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All Saints, Marsham
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All Saints, Marsham Norfolk's most famous
churches are often those which appear architecturally
spectacular to even disinterested eyes, but there are
plenty of other churches that most people would pass
without a second glance, a few of which are of
outstanding interest. All Saints, Marsham, is one of
these. At first sight this is perhaps not a spectacular interior, and this is probably why Marsham is not better known, but it is harmonious and has more than its fair share of survivals of its liturgical life down the long centuries. It is not so much secretive as deceptive, but to wander around inside is to encounter wonders. The first of these greets you as you enter the door. This is one of Norfolk's twenty-odd 15th Century Seven Sacrament fonts. Marsham's is tall and elegant, reminiscent of the one nearby at Burgh-next-Aylsham. But Marsham's is the better of the two I think, not only because of the quality of the carving, but also the light extent of the damage inflicted by subsequent centuries. Anti-clockwise from the east, the panels depict Baptism (E) with the infant being fully immersed in the customary medieval manner, and then Mass (NE) with the priest standing with his back to the viewer facing the altar, and the sanctus bell in a stirrup above the screen being rung on the left. Next comes Ordination (N), with three kneeling ordinands, Matrimony (NW), where curiously the bride's head has gone but not the heads of the others, and Confession (W) which another curiosity for the scene is set beneath a canopy which may be intended to represent the Holy House in Nazareth. The odd panel out on this font is the Last Judgement (SW) which is remarkably well done. Christ sits on a rainbow flanked by Mary and John, while at his feet, the dead rise from their coffins. The last two panels are Last Rites (S), with a mourner in front of the bed, and then Confirmation (SE), as usual of an infant in arms. The pillar of the font features alternating angels and evangelists. Above the font is a tall organ gallery, and on it is a handsome set of royal arms. These are a rare survival in Norfolk for they are the arms of James I, with a quotation from Psalm 72: Give the Kinge thy iudgements O God and thy righteousnes unto the Kinges lorre: then shall he iudge the people accordinge to righte, and defende the poore. There can be no doubting the maleness of both the lion and the unicorn. Until the 1880 restoration, the font stood in the north aisle by the second arcade bay from the west. You can still see the fixing for the font cover. At one time, the fixing was shaped like a boy's face, the so called 'laughing boy of Marsham', but both boy and font cover were lost in the restoration. The nave windows have
fragments of medieval and continental glass, but they are
unusual. Set in two small lights in the north aisle are
an elephant and a unicorn, the only two in stained glass
anywhere in East Anglia I believe. There are also two
figures in the south aisle, King David and Judas
Maccabeus. They came from Bolwick Hall, and were placed
here by the Mercers' Company whose arms are now between
them. Up above, the hammerbeam roof is a fine late
medieval example, but this church began to spread in the
eighteenth century, and solid oak tie beams were put in
to stop it collapsing. They are a curious and powerful
contrast with the delicacy of the woodwork above. The upper tracery of
the screen hangs like foliage, an echo of the forest of
branches in the roof above. The late 19th and early 20th
Century glass casts a dim light. The east window, by
Powell & Sons, is a meditation on I am the vine,
ye are the branches, giving the workshop full
licence for its typical lush vinework, angels and saints.
The war memorial window features St George and, more
unusually, Sir Galahad from the legend of King Arthur.
Kempe & Co's Abraham and Sarah are a curiosity, with
the infant Isaac at Sarah's feet carrying his bound
branches in an echo of the saltire cross on the screen. An intriguing church, full of interest, one of the very best of East Anglia's lesser-known churches. Simon Knott, November 2020 Follow these journeys as they happen at Last Of England Twitter. |
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