The Somerset Medieval Church: Perpendicular Towers, Parapets & Pinnacles
Parish churches in Somerset appear to get an overhaul during the Perpendicular period from c. 1360 to c.1540. This coincided with the rise of wealth in the county. The woollen cloth trade produced a new class of aspirational and wealthy families. Although my evidence...
A SELECTION OF WEST COUNTRY MEDIEVAL FONTS
Baptism is a key, and usually the initial, sacrament in the life of a Christian. Early Christians performed the rite with immersion in water. In the medieval Christian church, the process of infusion was practiced - the pouring of water on the head of the new member...
Quests in Architectural History: My First Literary Festival Talk
On the 25th May I am speaking for the first time at the Ilminster Literary Festival. This is the first time I will have spoken as a writer. Whilst I have produced no books, I do have this blog. And aren't bloggers writers? Well, it seems so. I am pleased to say that...
The 18th C Grand Tour in Rome: The Influence of the Triumphal Arch
It is useful, I find, when examining civic architecture and the architecture of the English country house to remember the classical arch, of which there are key examples in Rome. The triumphal arch and the triumphal column were testament to the dominance of Rome's...
The 18th C Grand Tour in Rome: The Influence of the Triumphal Column
When studying the columns of Trajan (113 AD) and Marcus Aurelius (c. 190 AD), I cannot help thinking of them as the inspiration for the Bayeux Tapestry. Although, there is no record to my knowledge of Bishop Odo visiting Rome. The spiralling upwards bas relief reads...
The 18th C Grand Tour in Rome Part 2: Classical Wonder
What would the Grand Tourist be looking at in terms of the Classical World? The arrival in Rome would be an exciting encounter for the Grand Tourist. They would be surrounded by the ruins of a classical world they had only read about. Firstly, there was the Roman...
Exploring Building History
Exploring Building History is a website and blog dedicated to establishing a resource of historical information related to the built heritage of England. The regular blog posts aim to provide the reader with a diversity of architectural history subjects. This could be a particular building, individual, monument, subject area, architectural element or historical source. Downloadable factsheets, produced on a regular basis, provide a snapshot of relevant historical data for building history study.