The two-person “hamster wheel” crane that lifts stone and mortar to the masons building the donjon or keep

Here are few shots from Guédelon in Burgundy, where a 13th-century-style castle is being built using only period materials and methods. The team began construction in 1996 and plans to finish in 2025. Guédelon is an amazing educational resource—and a gift from heaven for anyone writing a novel that includes details of 13th-century castle construction. It’s a bit of a drive from the typical vacation destinations in France, but I cannot recommend it highly enough.

The blacksmith’s shop, where all the tools and metal goods used in the project are made

The Guédelon website is a treasure trove of photos, videos, architectural plans, and information about the castle and the team behind it.

Some of the templates used by the stone cutters—mass production at its medieval finest