Tuesday 25 July 2023

St Nicholas Church, Little Saxham

 A church featured in the 100 treasures in 100 churches book because of the tower. The base of which is thought to be Anglo Saxon but mostly Norman from the 1100's - including the belfry - that's old and impressive craftmanship!







Also unusual is a stained glass window in the tower.


The view down the Nave.


There are several other features that date back 100's of years, like the medieval pews with carvings of animals and some have a hole in the top which is where the candles or tapers would have been put.


A Lady praying.



A tusk-less Walrus





The East window has some very good stained glass




The C18 alter rail is curved which is unusual. It was rescued from the abandoned church at Little Livermere.








Another grand pulpit with sounding board.



The arch below has always been a mystery as it now has no purpose and no one knows what it was.



This bier for carrying a coffin or shrouded corpse dates from the C17








Round tower churches are special. We have 38 out of just 180 in the whole country according to this leaflet from the Round Tower Churches Society.



Back Tomorrow
Sue



26 comments:

  1. Beautiful old church. I enjoyed seeing old churches when we were in England 🇬🇧 . Stained glass windows are good to see as well. Thanks for the photos you share.

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    1. We have so many beautiful churches here - we are very lucky

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  2. WHat a wonderful old church. That tower is extremely impressive looks extremely Norman - strong and in yer face! Fantastic. xx

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  3. What a lovely church - those carved pew ends are delightful. We have a church with a round tower jut off the A40, between Sennybridge and Brecon (Bettws Penpont church).

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    1. I ought to have taken more photos of the bench ends - they were all different

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  4. No, I did not think that E Anglia has almost the monopoly of round towered churches. Only 6 elsewhere! Lesley

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    1. All because of the lack of large stones for building - all we have are flints

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  5. A beautiful building. I always wonder about the people who built such places and the hard work and toil that they had to experience. Churches also have many unique features and you can only admire what many craftsmen produced. I often stand in awe when I’m visiting churches.

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    1. The tower on this was so special and so ancient - difficult to understand how they did it

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  6. That is an impressive Norman tower, testament to the craftsmanship of the stonemasons, although credit to the Saxons who built the foundations. I do love a church post and like you and Bovey Belle find it hard to pass a church without going in. Of course, I had to look up the three Sussex churches with round towers which are all close together near Lewes in East Sussex. Interesting about the medieval pews with candle holders. Our village church has Victorian brass candle holders built into the top of the Victorian pews and although candies aren’t lit very often (health and safety) when they are lit for special occasions such as evensong during Advent and the service of nine lessons and carols it is magical entering the church at 4pm and the only light being candlelight. Sarah in Sussex

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    1. I just had to take lots of tower photos as it was quite exceptional .

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  7. I've never seen a round tower on a church. What a lovely church.

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  8. That's a wonderful round tower. I think I like the exterior of this church more than the interior, which seems over complicated and quite harsh.

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    1. I loved the very old pews inside but the tower is definitely the best feature

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  9. Another great church tour. I never heard of a church with a round tower. I wonder if it started out as a fort before being a church.

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    1. Always a church from almost the beginnings of Christianity in this country

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  10. That tower is very special, and thank you for the tour - fascinating church
    Alison in Wales x

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    1. Another special among the 700 in the county!

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  11. That tower is stunning. Is the church still active?

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    1. Yes, when I arrived last week two ladies had just finished dusting and cleaning ready for the Sunday service

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  12. This is a beautiful church. The craftsmanship and skill shown in the church is amazing. The pew carvings are unique and fascinating. How was the tower space used by the church? The expansive stained glass is spectacular with the light shining through.

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    1. We are lucky to have so many lovely churches here

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  13. I came by to read your post hours ago but was interrupted. Now I'm not sure if I posted my comment or not. If I did then that's the reason there are now two comments from me.
    The church is so lovely and the stained glass window beautiful. I've never heard of a church having a round tower. Interesting. Thanks for the photos and information.
    Granny Marigold

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  14. I really like that tower. It's very distinctive. Thanks for the tour!

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