While our recent wanderings over the past several months may not have included any stone circles, I did manage to run into my first dole table (pictured) outside of St John the Baptist Church in Penshurst. There are apparently only a few of them left. In addition to being used in the 1500’s & 1600’s to settle contracts and tithes, food and money were left out on them for those in need. The medieval church also had some pretty amazing monuments inside.
I was excited when I happened upon what I thought was a medieval hagioscope at St Martin of Tours Church in Eynsford. A hagioscope is a hole in an interior wall so that the worshipper(s) could see the elevation of the host. But I cannot find it on any official lists, so it may not be a real one. But the dark roof timbers contrasting against the whitewashed walls (pictured) make for a remarkably tranquil atmosphere.
More recently, during Open House London, we visited Temple Church (pictured), London. This medieval church was fashioned after the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem, which was a common practice by the Knights Templar at the time.
Photo Credits
St John the Baptist churchyard, Penshurst
St Martin of Tours, Eynsford
Temple Church, London
No comments:
Post a Comment