Tag: perpendicular

England’s Heritage: The Collegiate Church of Holy Trinity, Tattershall, Lincolnshire

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The incredibly beautiful 15th century Collegiate Church of Holy Trinity in the village of Tattershall in central Lincolnshire.

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To my mind it is one of the best examples of English Perpendicular architecture anywhere.

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At various times in history, the church has fallen into disrepair but has been restored, even preserving a colony of three species of bats within its structure!

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The major advantage of the massive Perpendicular windows is the great amount of light let in.

words and photographs copyright Francis Barker 2019

Poem: The Empty Naves

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The voice and song remind me
of why I don’t come.
The words and the platitudes wash over me,
echo and reverberate around this sacred space,
crying for heaven
though never finding any home.
The bats are nearer but unaware
of their advantage,
leaving me staring high into this perpendicular sky.
Is this all that is left?
Listening to Betjeman and Vaughan Williams
to stir us up,
to remind us of what once was.
This is me and you coming here,
cultural appreciators
though never spiritual partakers
in a creed we can’t believe.
Give me the fire and brimstone,
a faith which disturbs me
into knowing I’m not already saved.
It is better than this – looking up in awe
into a world that is lost.

words and photographs copyright Francis Barker 2019

Christianity – Doors to Eternity

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At times you can almost see the individuals, a bit like ghosts, who would once regularly use this door.

How would the local accent have sounded then, say in 1500? Would I have understood them? More to the point, would they understand me? I doubt it, but I have a liking for old church doors.

This north facing example bears all the marks of being very old, probably late medieval, but I could be wrong. Look

at the tracery… perpendicular style?