{"id":14587,"date":"2024-04-30T18:50:26","date_gmt":"2024-04-30T17:50:26","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.sebpalmer.com\/blog\/?p=14587"},"modified":"2024-05-01T16:10:50","modified_gmt":"2024-05-01T15:10:50","slug":"days-out-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.sebpalmer.com\/blog\/?p=14587","title":{"rendered":"DAYS OUT: Many Churches, Much Sunshine"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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St Giles, Holme.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019ve said before, here on this blog, that a day with a visit to an old church is always a good day. And a visit to two? Even better. Well, today was a many<\/em> church day. And not just churches; a ruined Abbey gatehouse and a Cathedral, as well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

St. Giles, Holme<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The imposing porch.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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A fab portal.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Bearded chap.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Lady, or young man?<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Sunshine and shadows.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Intriguing pillared memorial monument.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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So beautiful.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Tree shadows.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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A strong trunk\u2026<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The churchical aspect of the day started with St Giles, in Holme. Locked, alas. But rewarding nonetheless – even if only on external perusal – in the glorious sunshine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Adieu, St Giles.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

St. Andrews, Steeple Gidding<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Then, a short while later, I enjoyed a quick look inside St Andrews, Steeple Gidding. A redundant Anglican Church, with lots of groovy gargoyles externally, that I\u2019ve snapped before.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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St Andrew\u2019s, looking fine in the sun.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Locked, again! But a helpful local procured the key for me. So I was able to look around inside as well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Picturesque grave growth, in flower. Life n\u2019 death!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Nice roof.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Corbel detail.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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More corbel interest.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Wow!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Initially I was a trifle disappointed with the insides. For one thing, to all intents and purposes, there\u2019s no stained glass. Evidence of the crumbling fabric of old churches was also on display.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Dilapidation\/temporary repairs.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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The pulpit.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Tiny fragments of stained glass, all that remains.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

But if you linger and really<\/em> look, most older churches will eventually start to yield interest. And so it proved here.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Paving detail.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Interesting. Love the unusual green.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

From the unusual and quite vivid green tiles in the floor, to the seven paintings in the arches behind the altar, and the beautiful wooden roofing, there\u2019s stuff to arrest the eye.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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So, thanks to JP, the helpful local, for allowing me access.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ramsey Abbey Gatehouse<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Ramsey Abbey Gatehouse.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s rather sad to see the rather paltry and very dilapidated remains of England\u2019s oldest Benedictine monastery. Owned and maintained by the National Trust, of which we are members, it\u2019s currently shut. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Sad shadow of former times.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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One still senses the imposing bulk.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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A glimpse of internal interest.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Mere hints of former glories.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

St Thomas \u00e0 Becket<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

From here I wandered over to the Parish church of St Thomas \u00e0 Becket, via the graveyard.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Life and death, cheek by jowl.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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A calming space.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Slight pano\u2019.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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St Thomas exterior.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

I circumambulated the church, which peregrination was rewarded with some great prospects.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Looking westwards, from church grounds.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Ascending Jesu\u2026<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Martyrdom of St Thomas.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Pre-Raphaelite style glass, over the altar.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Modern life\/death amidst the ancient lore.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Tiny fragment of medieval wall painting.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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The old and the new, music wise.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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My view as I read.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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\u2018\u2026 to be a dull fool\u2026\u2019 uh-oh, rumbled!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Must return, to sit\/read in The Almonry garden.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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I read more sat here; another fab Ely view.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I\u2019ve said before, here on this blog, that a day with a visit to an old church is always a good day. And a visit to two? Even better. Well, today was a many church day. And not just churches; a ruined Abbey gatehouse and a Cathedral, as well. St. Giles, Holme The churchical aspect … <\/p>\n

Continue reading “DAYS OUT: Many Churches, Much Sunshine”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false,"jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false}}},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/paGwUa-3Nh","_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.sebpalmer.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14587"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.sebpalmer.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.sebpalmer.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.sebpalmer.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.sebpalmer.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=14587"}],"version-history":[{"count":11,"href":"http:\/\/www.sebpalmer.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14587\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":14763,"href":"http:\/\/www.sebpalmer.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14587\/revisions\/14763"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.sebpalmer.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=14587"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.sebpalmer.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=14587"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.sebpalmer.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=14587"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}