St Helen Abingdon

 

Many years ago I did visit St Helens Church in Abingdon, taking photos  of the outside but not inside but then I thought it was locked. I always thought I would come back and look around the inside, I even thought I wrote a blog on it but no I have no record of any blog which I will remedy today. The easiest way to read about the history of the church is to look at the Wikipedia page on St Helens you can also find a printable PDF on the church website

 This first photo is one I took back in 2011 on my first visit, as you can see it is from the opposite side of the River Thames, funny enough my latest visit was more of less the same time of the year

 

Here we look down East St Helens Street towards the church

 

 Nearer the church and the north tower entrance, the arch takes you to the churchyard and the main entrance 

This is around the west side of the church and the porch there 

The west side of the church from further away, you can get the idea as to the size of this church

Back towards the tower along the north side

West entrance porch

This is the east side which faces St Helens Wharf from the slipway

Looking up St Helens Wharf past the church

The south side of the church, I did not think to get  a photo along it or see if you could go through the iron gates but you can see a porch

Over near the north side of the church is a small churchyard with tombs in it

Over to the right a path sweeps around through the churchyard

View of the west porch from across the churchyard

This view taken back in 2011 shows the south side of the church with a path porch, not sure what the building is here but might have been a mortuary but now no doubt used by the gardener

Another view from 2011 of the north churchyard

The west churchyard looking towards some of the old almshouses that surround the churchyard

More of the north churchyard taken in 2011

Some of the statues and head stops you can see around the church

The figure in the porch niche is a lady holding the church so I have to assume it is St Helen as the church looks like the one named after her

This photo was taken back in 2011and shows the churchyard there by the west side of the church and is where I will take my leave for this week. I feel it is better to show the inside in the next blog but as a taster here is what to expect

Till next time I wish you all a peaceful weekend

Sorry to have to announce this but Inspired Sunday which I help host will be closing at the end of the month. I have decided not to carry on hosing it as I find it quite a lot of work trying to ensure that I post Inspired Sunday for you along with the other blogs I write, as it is there are only a few people who post on there so I am afraid that Inspired Sunday will be closing. If anyone wishes to take over then let me or Sally know.  

Linking with Through My Lens

St Nicolas Abingdon Revisit

 

Change of plan this week. I had interned to post about St Helen's Church in Abingdon which is only around half a mile away near the river Thames but the opportunity  to return to St Nicolas to see the inside came up so I grabbed my chance and took it. I found some more history on the church website so if you visit you can read it yourself.

 

St Nicolas from by the Market Place

 

If I read the history right this is one of the older past of the church

Inside the door to the church

 

 

 Most likley this would have held a holy statue at one time

 

Inside looking down the nave using a wide angle lens
 

 Further along and the chancel

 In the chancel looking at a screen across the back

 

 Nave again with my iPhone

 

Chancel from the modern altar

 

Nave showing the choir stalls

Altar and rails

East window

Centre panel depicting St Nicolas

Behind the screen is this altar or shrine

 

But look up and you will see this gem that dates back to medieval times

View from the chancel arch to the west end of the church

I changed over to a wide angel lens here to show all the chancel some of which dates to the 15th century

 

One from inside the arch looking back

 

From the altar looking at the back of the arch which looks offset which to me indicates the chancel was rebuilt in the 15th along with the Abbey Gatehouse which cased this narrowing

 

The Jacobian pulpit with a window behind which seems to have been shortened by the chancel arch, this bit dates to the 14th century

 

Looking down from the pulpit

The organ with the chamber behind is a lot more modern

 

As are the choir stalls which look Victorian

 

The carvings on the choir stall ends

There are quite a few memorials around the walls as you can see from the collage 

 

The north wall of the chancel has it's own collage of them

Off to the side of the nave is the Blaknall aisle with a Tudor window letting in light

From what I have seen in a photo taken before the Victorian restoration this monument was over on the south wall of the nave near the arch

Looking up the paintings loo quiet amazing though I do not think the are Tudor

John Blacknall and his wife along with their two daughters who survived them

All kneeling opposite each other in Prayer

I dare say the colour has been restored but it still looks amazing

The inscription you can read but it puzzled me to read the died the same day until I read the died of the Plague

I doubt the seats are Tudor either

 

I noticed this panel in one of the south aisle windows by the pulpit it looks more Tudor than Victorian 

Apart from these two lancet windows there was little stained glass in the church which I though surprising

I was not sure of the font age but it seems it is 15th century 

The roof of the chancel with it's hammer beams with angels on the end of each

The nave roof has beams

 

The collage shows the corbels from the chancel and the carvings on the nave beams

Walk along the nave aisle and you cannot help notice the tombs along the floor some readable other worn with age

A screen separate off the west end doorways with a glass panel showing the bell ropes

and a couple of prayer panels built in, the right hand one hinting that this was once a catholic church or the panel came from one

I'll finish with this simple memorial in the chancel 

Linked on Imparting Grace

Till next time take car and do have a peaceful weekend