Sutton Coldfield - Grooved Archeology

Royal Sutton Coldfield

Hunters Arrow Grooves

A while ago now I received an email (and I have lost it) from someone who asked if I knew anything about, and wished me to check out, an establishment in Sutton Coldfield, not a stones throw from Trinity Church, which apparently had, in its original section of wall, grooves formed by archers sharpening their arrows prior to heading out into the woods to go hunting. In those Middle Ages, the woods would have covered miles and miles of surrounding countryside, but the stable is still its its original location, but now in the town centre. On an alleged 1800 map of the area, there is nothing marked here though? On 17th March 2009, whilst taking my grandson, Rowan, into town, I had the opportunity to find and photograph the grooves. On the same theme, there are also examples inside Lichfield Cathedral, where Cromwell's troops sharpened their swords on the faces of carvings. Here are my images:

The archway under the sign is the location of the arrow grooves