Richard

Posts tagged with "Suffolk"

Anonymous

Wednesday, 3. September 2008, 02:57:16

antiquity, sculpture, church, Dennington ...

Another photo visit to the church of St. Mary the Virgin in Dennington.

Here's an interior view, showing the beautiful woodwork, much of it 600 or 700 years old and still in immaculate condition. But what caught my eye when I was framing that shot was a captivating little detail far off the ground.

Looking up to the stone supports that form the base for the wooden arches that hold up the roof, I saw that each had been fashioned into the shape of a head. (As shown by the yellow arrow in my photograph).

A close up revealed a surprisingly detailed view of some unidentified medieval person. Was it someone of significance, or perhaps a more ordinary figure? In this case, perhaps the beautiful wife of the stone mason. Were these the ordinary folk, high up and overlooking the far grander monuments to the wealthy and renowned of the village.

I liked to think so. These faces were open and friendly, much as I might like myself to be remembered in future centuries.

6 comments

Time passes

Wednesday, 13. August 2008, 02:33:13

vacation, Suffolk, St. Mary the Virgin church, Rous ...

One week ago, to the day, I was fast asleep in the TravelLodge Motel near Needham Market, Suffolk, with talk of a visit of to this tomb and the church that houses it, St. Mary the Virgin in Dennington (see previous post) in my dreams from the evening before.

So this photograph was yet to come, yet now it has passed, and emphatically so as I deal with what has been a frustrating day of automobile and financial disruptions. Nothing too serious, but enough to cause us to rejiggle our plans.

However, last week none of this was apparent and I was looking forward to the church visit and feeling the increasing pressure of the end of the vacation creeping up on me. Last days on a holiday are always a little melancholy, and the last day itself, with the silent drive to the airport, the unhappiest.

But as I consider these events over the course of just one week, I am pulled back to this tomb of the Bardolphs dating all the back to 15th century. A Knight and his lady lying there, a wyvern at her feet and an eagle at his. A week in my life means nothing to theirs, so long passed. And, as people, they mean nothing to me, beyond this sculpture that marks a life sufficiently important to warrant such recognition. Yet I find myself projecting something onto them, a sense of life that exists beyond time. Do their spirits - and the spirits of all others who have lived before and now gone - register anything in this living world of light and sound? Or am I as much of a shadow to them as they are to me?

Unanswerable questions but ones I like to contemplate.

3 comments

Praying under a death's head

Tuesday, 12. August 2008, 12:23:08

vacation, Suffolk, St. Mary the Virgin church, Rous ...

A striking statue from the parish church of St. Mary the Virgin in Dennington, Suffolk, England.

To my eyes, a rather gruesome and morbid image, but I am looking at it through modern eyes. With a 17th century view, this monument would have a different resonance. People were far more familiar with death as a frequent occurence, particularly among children. To confront its spectre with prayer would be a powerfully affirming image.

The plaque below gives the details of the interred, members of the Rous family.