Monday 27 June 2022

A wet t-shirt sort of day

 My brain is officially switched off this morning.  I have driven long distances 3 days in a row and walked miles round Malvern yesterday.  Then I woke up at 4.45 this morning (same time I set the alarm for yesterday but today it was set for 7.30 . . .)  I am going to be resting up today I think.  

        On Friday K and I went to Abergavenny to check out Mobility Scooters at the Mobility Centre there.  Well, even the medium range folding one was too heavy to lift in the car when broken down into pieces. 25 Kg for the main part.  I can't lift that 2 feet off the ground these days, with arms wide apart.  A sack of something that weight I could just about manage by grasping it round the waist . . .  Plan B . . .

        Anyway we decided to check out a "virtually new and unused" mob. scooter (with ramps)  at Ludlow on Saturday.  The weather made for interesting driving - torrential rain approaching and leaving Knighton.  You could hardly see the road.  We passed a pair of stoical walkers, with backpacks, and I don't think there can have been a dry inch on them - talk about a wet t-shirt competition!  

When we got there, the property was at the back of a semi-circle of houses and Keith had to walk 100 yds to check out the mob. scooter - too lightweight we reckoned, but it didn't go either.  They either had never ever charged it, so the battery was caput, or they just hadn't done so recently.  They knew we weren't local (it's over an hour's drive) - you think they would have mentioned this to save us a journey.  I don't know about you, but I wouldn't pay good money for something that can't be proved to WORK!  Unsurprisingly, Keith was on his hunkers yesterday and not much more mobile today. 

        On the way home we were going through Leominster, so Tam and I (she was here for the weekend) abandoned Keith to his newspaper and quickly scooted round Leominster Priory Church which has Herfordshire Romanesque carvings.



We couldn't resist taking a photo upstream along the River Lugg before heading for the Church.


It is quite imposing.  In the Domesday Book, the town is recorded as being held by the king and there were 6 priests there.  Henry I refounded the Priory in 1123 and the nave and West front of this Romesque church still survive and archaeological excavations have revealed an eastern arm, crossing and transepts.


A small lion head sculpture was used above several windows.


The left capitals of the West doorway have beautiful Herefordshire school carvings, and you may recognize the Birds on the left from Castle  Frome church. Obviously a design the masons were familiar with.  Indeed, the fighting men topping the central pillar can be compared with those at Kilpeck - note the same padded garments, clearer in the photos below.  On the right are two serpents entwined with foliage - a similar design to that used at Shobdon.


Those "beehive" hats made me smile!



The serpents look almost as if they have beaks. 


In his book about The Herefordshire School of Romanesque Sculpture, Malcolm Thurlby calls these "two affronted lions with big, floating paws and large heads turned en face."  They have such character. Indeed, they have a larger relative inside the Church . . .



The wonderful Norman West door.  Tam and I could hear an orchestra inside, and wondered if we would still be able to go in and look round.  It turned out they were tuning up and practicing for a performance that  evening so we were able to go in the areas they weren't.  The music was a wonderful backdrop to our visit.


As we were in a hurry (K in the car) we missed some of the sculptures around the windows, but I will go back and check them out next time we're in town.


A very grand chair indeed, with wonderful carvings on it.  I wonder who gets to sit in this?


The font is a modern one.  I would love to know what was there in the 12th C.




A green man, this seems to me, but Thurlby describes it as "a human mask with biforkated, plaited beard spewing leafless vines." 


In case you can't read it clearly these are 12th C Ddoor Hinge Hooks set in lead. They were recovered from the masonry of the West Norman doorway to make way for larger hooks when the new doors were hung at the time of the Coronation of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II in June 1953.  They date from the time of the original building of he doorway.  This part of the church was concentrated in 1130 and were therefore in use for 823 years!






Isn't this Lion amazing?  Not sure what he has been used for but 

More beautiful carving on the Pulpit.


This was just amazing - a Mosaic of The Last Supper (see below).  This is by Peter Barnes and is on temporary display here. I didn't realize it was made using keyboard keys, so there are messages within the design.






A beautiful hand-sewn screen.


Sadly the light was very poor and I couldn't get close to take better photos as the orchestra was sat nearby.






One of the earlier still legible gravestones along the outer wall.

Goodness, this has taken me all morning to write up, and two days to get photos up as SO tired and busy.  Yesterday was a Malvern Fleamarket day and will take some getting over.  Went to St Mary's Church, Kempley (again) and Much Marcle on the way home.  The friend I took is probably suffering from cultural indigestion now!



18 comments:

  1. That Last Supper mosaic and the hand sewn quilted screen are truly fabulous.

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  2. Indeed Tigger. I liked the way they added different dimensions to the Church - and of course the Lion too!

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  3. Some amazing pieces of art in that church
    Hope you manage to get a suitable mobility scooter soon, what a pain to travel all that way and it not be working
    Alison in Wales x

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    1. It was a lovely church, and I'll go back when there's not an orchestra there! I was rather peeved about the non-working scooter - he knew we weren't local too. Obviously, he couldn't help being stupid.

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  4. Wonderful post BB, I love seeing what your eye picks out in ancient buildings. That chair with its squashed cushions … perhaps saved for when the Bishop of Hereford visits? I know Leominster a little bit from staying in the Triumphal Arch at Berrington Hall during the Easter holidays. I remember thr children did so many Easter Egg hunts at various NT properties and enjoyed cycling and scootering around the Berrington estate roads early morning and evening when the property was closed to visitors. Hope you can sort out some wheels for Keith soon. Did you find any treasure at Malvern (one day I will get up early enough to go to the Ford car boot sale on a Thursday morning) . There is a fantastic antique shop in Petworth which always has interesting pieces with a high turnover and from chatting to the owner I know he buys most of his stock at Ford, prices it keenly and it is then often bought by other dealers who tart it up to sell on. I bought from this shop a small prettily carved oak arts and crafts double cupboard with book shelf above which is ideal as a bedside cabinet in the patchwork bedroom. I keep all my ‘old’ books on the bookshelf and Christmas decorations in the cupboard. I am trying not to be too much of a magpie but there is a lot of temptation in Petworth and I found a gorgeous old Persian rug on Saturday with just the right colours for our study. In my defence we did need a new rug as the old jute rug was rapidly disintegrating … and a potential trip hazard! Have a lovely day BB and take care. Sarah x

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    1. Oh, so much I missed too - I'm always hurrying Sarah. I reckoned it was the Bish's chair too .. . they always get the best after all! We drove past Berrington Hall coming back from Ludlow and when Keith is hopefully walking better we will go and visit. Going to see some wheels this afternoon . . .

      Oh you must go down to Ford - cut out the middle man, say I!! The chap we used to have a Unit with in Llandovery would go down there for stock, all the way from Wales.

      We love Arts & Crafts pieces and that little bookshelf and cupboard sounds amazing. Wish you had a blog so I could see it! Don't blame you for buying the old Persian rug either. If you need it, then you needn't feel TOO guilty.

      Ahem, a few . . . treasures may have come home with me. In fact, I was delighted with my purchases, especially a lovely low back Windsor chair.

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  5. That mosaic of the last supper and the stitched screen are amazing. Thank you for so many lovely photos.
    Hope you are able to find something for Keith to use to get around.
    Have a restful afternoon

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    1. I did have a WOW moment at the Mosaic. It looked brilliant in that setting. Left a deposit on a sturdy mobility scooter this afternoon. Now we need ramps . . .

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  6. What a shame, two wasted journeys. The couple selling the non-charged one were ridiculous, did they actually expect you to buy it without seeing it working?

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    1. Apparently! He must have thought I was as dozy as he was!!

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  7. Lovely tour. I am sorry about the scooters. Unless the second one was only a pound (Canadian so don't have the symbol) not worth a look. I hope you can get a decent one for Keith soon. It must be frustrating for him. Hugs.

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    1. Success yesterday I'm glad to say! Ramps on order now too.

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  8. I think I left my comment for this post on previous post, sorry. Just asking how Genghis and donut collar are doing.

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  9. Gorgeous carvings and the quilted screen are lovely.

    God bless.

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    1. It was an interesting church on all sorts of levels.

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  10. I suppose envy comes into being here because I have passed that church numerous times and have always wanted to go in. Now after seeing how stunning it is inside I want to even more. Never seen a ducking stool before and it's not something you would wanted to have ended up on either

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    1. Us too Billy - the number of times we've parked virtually next door to it and never a second glance! It's certainly worth a visit. Defo wouldn't want to be on the wet end of the ducking stool!

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