The Game of Fives in South Somerset

The Game of Fives in South Somerset

The game of fives became a popular sport in South Somerset from the mid-18th C. There are churchwarden accounts that record the problem of fives being played against church towers. One way around this was to construct purpose-built fives walls. These were mainly built...
The Somerset Medieval Church: Bells & Cockerels

The Somerset Medieval Church: Bells & Cockerels

I find myself increasingly noticing and enjoying the sound of church bells, whether it is the local bell ringers practicing, the time of day, or they are ringing out joyously for a wedding. The height of many church towers means that they can be heard across the...
A SELECTION OF WEST COUNTRY MEDIEVAL FONTS

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...
The 18th C Grand Tour in Rome: The Influence of the Triumphal Arch

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...
The Elizabethan Church: Books, Pulpits & Hourglasses

The Elizabethan Church: Books, Pulpits & Hourglasses

According to popular myth it was on the 31st of October 1517 that Martin Luther nailed his Ninety-five Theses disputing the Roman Catholic Church’s practice on indulgences to the door of Wittenberg Cathedral. Whether this act was true or not does not dispute the fact...