Gold Hill, Shaftesbury and Alfred the Great blue plaque

This blue commemorative plaque records: Gold Hill An artist's impression of a busy market day at the top of Gold Hill before the current Town Hall was built in 1827. The main features still in place are Shaftesbury Abbey precinct wall on the right together with the Sun and Moon Inn just below the church. The six sheep in a pen in the front of the illustration represent a tenant's right to keep these animal's - as bestowed on all cottages on Gold Hill. This permission remains in place to the present day! King Alfred founded Shaftesbury Abbey in AD888 - it was the first nunnery not connected to a male community and became the model for all other Royal nunneries. His daughter Aethelgifu, was the first Abbess. Other items in the picture include the Poultry Cross, a Fish Stall and an Apple Tree Seller occupying regular sites in this thriving market place. Artist: Janet Swiss (who also provided a complementary mural of the same period in Swans Yard, off the High Street). Recorded plaque organisation: Shaftesbury and District Historical Society, Shaftesbury Civic Society.

Gold Hill was a bustling market center in Shaftesbury, featuring elements like the Shaftesbury Abbey precinct wall and the Sun and Moon Inn, as seen in historical illustrations. King Alfred the Great founded Shaftesbury Abbey in AD 888, establishing it as the first independent nunnery, with his daughter Aethelgifu serving as the first Abbess, setting a precedent for other royal nunneries.