Double-headed eagles are rare

The thaw of recent days has continued, and most of the ice and snow has gone. Going out after lunch the air felt mild although the temperature was only slightly above freezing. Drive of about thirty-five miles to the south west of the county.

The village is in a small valley prone to flooding. A shallow river winds around the parish and provides the boundary for several of the farms. The community has preserved several acres of ancient limestone grassland which in warmer weather is notable for wild flowers (pyramidal orchid, clustered bellflower, autumn gentian) and rare butterflies (chequered skipper, pearl-bordered and silver-washed fritillaries, green hairstreak).

I have tried the church door several times, but previously it had always been locked. I have read about the history of the area, and nothing remarkable has been said about the building. Therefore I was unprepared, when entering it today, for the surprises inside.



Above: below the tower parapet are these strange heads. You may need to click on the image to enlarge it. What do these heads signify, and why are there six of them?



Above: There is an outer door to the south porch and then an immense inner door. The handle of the inner door is medieval and incorporates a design of two lizards (or dragons?) and what seems to be a runic inscription. Is this meant to be a reference to a grendel-type monster?



Above: why two pulpits of such solid and ornate appearance?



Above: life-size recumbent effigies of a thirteenth-century lord and his wife. They look as if they are in bed. The arms on the shield were difficult to decipher.



Above: recumbent effigy of a fourteenth-century knight. Chain-mail armour. Angels by his head.



Above: most fantastic treasure, and completely unexpected, was this medieval altar frontal in crimson silk. It was underneath a roll blind and behind glass. The gold embroidery shows the Assumption of the Virgin surrounded by angels and double-headed eagles.



Above: double-headed eagles are rare in English heraldry so that I wondered whether the material for the frontal could have been given by Anne of Bohemia (wife of Richard II). The dates are roughly right, and Anne of Bohemia's arms include double-headed eagles. Also there was a castle seven miles away that would have been on the royal circuit and where she almost certainly stayed.