"The chantry chapel is probably the most common, and one of the most distinctive, of all late medieval religious foundations. Although much altered with time, chantries are still a very noticeable feature of many late medieval parish churches." "This is the first systematic comparative study of chantry chapels, identifying what they reveal about contemporary devotion, aspiration and planning: the archaeological approach illuminates aspects of medieval religious practice only hinted at in many historical documents." "Based on recent research in the south and west of England, this study demonstrates how structural and spatial analysis of chantry chapels sheds light on private and communal piety. Along the way, personal strategies for intercession, and the response to the Reformation, in both chapel space and fabric, are revealed; and the whole gives a wider, more universal, context to chantry foundation in the medieval parish church."--BOOK JACKET.