St Mary, Wiggenhall St Mary, Norfolk
Simon Jenkins has noticed that the church buildings of the Ouse delta kind likely the finest concentration of late-medieval craftsmanship in England. Of course, any cathedral would give them a run for their revenue, but you know what he means. Here, there are at the very least a dozen usually nameless and workaday villages with only massive churches, lots of of them replete with miracles in stone and wood. There is remarkably minimal medieval glass, and rarely a wall-painting at all perhaps the organic puritanism of the Fen men and women dispatched these, but saw a functional use to the benches and the fonts. The greatest and grandest churches are at Walpole St Peter and Terrington St Clement, but neither are specifically complete of treasures. St Peter is just one of the most amazing architectural documents of the late medieval time period, and St Clement is full of light-weight and lifestyle but listed here at Wiggenhall St Mary is the finest collection of 15th and 16th century benches in Norfolk, potentially in England.
There are 4 Wiggenhalls: St Peter, St Germans, St Mary and St Mary Magdalene, now recognised merely as Magdalen. All of the villages are modest, Magdalen currently being the largest, and are mainly approached up slender straight streets in the fens. All 4 churches sit close to the banking institutions of the Ouse – these banking institutions have been raised, simply because the water stage is now greater than the surrounding land, but the towers even now type startling landmarks for any boat heading upstream from Lynn. St Peter is a wreck, and St Mary is now in the treatment of the Churches Conservation Have faith in. It sits to the north of Magdalen with a couple of large homes for business.
As with all CCT church buildings, St Mary is effectively-stored. The rendering of the nave and chancel has lately been renewed and painted. They hide a magic formula of this church, the quantity of brick utilised in its design. The only expanse of brick nevertheless visible is the upper section of the tower. The squatness of the tower belies its top, and stair turrets lean deliciously into it in the north-west and south-west corners, coming out as castellated turrets at the top.
So, we may presume that the top rated 3rd of the tower is present-day with the late medieval rebuilding – but the builders retained the Early English doorway on both of those sides of the church. The south porch is huge, but useful there is absolutely nothing of the elaborate decoration you come across at Walpole St Peter. Also purposeful is the extensive late Victorian restoration by George Road – all the roofs are his.
You step inside to an inside that is at when big but a very little claustrophobic. This is for the reason that of the sheer volume of woodwork – vary just after vary of good, lengthy, benches with substantial bench ends. Street’s crown-posted roof seems to push down to satisfy them with out their pierced and traceried backs they would really feel oppressive. The dust in the air and the murky mild from the east window offers a feeling, just for a moment, of being underwater. There is a stillness, as if we have disturbed anything that experienced long remained undisturbed, as if we were being the 1st people to enter in this article for ages.
The nave was loaded with benches in two phases firstly in the mid-15th century, and then all over again in the early 16th century. The more recent benches are people in the aisles. Benches are a symptom of what I have come to think of as a proto-Reformation maybe a century in advance of the actual a person, there is a main change in the English Church from private devotions to company acts of worship. This seems to have been partly a response to the Black Loss of life, and a concentration of the head on generating it by means of purgatory the breaking up of the outdated estates introduced forth a new wealthy middle course, who had been most worried that their souls really should be prayed for. Section of their undertaking was a reinforcing of orthodox Catholic doctrine in the course of the 15th century, wide perpendicular windows replaced the wall paintings, filling the churches with light, and the good roods were elevated up to concentration people’s minds on the central doctrine of the Christian faith. Elements of Catholic doctrine – the sacraments, the performs of mercy, the lethal sins – appeared in glass and stone. Benches stuffed the rebuilt churches – no extended were being there shadowy corners wherever aged ladies could notify their beads, and the plowman his Paternoster, as Mass progressed. The very first pulpits appeared, and with the coming of the pulpit the Priest left his chancel and entered the area of the individuals, getting it above. All eyes were being preset on him now.
The bench ends at Wiggenhall St Mary are complicated. Tiers come up each facet flanking a huge specialized niche, which contains a determine. The tiers just about every rise to a 2nd and third determine, which are from time to time similar. Higher than all rises the reliable poppyhead. You can spend an enjoyable 50 % hour just pottering about striving to discover them. Numerous are in Tudor costume, and are seated in each day attitudes. Some have rosaries. Some are Saints, some others depict animals, Labours of the Months, virtues or Christian symbols.
Fairly in distinction, there is an stylish Laudian font protect with slender pillars, and the date 1624. I wondered if the pelican in her piety on top rated was a later on addition. As at quite a few local church buildings, there is an early-16th century latten lectern, an eagle supported at the feet by 3 minimal grinning lions. The Jacobean pulpit nonetheless retains its hourglass stand. Smatterings of medieval glass are in the higher lights of the north aisle home windows. The royal arms are dated 1791, and inform us that the churchwarden that 12 months was J SUTTRBY.
There is an sophisticated parclose display screen in the south aisle which now has the elaborate memorial tomb of Sir Henry Kerville and his wife. They lie side by aspect, arms in pious attitudes of prayer.He died in 1624 most going are the two small figures underneath them, 1 in swaddling clothing these are their youngsters who died before them.
The east close of the nave was built for peak, for the terrific rood to draw everyone’s attention. Perhaps to aid accentuate this, the chancel arch is curiously slender, and there are just 8 panels on the dado of the display screen, 4 figures on each and every side flanking the entrance. From the north they are: St Mary of Magdala, St Dorothy, St Margaret, St Scholastica (twin sister of St Benedict), St Catherine, St Barbara, the Blessed Virgin and baby, and St John the Baptist. The chancel is fairly uncomplicated and empty, left in its 19th century clothing. The dirty green glass of the east window is overpowering. For a minute, you may possibly be wherever. And then you turn again and see all those broad ranges of medieval benches once more they genuinely are most outstanding.
A hallmark of Church buildings Conservation Have confidence in church buildings is that they are cleared of muddle but that is not possible right here, of course, for the reason that the clutter is the matter you arrive to see. They are intriguing, intriguing but this church is curiously lacking in ambiance, primarily if you have just arrive from Wiggenhall St Germans or Walpole St Peter. It is lifeless you could be in no question that it is redundant, and now small more than a museum.
Posted by Simon Knott on 2016-09-15 19:00:29
Tagged: , Wiggenhall , St , Mary , Norfolk , East Anglia , church
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