The Westford Knight and Henry Sinclair

The Westford Knight is a mysterious, controversial stone carving in Massachusetts. Some believe it is an effigy of a 14th century knight, evidence of an early European visit to the New World by Henry Sinclair, the Earl of Orkney and Lord of Roslin. In 1954, an archaeologist encountered the carving, long known to locals and ascribed a variety of origin stories, and proposed it to be a remnant of the Sinclair expedition. The story of the Westford Knight is a mix of history, archaeology, sociology, and Knights Templar lore. This work unravels the threads of the Knight’s history, separating fact from fantasy.
This revised edition includes a new foreword and four new chapters which add context to the myth-building that has surrounded the Westford Knight and artifacts like it.

David Goudsward is the author of over 20 books on a variety of literary and historical topics. A retired librarian turned independent scholar; his work has also appeared in various journals internationally. He lives in Lake Worth, Florida.

David Goudsward
Foreword by Patricia Trainor O’Malley
Format: softcover (6 x 9)
Pages: 315
Bibliographic Info: 37 photos, appendices, notes, bibliography, index
Copyright Date: 2020
pISBN: 978-1-4766-7866-5
eISBN: 978-1-4766-3881-2
Imprint: McFarland

Acknowledgments vi
Foreword by Patricia Trainor O’Malley 1
Preface 5
1. The Indian on the Ledge 9
2. The Sword and the Cross 16
3. A Knight Is Found 26
4. A Knight in Armor 36
5. Jarl Henry and the Sinclairs 46
6. A Knight Gunn 55
7. The Zeno Narrative 63
8. A Knight Under Siege 80
9. The Sinclair Expedition 91
10. Glooscap 99
11. The Knight Tower 104
12. The Knights Templar 113
13. Rosslyn Chapel 124
14. A Knight Mythologized 141
15. The Tor Bay Runic Axe 156
16. The Boat Stone and the Map Rock 167
17. Knightly Reliquae 179
18. A Knight Hooked 196
Epilogue 207
Appendix 1—Pohl’s Glooscap and Henry Sinclair Similarities 215
Appendix 2—The Zeno Narrative, Major Translation (1873) 217
Appendix 3—The Zeno Narrative, Lucas Translation (1898) 230
Chapter Notes 245
Bibliography 281
Index 303

Reviews of the first edition:

• “Intriguing”—The Northern Mariner/Le marin du nord.