2016

SK8613 : Church of St Mary, Ashwell - Belvoir Angel

taken 8 years ago, near to Ashwell, Rutland, England

Church of St Mary, Ashwell - Belvoir Angel
Church of St Mary, Ashwell - Belvoir Angel
Slate and stone gravestones, part of the Listed group seen here Link .

The left hand stone is of the Belvoir Angel type and commemorates James Sketh, d.1717, at an unspecified age.

The right stone has a more cryptic inscription. It reads ' M P DO[ughter] OF JOHN P WHO DIED THE 8 OF AV[gust] 1663'
Church of St Mary, Ashwell

The church consists of aisled nave and chancel, the aisles extending alongside two bays of the chancel to form side chapels, with west tower and south porch.

The church is largely of 13th and 14th century date, based on an older church of the 12th century, of which one arch remains in the north aisle arcade. The nave and its aisles can be dated to the 13th century, probably around 1220-30, and the arcades other than the arch mentioned, are from this date. Externally however, this part of the church was all refaced during the 14th century, at which time the tower was built, as also the chancel side chapels and the eastern bay of the chancel. The church was restored in 1851 by leading Gothic Revival architect William Butterfield LinkExternal link . The main elements of this were the re-ordering of the interior, rebuilding of the roofs, including the tower pyramid, and the addition of the south porch. The main stone fabric was less interfered with than in many churches.

Distinctive details of the exterior are the use of alternate bands of ironstone and faced freestone around the chancel, its chapels and the west tower. Also a profusion of ballflower decoration. A further distinctive feature is the pyramidal roof to the tower.

Internally the fittings including the font date from the 1851 restoration. Of this period is the fine 3-seat sedilia in the south wall of the chancel, but the two-bay piscina adjacent to this is early, although much restored and moved to its current location. On the opposite wall of the chancel is a recess of the 15th century, possibly to hold a memorial. The arch is incised with a series of the letter T, probably relating to the Tuchet family.

Both north and south chancel chapels contain interesting medieval monuments. In the south chapel there are firstly an unusual wooden effigy, c.1320, of a recumbent cross-legged knight, again probably of the Tuchet family and secondly a marble slab with the incised figures of John Vernam (d.1480) and his wife Rosa. In the north chapel, now the vestry, is an alabaster effigy of a priest in vestments, possibly Rector John Vernam (d.1489).

There is a ring of six bells of which the two newest date to the 19th century restoration, the others being of 18th century date.

The church is Listed Grade I . For more detail see the Victoria County History of Rutland LinkExternal link .

Belvoir Angels

This name is given to a group of gravestones loosely based on the Vale of Belvoir.
They are carved from the (relatively) locally sourced Swithland slate (from Swithland in Charnwood Forest to the west of Loughborough), and at the head of the gravestone have a carved depiction of an angel's head flanked by wings. This is supposed to represent the soul of the deceased ascending to heaven. Some larger stones have a pair of angels side by side.
The angel is in most instances flanked by a stylised depiction of an hourglass and crossed bones, and the panel usually includes a short phrase; examples include 'Come ye blessed', 'Death is gain'.
Below the angel is the commemorative inscription, often to more than one person, and this is followed by a short verse. A small number of stones also include a short biblical text.
In a few instances the angel panel is situated between the commemorative text and the verse, or even below all the text, and in at least one instance the verse is inscribed on the rear face. A number of stones are carved with a full memorial on both sides of the stone, and there are a few instances of the edge being used also.
They date from the period 1690 to 1759, and those located in the Vale itself, and centred on Hickling, appear to be the work of just one or two masons, although no information as to their identity appears to exist.

For a more comprehensive discussion, see LinkExternal link

Listed Buildings and Structures

Listed buildings and structures are officially designated as being of special architectural, historical or cultural significance. There are over half a million listed structures in the United Kingdom, covered by around 375,000 listings.
Listed status is more commonly associated with buildings or groups of buildings, however it can cover many other structures, including bridges, headstones, steps, ponds, monuments, walls, phone boxes, wrecks, parks, and heritage sites, and in more recent times a road crossing (Abbey Road) and graffiti art (Banksy 'Spy-booth') have been included.

In England and Wales there are three main listing designations;
Grade I (2.5%) - exceptional interest, sometimes considered to be internationally important.
Grade II* (5.5%) - particularly important buildings of more than special interest.
Grade II (92%) - nationally important and of special interest.

There are also locally listed structures (at the discretion of local authorities) using A, B and C designations.

In Scotland three classifications are also used but the criteria are different. There are around 47,500 Listed buildings.
Category A (8%)- generally equivalent to Grade I and II* in England and Wales
Category B (51%)- this appears generally to cover the ground of Grade II, recognising national importance.
Category C (41%)- buildings of local importance, probably with some overlap with English Grade II.

In Northern Ireland the criteria are similar to Scotland, but the classifications are:
Grade A (2.3%)
Grade B+ (4.7%)
Grade B (93%)

Read more at Wikipedia LinkExternal link


Creative Commons Licence [Some Rights Reserved]   © Copyright Alan Murray-Rust and licensed for reuse under this Creative Commons Licence.
Geographical Context: Historic sites and artefacts Village, Rural settlement Burial ground, Crematorium Building Material: Limestone Period: Mid 17th Century Early 18th Century Date: 1663 1717 Material: Slate Name: Belvoir Angels other tags: Gravestone Grade II Listed Click a tag, to view other nearby images.
This photo is linked from: Articles: · Angels on Memorials Automatic Clusters: · Gravestone [6] · Inscription Reads [3] Other Photos: · Church of St Mary, Ashwell - old gravestones ·
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SK8613, 149 images   (more nearby 🔍)
Photographer
Alan Murray-Rust   (more nearby)
Date Taken
Thursday, 28 January, 2016   (more nearby)
Submitted
Monday, 1 February, 2016
Subject Location
OSGB36: geotagged! SK 8656 1372 [10m precision]
WGS84: 52:42.8536N 0:43.2046W
Camera Location
OSGB36: geotagged! SK 8656 1372
View Direction
WEST (about 270 degrees)
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