Fire And Fleet And Candle Light

[poliphilo]

The Ladder of Salvation mural on the West Wall of Chaldon church (near Caterham in Surrey) dates from around 1200. It's one of the best preserved Romanesque murals in England- and a comprehensive guide to the medieval afterlife.

Chaldon church is tiny and scrubby. It's often the smallest churches- the ones that were never upgraded or over-restored- that contain the most remarkable things...





Murderers are roasted in bulk



Various sins are punished in Hell. The man being pitchforked is a usurer (banker) Look closely and you can see he is vomiting money.



The Brig o' Dread- dishonest workmen cross a saw-toothed bridge



Stairway to Heaven



Whoops



The three Marys under angelic escort



The Harrowing of Hell. Christ tramples the Devil and rescues the souls of the just.



St Michael is weighing souls, the Devil tries to tip the balance



The ladder reaches Heaven

Comments

[pondhopper.livejournal.com]

Yes, a lot has been uncovered from under whitewashed walls in Spain. So often very thick layers were used during the time of the black death.

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

Over here the whitewashing was- I think- mainly about iconoclasm. It was done both to protect art from the protestant reformers and- of course- by the reformers themselves.