St Nicholas, Barfrestone

[poliphilo]

I think it's pronounced "Barson". The village is tiny, there are highland cattle in a field and there's hardly anywhere to park.

But if you're looking for tiny Romanesque churches with their decorative schemes more or less intact Kilpeck in Herefordshire is the first place you visit and Barfrestone is the second.



As before the church was locked- with no indication of how you could obtain entry, but no matter- most of the really good stuff is on the outside- and in particular around the south door.



This image was taken in August 2013. This time round I concentrated on close-ups, because the details are such fun.

Did the masons get to cut loose or were they following a programme of symbolism laid down by their patrons? I'm inclined to think the former because I can't see there's any pattern to the imagery. What we have here are a little collection of things the early medievals found cool. So we've got a woman in a fashionable gown with trailing sleeves, a horseman, an archer, a monkey riding a goat....

Incidentally, I only found out the other day but at this stage of the game the chisel hadn't yet been (re)invented and the masons were working with axes. Imagine doing fine stone carving with an axe!

Comments

[lokbiiviing]

There is something very dynamic about those carvings. It is as if they are from the mason to the viewer quite directly, without that layer of ideal sophistication that can something turn artwork into mere imagery: somehow unreachable and almost self-satisfied. Not all artwork, of course. Just the technically adequate or good enough but not great. Perhaps you know what I mean? I any case: I find these carvings delightful! :D