Herringswell, Suffolk

St Ethelbert, locked, lots of keyholders listed, is, in a nice way, rather plain [the huge south transept chapel stands out, as does the bizarre Davies monument] but contains some fantastic glass by Christopher Whall and pupils. From the web:

Church rebuilt by Arthur Blomfield in 1869-70 when the existing church was destroyed by fire. This church has a remarkable collection of glass by Arts and Crafts artists including three stained glass windows by Whall. These include "The Good Shepherd" of 1902 and the "Resurrection". "The Good Shepherd" is the East window and depicts Christ as the Good Shepherd, with quotations from Psalm 23 in the surrounding scenes. The window was commissioned by Mr.Leonard Davies in memory of his brother Herbert Davies and the black faced sheep in the scenes were drawn by Whall's sister-in-law, Alice Chaplin, who was sculptress to Queen Victoria. It is recorded that the sheep depicted are exact portraits of sheep in the pedigree flock owned by Mr.Davies. The Whall window on the South side of the church is that depicting the "Resurrection". Note the symbolic "fish nimbus" which surrounds the figure of Christ. Whall also designed the window at the back of the choir, this in memory of the late Dr Image, the uncle of Selwyn Image, a fellow stained glass artist and friend of Whall. Also in St Ethelbert is the window titled "Come unto Me,all ye that are weary and heavy laden,and I will give you rest" this done by Jasper Brett,a pupil of Christopher Whall. The church also has two stained glass windows which contain no figures but are studies of Herringswell in Spring and Autumn. They are by the artist James Clark The church also has a window by Paul Woodroffe another pupil of Whall.

ST ETHELBERT. Rebuilt by Blomfield, 1869-70. The W tower arrangement is odd and rather botched, with two big heavy buttresses sticking out N and S, a buttress reaching up the middle of the W side (with two original single-light windows set in), and inside two octagonal piers to carry the E angles of the tower and a kind of inner flying buttresses to make them safer.* - STAINED GLASS. All C20. E window by Christopher Whall. Others by him, by James Clark (the landscape windows), and other artists. (MEDIEVAL CHURCH. Remains include the responds at the E end of the nave. They indicate a Norman date. LG).

* The Rev. J. T. Munday has informed me that an C18 antiquarian MSS notebook at Elvedon Hall describes this arrangement in the tower - so it is not Blomfield’s.

 Mee, in my 1949 fourth edition, missed it.

Flickr.