ABSTRACT
In June 1953 a group o f people gathered by the isolated and decaying church o f Wharram Percy on the Yorkshire Wolds to initiate a unique experiment. There were archaeologists, medieval and eco nomic historians, historical and settlement geographers, and architectsrepresentative o f various disciplines brought together by a common realization that only one technique, excavation, could answer the
questions all were asking. W hat were the peasant houses o f medieval England really like, what tools did the people use and is there any material evidence to teil us w hy villages were deserted? After years o f working along their separate routes to the solution o f these problems, the necessity o f working together was realized, and a research group, known as the Deserted Medieval Village Research Group, had been formed. It was this group that had assembled at Wharram Percy to initiate the excavation o f a house on lines not previously used in this country, and as part o f a larger policy.
