Nigel's Photo Blog

    Llanllugan, Wales Llanllugan is a hamlet which lies on a back road in the heart of Montgomeryshire, Wales It is about thirteen miles west of Welshpool on the England-Wales border . Here can be found St Mary's Church, the adjacent farm of Tynllan and a small number of houses.   The place-name is first recorded as Llanlugan in 1239. A Cistercian nunnery was in existence from about 1217 through to 1536 with no remains extant.   St Mary's church (below) is a simple, single-chamber building, probably of 15th-century date. Inside is an important collection of Cistercian stained glass. The font may date from the 13th century. St. Mary's Church, Llanllugan, formerly attached to the Cistercian nunnery founded by Maredudd ap Robert some time before 1188, may also be located on the site of the sixth century foundation of Llorcan Wyddel. The extant building dates almost entirely to the late fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, and consists of an undivided chancel and nave, south por

Introduction Tonight, I am posting information on a fascinating, historic cross which is located in the Church of St. James a Nunburnholme in east Yorkshire, northern England. It should be remembered that English churches were, effectively, community centres whose contents and architecture reflect the cultural and other changes which have occurred over the past 1500 years or so. As described below, the cross reflects migration patterns covering about 400 years, from Anglo-Saxon (N. German) to Scandinavian (Danish and Norse) and Norman French. All of these movements provided the basic building blocks of what became the English language which in turn has become the lingua franca of the world today. Interestingly, the core of Nunburnholme is of Scandinavian origin and means 'Place at the springs or streams.'The 'nun' element is a later affix derived from a former Benedictine Nunnery nearby. Key features of the church and cross Key features of this church are:1. The inter

  This evening, the focus of my blog is on the historic Church of St. Mary the Virgin at Alne, Yorkshire, England and in particular the ancient Viking and Norman carvings which attract a lot of visitor interest. There has been a church on this site for about 850 years. The current church has many interesting facets but I am going to focus on just three which are discussed and illustrated below. Firstly, there is the massive 12th century stone font which is still used for baptisms. This close up shows the classic Green Man image which may relate to a pre-Christian natural deity. Note the branches or vines sprouting from the mouth. Here is the font. This image shows shows a lintel over a Anglo-Saxon era priests door. The well worn carving may well be from the Viking era. Finally, the video clip below shows the Norman era carved arch over the main door. This is very significant and attracts many visitors. The carvings represent beasts from the Bible although there are also some secular on

This afternoon, I have decided to feature some unusual, possibly 10th century, stone carvings from the Church of St. Helen’s, Bilton-in-Ainsty, Yorkshire, England. These unusual carvings can be found in the Lady Chapel of this church which has origins dating back to Saxon times (first millennium). Being of possible 10th century AD date, the carvings could be from the Viking era. The Vikings were pagans when they first came to Yorkshire but they soon adopted the Christian faith of the Anglo-Saxons they had conquered.   This stone is said to form  part of the 'great cross' next to it, dated to 900/1000AD. The chamfered edge was made when the stone was reused at some later date in the church. (The three figures may represent the three children in the fiery furnace. The   Prayer of Azariah and Song of the Three Holy Children , abbreviated   Pr Azar , is a passage which appears after   Daniel   3:23 in some translations of the   Bible ) Close up of part of image below. S

    Bosham Church  Introduction This evening, I am posting information on Holy Trinity Church, Bosham, England. Information  on  Bosham Bosham is a coastal village and civil parish in the Chichester District of West Sussex, England, centred about 2 miles west of Chichester with its clustered developed part west of this.The village sits close to the coast and is about 82 miles SW of London. The village was recorded as Bosanham in 731 AD which means 'Homestead or promontory of a man called Bosa'. As will be evident from the information below, Bosham was important during the Anglo-Saxon period as evidenced by King Harold being in residence nearby, mention in the famous Bayeux Tapestry and the church housing a memorial to the daughter of the Danish King, Canute who, for a period in the 11th century, ruled England, Denmark and Norway. Information on  Bosham Church The Sussex population was predominantly heathen (non-Christian) until the latter part of the 7th century.The exceptio

  Temple of Mithras at Carrawburgh on Hadrian's Wall Tonight I am posting information on two temples of Mithras from the Roman period (1st-5th centuries AD) which are from the same time period but about three hundred miles apart. In London can be seen the high-tech display based on archaeology at Bloomberg offices whilst still in situ at Carrawburgh on Hadrian's Wall is an original still exposed to the elements. Roman Mithraeum at Bloomberg Offices, London Mithraeum at Bloomberg Offices, London Mithras was a pagan god the worship of whom was predominantly the preserve of senior officers in the Roman army. There are between three and five temples dedicated to Mithras worship at forts on Hadrian’s Wall. Mithraism was an adaption of ancient religion from the East, centering on the struggle between light and darkness, good and evil. The central scene in every Mithraeum features the slaying of a bull as an act of redemption. The Mithraeum at Carrawburgh, comprised a nave with be

  Centre of Britain Hotel, Haltwhistle, England This evening, I am focusing on a hotel in central Britain which incorporates architecture and construction methods dating back to the 15th century.I have personally stayed at this establishment which proved an interesting experience going so far back in time. The images herein have been affected by the unusually harsh sunshine, unusual in Britain where we are more commonly used to various shades of grey! Features of the building include: Pele Tower, a defensible structure dating back to around 1417. This reflects the lawless nature of this region during the 14th-17th centuries during which neither Scottish nor English governments exercised control over the Borders Region leaving the power vacuum to be filled by local families known as Border Reivers who raided each other and across the border. An intramural staircase. Escape tunnel Old roof structures held together by wooden pegs. 5 foot thick walls ( former Pele Tower). Younges

This evening, I am reprising a one-day tour of the English Cotswolds region, about 100 miles north of London and very popular with visitors. Above image shows a herd of Red Deer at Batsford. Benefiting from dry and sunny weather, we continued our exploration of the Cotswolds as follows: Departed our Moreton-in Marsh base and drove to nearby Chastleton , a quaint village with historic 17th century mansion and historic church. It was very pleasant here in the early morning sunshine, with peaceful countryside, Spring flowers and locals out exercising dogs and horses. Here is an image of Chastleton House which has remained unchanged since the the 17th century, Next to the prehistoric stone circle at Rollright , which is about 5000 years old.   Next, through the village of Long Compton and the semi-private estate of Weston Park to Cherington and Sutton under Brailes . We stopped at the latter to photograph a thatched house.  Next, along a narrow country lane to Traitor’s

  Northumbrian landscape at Laing's Hill Farm Information on Northumbria Northumbria is a county in N.E England with a p opulation is 319,000. Details of tour  This morning, we departed our lodgings in Haltwhistle at centre of Britain and embarked on a trip as follows: First, a one hour drive north, traversing remote countryside, to Kirkharle, a small village which has become famous as the birthplace of Lancelot 'Capability' Brown, a renowned British landscape gardener who was born in 1716. Brown was educated at a local school and then trained as a gardener on the Kirkharle estate until moving on at age 23 years ultimately to achieve celebrity status in his chosen profession.Kirkharle is now a visitor attraction with coffee shop and small craft and specialist shops. We also visited the local church, St Wilfrid's, where Brown was christened. Haltwhistle, Northumberland Kirkharle Coffee Shop Kirkharle Courtyard Kirkharle landscape Kirkharle Church Next, a 15 minut