Tourism07 August, 20263 min read
Glastonbury Abbey Displays Abbot’s Kneecap Returned From Australia After 1956 School Trip
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An abbot’s kneecap, taken in 1956 by George Box, has been returned. The artefacts also include a medieval floor tile removed during the same trip.
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Kneecap Returns After 70 Years
Glastonbury Abbey has put a medieval kneecap and a floor tile fragment on display after the objects were returned from Australia, where they had been kept for nearly 50 years following a 1956 school trip. BBC reported that George Box was just 11 when he ducked under the ropes during an archaeological dig at the abbey in 1956 and "helped himself" to a bone from an opened tomb. The BBC said the kneecap and tile were brought back to Somerset this summer by his widow following George Box's death in 2025, and the items are now on display in the abbey's museum.
Rayo said the return took place this summer on the anniversary of George's passing, after his widow organized the journey back to the UK and the artefacts resumed their place among the relics at Glastonbury Abbey. Glastonbury and Street Nub News added that the story began when George's widow contacted the abbey last year after his death, as she arranged to bring his ashes back to be scattered at Brent Knoll, where he had grown up.
Abbey Staff, Confession, and Display
Lucy Newman, from Glastonbury Abbey, said the abbey received a "quite a surprise" in its general inquiries inbox when George's widow contacted them about returning the kneecap and tile. Newman told the BBC that the young schoolboy must have slipped his hand into an open tomb when nobody was watching and "just sort of helped himself" to the bone and a fragment of medieval floor tile as well. The BBC reported that George emigrated to Australia in 1970 and kept the abbot's kneecap and tile in a glass cabinet in his hallway, before he later confessed to his wife about how he obtained them.
Rayo described how George crafted a box reminiscent of a medieval reliquary to house the artefacts during their journey back to the UK, and it said the abbey staff expressed gratitude towards George’s widow for returning the pieces. Glastonbury and Street Nub News said the abbey returned the objects to the museum department and that visitors can now see the kneecap and tile fragment in the abbey museum.
Which Abbot, and What It Means
Abbey staff said they are not sure which abbot the bone belonged to, but BBC reported they had narrowed it down to three possible candidates who all died between 1250 and 1290. BBC quoted Newman saying the only way to find out would be by "exhuming them all and seeing how many knee bones they all have," while also noting that an excavation could disturb more archaeology than would benefit from reuniting an abbot with his kneecap. Rayo said historical records reveal that in the summer of 1956, an archaeological dig in the north transept of the Abbey Church led to the opening of several abbots’ tombs near the remnants of tiled floors.
Glastonbury and Street Nub News added that the abbey knows there was a dig in the north transept in the summer of 1956 and said the kneecap could belong to Abbot Amesbury, Abbot Petherton or Abbot John of Taunton, all of whom died in the 13th century and were buried in that area. The Times of India said the kneecap and tile are now back at Glastonbury Abbey and have gone on display in the abbey's museum, after George Box's widow returned them to Somerset this summer while visiting to scatter his ashes near Brent Knoll.