St Michael and All Angels, Great Witley

The church of St Michael and All Angels stands alongside the burnt out shell of Witley Court. It is a brick building with an exterior that was faced in Bath stone c.1850 by the architect, Samuel Daukes. The lavish Italian Baroque interior was brought to Great Witley from Cannon's House, Edgeware and fitted to the building by James Gibbs c.1735. The gilded walls and ceiling feature painted panels by Bellucci, a towering monument by Rysbrack and stained glass by Price. It is, if anything more unexpected in an English setting than yesterday's featured church at Hoarwithy.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: iPhone

A font from afar

The church of St John Baptist, Lea, Herefordshire has a remarkable font. It is an Italian stoup bought from an antiques dealer in London in 1909 as a memorial. The shallow bowl has fine decorative carving and stands on a slender column that has a capital made of interlocking rams' heads and a single knot half way down. This column stands on the back of a small elephant. It is thought to date from the late C11 and to be influenced by work in Canossa and Bari. I know of no other font in Britain that is remotely like this example in the small medieval parish church at Lea.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: iPhone