by a rune-singer and an instrumentalist. The large audience at Sherborne were transfixed by the experience of listening, with the text and a translation before them, to a musical recitation and performance of this long Latin poem, which - perhaps for the first time in a thousand years - conveyed something of its emotional power. The rhythms and message of Aldhelm's poem came alive in a remarkable way and readers of this volume can gain much of the same experience by listening to the accompanying CD, with the text and translation of the Carmen rhythmicum before them.

This volume of essays considers the practical and political purposes for which maps were used, the symbolic and ideological roles of maps in the history of South-Western England and the ways in which map evidence can be used to recover facts about the past for use in the writing of history. The text is accompanied by 43 pages of maps and illustrations.

Prehistoric war-god, seventeenth century marvel, or living monument? In 1996, a 'trial' was held in Cerne Abbas Village Hall to discuss the origin of the Giant - prehistoric/Romano-British, medieval/post-medieval, or significant for the very fact that he exists, regardless of age. This is the book of the trial: after a preliminary briefing, the witnesses for the three cases present their evidence which ranges from detailed factual information about the archaeology and history of the monument through to its folklore and continuing role as the inspiration for all sorts of activity from local poetry to national advertising. An epilogue contains the jury's decision and an account of the trial's filming for regional BBC programme.