St Mary's Church, Kempley facts for kids
Quick facts for kids St Mary's Church, Kempley |
|
|---|---|
The church seen from the southeast
|
|
 St Mary's Church, Kempley
Location in Gloucestershire
|
|
| 51°58′44″N 2°28′55″W / 51.9788°N 2.4820°W | |
| Location | Kempley, Gloucestershire |
| Country | England, UK |
| Denomination | Church of England |
| History | |
| Status | parish church |
| Dedication | St Mary |
| Architecture | |
| Functional status | redundant |
| Heritage designation | Grade I listed |
| Designated | 2 October 1954 |
| Specifications | |
| Materials | rubble masonry |
| Administration | |
| Deanery | Tewkesbury and Winchcombe |
| Archdeaconry | Archdeaconry of Cheltenham |
| Diocese | Diocese of Gloucester |
| Province | Canterbury |
St Mary's Church in Kempley is an old church building in the Forest of Dean area of Gloucestershire, England. It is very close to the border with Herefordshire. This church is a Grade I listed building, which means it's a really important historical site. Today, English Heritage owns St Mary's Church, and a group called The Friends of Kempley Churches helps take care of it.
Contents
Discovering St Mary's Church History
This simple Norman church is now quite far from the main village. It holds some of the best-preserved medieval wall paintings in all of Britain. These amazing paintings tell stories from long ago.
Ancient Art: The Wall Paintings
The paintings in the church's curved chancel (the area near the altar) are very special. They cover the entire space, even the ceiling! These rare artworks date back to the early 12th century. St Mary's has "the most complete set of Romanesque frescoes in northern Europe." This includes a famous painting called Christ in Majesty, created around 1120.
On the walls of the nave (the main part of the church where people sit), you can find more images. One of these is a "wheel of life," which shows the different stages of a person's life. The paintings in the nave are made with tempera paint on dry lime mortar. This is different from the chancel paintings, which are true frescoes, painted on wet plaster.
How the Paintings Were Found
For many years, these beautiful paintings were hidden under a layer of whitewash. They were rediscovered in 1872 when people were getting ready to renovate the church. An architect named John Henry Middleton advised them to stop the renovation plans. Instead, they carefully uncovered and preserved the paintings.
Uncovering the Church's Age
In 1999, Francis P. Kelly from English Heritage decided to test the church's oak roof. They used a method called dendrochronology, which studies tree rings to find out how old wood is. The Oxford Dendrochronology Laboratory found that this roof was the oldest medieval roof ever tested in Britain! It dates back to between 1120 and 1150.
Restoration and Natural Beauty
The church has an interior that is still in great condition. It was restored in 1913 by Temple Moore. If you visit in late February or early March, you'll see something special outside. The churchyard is often covered in bright yellow wild daffodils, making it a beautiful sight.
Two Churches in One Village
Kempley is a small village, but it has two important Anglican churches. The other one is St Edward's Church, which is also a listed building. St Edward's was built between 1903 and 1904. It was built by William Lygon, 7th Earl Beauchamp, a local landowner, because St Mary's was too far from the village and sometimes flooded.
St Edward's became the main parish church in 1975, after St Mary's was no longer used for regular services.
Gallery
-
Interior of St Mary's
-
Christ in Majesty in a lobed mandorla on the chancel ceiling
-
-
-
12th Century Door
-
Parish chest
