St Mary's Church, Walmer
Encyclopedia
St Mary's or The Church of St Mary the Virgin is a church in Walmer
, Kent
, England
.
in 1887 to take the pressure off the parish's two other churches, the small medieval Old St Mary's
and St Saviour's
(a Victorian chapel of ease
for fishermen on the seafront, opposite the lifeboat house
). A spire was designed but never built.
Up to date informationhttp://www.walmerparishchurches.org
nave
with narrow aisles either side. The main west window portrays nautical episodes of Christ's life (eg the miraculous draught of fishes, preaching from the boat, calming the storm), the instruments of the passion, and St.s Peter and Paul., whilst both aisles have five sets of three lancets each, with those on the north showing saints and apostles and those on the south side showing Old Testament figures from Moses to Hezekiah. Most windows are by Powell. The aisles end not in complete arches but in lean-to ones, connecting to the vestry (south) and the soldiers' chapel (north). The central nave, on the other hand, is divided from the chancel by a low alabaster
screen, showing Blomfield's adherence to the Cambridge Camden Society
's ideal that a chancel and nave should be structurally separate.
At the east end, at the High altar, is a reredos designed by Powell's beneath tall triple lancet windows depicting the Ascension, framed by mosaic images of one angel of the left captioned Sperate (Hope for) and another on the right captioned Surgite (Arise). The sanctuary tiling is in brown opus sectile
.
Walmer
Walmer is a town in the district of Dover, Kent in England: located on the coast, the parish of Walmer is six miles north-east of Dover. Largely residential, its coastline and castle attract many visitors...
, Kent
Kent
Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
.
History
It was designed by Arthur BlomfieldArthur Blomfield
Sir Arthur William Blomfield was an English architect.-Background:The fourth son of Charles James Blomfield, an Anglican Bishop of London helpfully began a programme of new church construction in the capital. Born in Fulham Palace, Arthur Blomfield was educated at Rugby and Trinity College,...
in 1887 to take the pressure off the parish's two other churches, the small medieval Old St Mary's
Old St Mary's, Walmer
Old St Mary's, Walmer, St Mary's Old Church, Blessed Mary of Walmer is a church in Upper Walmer, Kent, United Kingdom.It was built in 1120 as the chapel to the adjoining Walmer Manor . The original Norman entrance door and chancel arch survive, along with two windows on the south side...
and St Saviour's
St Saviour's, Walmer
St Saviour's is a church on the seafront of Walmer, Kent, United Kingdom. It is dedicated to no saint, but to the Holy Saviour...
(a Victorian chapel of ease
Chapel of ease
A chapel of ease is a church building other than the parish church, built within the bounds of a parish for the attendance of those who cannot reach the parish church conveniently....
for fishermen on the seafront, opposite the lifeboat house
Walmer and Deal lifeboats
Walmer Lifeboat Station was established in 1830. Over two thousand ships are believed to have been wrecked on the Goodwin Sands, and the masts of several wrecks are visible from the shore at low tide...
). A spire was designed but never built.
Up to date informationhttp://www.walmerparishchurches.org
Art and architecture
The entrance is a three-bay baptistery, into a tall clerestoriedClerestory
Clerestory is an architectural term that historically denoted an upper level of a Roman basilica or of the nave of a Romanesque or Gothic church, the walls of which rise above the rooflines of the lower aisles and are pierced with windows. In modern usage, clerestory refers to any high windows...
nave
Nave
In Romanesque and Gothic Christian abbey, cathedral basilica and church architecture, the nave is the central approach to the high altar, the main body of the church. "Nave" was probably suggested by the keel shape of its vaulting...
with narrow aisles either side. The main west window portrays nautical episodes of Christ's life (eg the miraculous draught of fishes, preaching from the boat, calming the storm), the instruments of the passion, and St.s Peter and Paul., whilst both aisles have five sets of three lancets each, with those on the north showing saints and apostles and those on the south side showing Old Testament figures from Moses to Hezekiah. Most windows are by Powell. The aisles end not in complete arches but in lean-to ones, connecting to the vestry (south) and the soldiers' chapel (north). The central nave, on the other hand, is divided from the chancel by a low alabaster
Alabaster
Alabaster is a name applied to varieties of two distinct minerals, when used as a material: gypsum and calcite . The former is the alabaster of the present day; generally, the latter is the alabaster of the ancients...
screen, showing Blomfield's adherence to the Cambridge Camden Society
Cambridge Camden Society
The Cambridge Camden Society, later known as the Ecclesiological Society from 1845 when it moved to London, was a learned architectural society founded in 1839 by undergraduates at Cambridge University to promote "the study of Gothic Architecture, and of Ecclesiastical Antiques." Its activities...
's ideal that a chancel and nave should be structurally separate.
At the east end, at the High altar, is a reredos designed by Powell's beneath tall triple lancet windows depicting the Ascension, framed by mosaic images of one angel of the left captioned Sperate (Hope for) and another on the right captioned Surgite (Arise). The sanctuary tiling is in brown opus sectile
Opus sectile
Opus sectile refers to an art technique popularized in the ancient and medieval Roman world where materials were cut and inlaid into walls and floors to make a picture or pattern. Common materials were marble, mother of pearl, and glass. The materials were cut in thin pieces, polished, then trimmed...
.