It's 18 foot tall and is telescopic. It was made around 1450 and restored to full glory and working order in the 1980's. It was so amazing that in 1643 the man tasked with destroying icons in churches spared it, perhaps because he found it so ridiculously OTT. ( Find out more on the website link below)
There have been fancy font covers in several churches I've been to but I've never seen an egg timer before! Right beside the pulpit, presumably to time the sermon.
The rather grand porch has lots of knapped flint and dates from about 1475
Although it's a village church for a small village it has Anglo-Catholic features more often seen in larger town churches.
There are some large carved angels on the roof supports
Very fancy pew ends, carved from top to bottom, inside and out.
St Leonards chapel on the side aisle was made into a war memorial in 1919 with an east window showing a British soldier and sailor helping Jesus carry his cross
Very fine carved stations of the cross
but it gets no mention
Difficult to get a good photo as this church is tucked away in a Lower Ufford - a part of the village surrounded by old cottages and tiny lanes.
I opened the door and stepped into the church and nearly jumped a mile as there were two people just inside gazing up at the font........... I rarely find other people in these small Suffolk churches. They were visitors to Suffolk from Buckinghamshire and were wondering why they had left visiting Suffolk until they were in their 70's! I was able to sing the praises of my beautiful county.....very easy to do.
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Sue
I am enjoying seeing all the churches of Suffolk in your blog.
ReplyDeleteThe picture looks like a Greek icon of Saint George killing the dragon
Yes def. St George and dragon but looks really old and gold leaf
DeleteWere the roof trusses painted at one time? It is difficult to tell from the photo but it looks as if there are traces of a design
ReplyDeleteI expect so, churches were all highly decorated before the reformation
DeleteThis post is fascinating - thanks for the link to the Suffolk Churches website. I shall have to go and visit Great Ryburgh Church (very near Cornerstones) sometime, as it seems to have much in common with Ufford. Pulpit egg timers used to be more common, and usually timed 30 minutes.
ReplyDeletePS I think I should have said "sand glass". You'd get a very hard boiled egg if it cooked for 30minutes
ReplyDeleteI don't think I've seen one before - 30 mins is plenty long enough for a sermon!
DeleteI’d just like to say I like knapped flint very much.
ReplyDeleteAmazing what patterns they were able to make with it
DeleteInteresting church. I did not like all the heavy dark wood inside the church. The couple from the church were people from my county it would have been funny if they came from my village.
ReplyDeleteHazel c uk
Bucks is a big county!
DeleteI really enjoyed seeing all that ancient, dark wood with the wonderful carvings. Lovely church (although those outer doors make my eyes go a bit funny with the stripes).
ReplyDeleteWhat looks like stripes are the gaps between wood bits.
DeleteUnusual to see carvings all the way down on pew ends.
A bit fussy for my taste, but it was obviously a very wealthy area, once upon a time, if not still.
ReplyDeleteSo much money went on church building and then the Victorians spent more in the 19C
DeleteI don't know whether you know this, the early church embellishments paid for by the wealthy were done so in the belief that it would shorten their time in purgatory. I think the Victorians were just showing off!
DeleteWhat a beautiful church! I've never seen a timer in a church but there may be a few that could use one! You do live in a beautiful county and I'm sure the visitors appreciated what you could share with them.
ReplyDeleteFabulous bench ends. we're holidaying in Suffolk this year so might pop in her to have a look! Arilx
ReplyDeleteI think this is my favorite church so far!
ReplyDeleteLove seeing all your old churches with their ornate decorations and quirky things like timers. I have listened to several sermons where the minister could have done with one of them!
ReplyDeleteWhat a fascinating place. That font cover is incredible!!
ReplyDeletexx
I'm so glad that font cover was spared - I have a feeling he may have been bribed by the Lord of the Manor . . .or threatened by the locals perhaps. Thank heavens it escaped anyway. A beautiful church.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Catherine about the roof trusses having been painted at one time - faint traces of red and a black and white lower border.
An egg timer in church, how strange?
ReplyDelete