This and That

 

I am sorry for lack of posts recently but I haven't really been anywhere to make it worthwhile writing a post.

Recent Reading

I do enjoy Peter Robinson's DCI Banks books and read two at the beginning of January.

I enjoyed this Rachel McLean book more than the previous ones I had read in the series.

I haven't read a DI Wesley Peterson book for ages and really enjoyed the next in the series.

During the first covid lockdown I attended an online course on heraldry run by the Heraldry Society from memory and really enjoyed it.  Recently and not being able to go to Herefordshire for a few months I thought I would try and learn a bit more about the subject. As a way of revision I read this Ladybird book on Heraldry - I know the books are meant for children but you can learn a lot of basic information from them.

I am a member of the Mortimer History Society and last autumn they gave a couple of zoom talks on Heraldry which I found really interesting.  They also have a free online Heraldry course on their website which I am working my way through.  It is a fascinating subject although there are lot of technical terms to remember but I thought it would be good when I see heraldry in churches on monuments and stained glass to know a little about the subject.

I've also bought the following two books secondhand.

Yesterday D and I went to Coleshill for a wander around mainly to visit Books Revisited where I bought one of the books above.

This is an old fashioned ironmongers in Coleshill - B loves shops like this!

As usual we walked back via the church of St Peter and St Paul which is a Grade 1 Listed medieval church.  The C14th  tower and spire reaches to 710 feet (52 metres).Construction of the church began in the early C14th and it was completed by the early C16th.

Preaching cross in the churchyard.

In other news I've been trying to fend off cellulitis for the last 11 days using a cream the GP gave me. Sadly, it got a lot worse overnight and so yet another trip to the GP's today and yet another dose of pencillin :(

All photos taken by me with the Panasonic Lumix FZ330 bridge camera. (I don't particularly rate my photos but if anyone wishes to use one of mine or my son's I would appreciate an email first - thanks).

A Visit to Berkswell and Churchyard to see Snowdrops

 

D had heard that the tea room in Berkswell had recently re-opened under new management so on Sunday we drove over to Berkswell for lunch there.

The tearoom is called the Nook and it was lovely.  D had a very tasty baguette filled with goat's cheese, pear slices, chutney and rocket which looked delicious and I had cake which was good too!!

Afterwards we wandered up to the churchyard of St John the Baptist to look for snowdrops.

This cottage used to house a museum sadly it is now closed.

Bercul's Well (from which Berkswell takes its name).  There is some evidence of a pre-Conquest shrine at the village and this well near the church may have been used in connection with religion as an immersion site for early baptisms.  The well is in a stone walled basin and is 4.9 metres square and was  restored in 1851.

The Gothic War Memorial by Sir Charles Nicholson erected in 1921.

St John the Baptist is one of my favourite churches and churchyards and regular readers I am sure will remember previous posts I have written on the village and church.

The chancel, crypt and parts of the nave are Norman built in the C12th. Pevsner describes the church " as the most interesting Norman Parish Church in the county".  The church is built of red sandstone and has an interesting corbel table.

The Preaching Cross has a base of steps which predates the church and may even be Saxon.  The cross at the top was changed in 1850.

The two storey timber framed porch with an external staircase dates back to 1500.

It is always good to see a sign saying the church is open :) I didn't venture inside this time but if you wish to see  the interior please see an earlier post - link here. St John the Baptist Berkswell  Just scroll down a bit past the exterior photos!

C12th oak door to the church with handmade nails!

The wall of the tower has some graffiti - many from the C20th but some are older.

There are bird boxes in the churchyard including this owl nesting box. D heard a Great Spotted Woodpecker drumming somewhere nearby.

The whole churchyard had carpets of snowdrops - so fitting as it was Candlemas Day.

Cyclamen were in flower and there were buds on daffodils and a few Lesser Celandine in flower.

This is Well House which was once the Rectory.  Maud Watson who is buried in the churchyard lived here with her father, the vicar.  She was the first Wimbledon Single Ladies' Champion.

The village stocks on the green which only have 5 holes.  Local legends suggest that this is because  they were built for recurring offenders, one of whom only had one leg.

All photos taken by me (except for the fungi photo which D took) with the Panasonic Lumix FZ330 bridge camera. (I don't particularly rate my photos but if anyone wishes to use one of mine or my son's I would be grateful for an email first - thanks).