Lost medieval convent found under soccer field in Denmark

Archaeologists in Roskilde, Denmark, discovered the surprisingly well-preserved ruins of St. Clare’s Convent beneath a soccer field.

Scholars knew of the convent, founded in 1256 by the Poor Clares, a Roman Catholic order of nuns, but believed nothing remained after it closed during the 16th-century Protestant Reformation and its bricks were sold for other construction.

A recent ground-penetrating radar (GPR) survey, prompted by plans for a new parking facility, revealed intact pillars, rooms, cloisters, a courtyard, and a church just three feet below the surface. The GPR technology sends radio waves into the ground to map subterranean structures without digging.

Researchers were struck by the clarity of the images, with Arne Abel Stamnes of the Norwegian Institute for Cultural Heritage Research (NIKU) calling the results “simply impressive.” The scans show the convent measured approximately 230 feet long, with four wings surrounding a central courtyard that likely contained a well. The discovery is notable because St.

Clare’s was the oldest of three Poor Clare convents in medieval Denmark and one of five monastic sites in Roskilde, a medieval center of religious and royal power. While the other four sites received protected monument status, St. Clare’s did not due to the assumption that it had been completely destroyed. Researchers now plan to excavate the site, hoping to uncover artifacts that will reveal more about the lives of the nuns who lived there, including possible graves.