The Church Explorer

This week we pay a second visit to St Helens Church in Abingdon a church which I found to be one of the biggest I have been to in a long time. Most Churches I have been to have three bays a centre aisle flanked on either side by and a north and south aisle. St Helen has five bays which made it church with a lot to see. The church must have had a lot of wealthy benefactors in the past to pay for the work done

The entrance porch on the north side, it has a room over it not a place I could look from what I could see

Over to the right of the porch you can see this information panel on the church

After showing you the teaser last week here is a panoramic shot of what you see when you come in the door. The church is huge and I had to admit I did not know where to start taking photos there was so much to see. There are four aisles plus chapels to look around. It's quite daunting

The place I should have began with was the nave which looks down towards the chancel

This has a rood screen across it with a rood cross above

The altar and the east wall which has a beautiful panel behind that hides the east window so there is no chance of seeing the stained glass in it

Closer view of the altar and back panel

The craftsmanship is amazing

The altar with the candle holders and altar cross

Look back the other way and you see the modern altar

Which looks a lot nice from the front with the floral display

The aisles I could not tell you what they are but this is the north most one where you come in

going over one you come to this aisle which has a chapel at the end

Skipping over the nave you see this aisle with the organ at the end

The finally the south aisle which may have had an altar at the end

This view looks back towards the west end with the north aisle over to the right

again looking to the west from the nave with the south aisle furthest away

At the end of the north aisle you find the font with a counterbalanced cover

There is quite a bit of stained glass in the church this one is the west window in the north sile

which I have made a collage of to show, the tree at the bottom are along the south aisle

This window is the one next to the north aisle and nave

This one is the west window in the nave

This window may be hidden behind the organ

This I think is the lady chapel and is quit beautify in it's simplicity

Between the lady chapel and north aisle is the tomb

This plaque on the top, The date seems to be 1371

Eagle lectern in the chancel

Some of the memorials you find in the church

In the comments last week Bovey Belle mentioned the tree of Jessie I did see it but failed to get a photo, this has been cropped from one of the pictures in the collage, I'll get a better one when I go back to Abingdon again