author
Frederick Bligh Bond
1864–1945
Best remembered for excavating Glastonbury Abbey, this English architect and archaeologist became famous—and controversial—for claiming that automatic writing helped guide some of his discoveries. His life moved between church buildings, ancient ruins, and psychical research in a way that still feels unusual today.
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About the author
Frederick Bligh Bond was born in Marlborough, Wiltshire, in 1864 and became known as an architect, illustrator, archaeologist, and psychical researcher. He trained for architecture and built a career in Bristol, where he worked on ecclesiastical and public buildings before gaining wider attention for his archaeological work.
He is most closely associated with Glastonbury Abbey, where excavations under his direction uncovered important structures including lost chapels. Bond later became a strikingly controversial figure because he said some excavation guidance came through automatic writing, supposedly communicated by long-dead monks. That claim made him memorable far beyond normal archaeological circles.
Later in life he was active in psychical research, including work connected with the American Society for Psychical Research. He died in Wales in 1945, and he remains an unusual literary and historical figure: part practical architect, part antiquarian, and part seeker after mysteries.