All Saints' Church, Earls Barton
All Saints' Church | ||
---|---|---|
Style Anglo-Saxon | | |
Years built | Late 10th Century | |
Specifications | ||
Height | 69 feet (21 metres) | |
Administration | ||
Diocese | Diocese of Peterborough | |
Archdeaconry | Archdeaconry of Northampton | |
Parish | Parish of Earls Barton | |
Clergy | ||
Vicar(s) | Jenny Bland | |
Laity | ||
Reader(s) | Simon Elvin | |
Organist(s) | Catherine Johnson | |
Churchwarden(s) | Helen Winrow, David Timms |
All Saints' Church is a noted Anglo-Saxon Church of England parish church in Earls Barton, Northamptonshire. It is estimated that the building dates from the later tenth century, shortly after Danish raids on England.
The tower
The tower at Earls Barton was probably originally a tower nave, the ground floor serving as the main body of the church with a small chancel annexed to it to the east, as at St Peter's Church, Barton-upon-Humber, built at roughly the same period.[1] A doorway on the south side of the tower, and originally another opening on the west face, allowed access to the outside. The upper floors possibly provided accommodation for the priest or acted as a safe-haven to house treasures, although it has been pointed out that such towers would have been deathtraps in a Viking raid, with their combustible wooden floors and multiple doors.[2] There is a belfry at the uppermost storey.
The tower is constructed of
The storeys are divided by projecting stone
In the 12th century the small Anglo-Saxon chancel, narrower than the tower,[3][4] was razed and replaced by a nave so that the tower now stands at the west end.[5] This nave was enlarged later in the 12th century and then renovated in the 13th and early 14th centuries. The east end of the chancel is 13th century.[5]
The tower is 69 feet (21 metres) high from base to the battlements.[6]
Architectural characteristics
The influence is very much
The blind arcading is purely decorative, since the arches and triangles spring from string courses rather than supporting them. In fact Warwick Rodwell has suggested that the "hopeless jumble" of the arcading at Earls Barton demonstrates it was mere ornament. Rodwell suggests that the design was based on timber framing but that the parts were then assembled wrongly.[7] The position of openings in the tower makes use of this decoration by fitting within the triangles and pilaster strips.
The use of stone enabled sturdy towers to be built in this period, but the availability of stone that could be easily quarried and carved enabled towers as at Earls Barton to be decorated in such a way. The limestone at
In 1935, Henry Bird painted the 15th century rood screen. Its upper parts contain butterfly species that are local to the area.[8]
History
To the north of All Saints' Church, Earls Barton, a mound and ditch almost abuts the church.
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St Andrew and St Stephen on the rood screen painted by Henry Bird
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Old door of All Saints
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Anglo-Saxon stone carving at All Saints
References
- ^ Fisher, 1959, page 57
- ^ Fernie, 1983, page 136 & page 186, note 32, referring to Taylor.
- ^ Richmond, 1986, page 176
- ^ Fisher, 1969, page 45
- ^ a b Pevsner & Cherry, 1973, pages 195-196
- ISBN 978-0500343142.
- ^ Rodwell, 1986, page 174; reprinted in Karkov, 1999, page 128
- ^ David Buckman (April 22, 2000) Henry Bird Obituary The Independent
- ^ Pevsner & Cherry, 1973, page 196
Sources
- Audouy, M. (1981). "Excavations at All Saints Church, Earls Barton". Northamptonshire Archaeology. 16. Northamptonshire Archaeological Society: 73–86.
- Audouy, M.; et al. (1995). "The Tower of All Saints' Church, Earls Barton, Northamptonshire: its construction and context". Archaeological Journal. 152. .
- Fernie, Eric (1983). The Architecture of the Anglo-Saxons. New York: Holmes and Meier. pp. 136, 186. ISBN 0-8419-0912-1.
- Fisher, Ernest Arthur (1959). An Introduction to Anglo-Saxon Architecture and Sculpture. London: OCLC 1279628.
- Fisher, Ernest Arthur (1969). Anglo-Saxon Towers: An Architectural and Historical Study. New York: Kelley. p. 45. OCLC 31303.
- Karkov, Catherine E. (1999). The Archaeology of Anglo-Saxon England: Basic Readings. New York, London: ISBN 0-8153-2916-4.
- ISBN 0-14-071022-1.
- Richmond, Hugh (1986). "Outlines of Church Development in Northamptonshire". In L.A.S., Butler; R.K., Morris (eds.). The Anglo-Saxon Church: Papers on History, Architecture, and Archaeology in Honour of Dr. H.M. Taylor. London: ISBN 0-906780-54-3.
- Rodwell, Warwick (1986). "Anglo-Saxon Church Building: Aspects of Design and Construction". In L.A.S., Butler; R.K., Morris (eds.). The Anglo-Saxon Church: Papers on History, Architecture, and Archaeology in Honour of Dr. H.M. Taylor. London: ISBN 0-906780-54-3.
- ASIN B001OWZWSI.
External links
- Church website
- The Friends of All Saints Archived 19 December 2021 at the Wayback Machine