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| The angel roof of St Stephen's Hall, Westminster; the archangel of all other angel roofs |
Not much mediaeval art from English churches survives. Episodes of iconoclasm under the ‘reforming’
Tudors and in the middle of the Seventeenth Century put paid to the vast
majority of the works that once populated their naves and chancels. Over a decade ago Tate Britain put on a show
of some of the highlights of what remains undamaged (or relatively so), and the
main thing that struck me at the time was how little material there is left to
choose from.
Angel roofs, that adorn many churches in East Anglia, are an
exception that proves the rule. The
iconoclasts found it difficult to reach them, often leaving instructions that
they should be destroyed after their departure.
Fortunately their instructions were often ignored, although this was not
always the case and occasional rows of headless seraphs, and empty spaces, are
the sad result.
In the past when looking at these roofs, presiding rather magnificently above the relatively bare walls and statue free niches, I have wondered why
they were there and what they signified. At Little Waldingfield History Society
on Wednesday evening I achieved some enlightenment. Michael
Rimmer, who has written a book on Angel Roofs,
gave a wide ranging talk on the subject, illustrating some of the best
examples.
When created angel roofs were integral to the church’s
overall internal decoration. The focus of the whole was the rood screen which separated
the chancel from the nave, and depicted Christ’s passion.
The absence of the screen today (no original
one apparently survives) leaves the roof in limbo as it no longer forms part of
a purposeful decorative whole that took the eye from the top to the bottom of the
church as if from heaven to earth.
Andy
Sheppard has written a full review of Michael’s most
informative talk, available on the tab above.
Michael Rimmer made the point that the roofs represent a
rare opportunity to see (from a distance) the work of mediaeval craftsmen, so
much of which has been lost.
Coincidentally
this weekend The Guardian reports that a rare Fourteenth Century statue from
the Midlands is to go on show at the British Museum.
You can read about how lucky it was to
survive
HERE.
The Angel Roofs of
East Anglia, Unseen Masterpieces of the Middle Ages by Michael Rimmer is
available from Amazon and other booksellers.
ISBN: 978 -0718893699
