East Window, Jarrow
Detail of the east window by Leonard Evetts 1951, depicting Christ flanked by two figures, presumably St Paul and the Venerable Bede.
St Paul's in Jarrow was the site of one of the most famous Anglo Saxon monasteries in England, famed as the residence of the Venerable Bede. The monastery was founded by Benedict Biscop in c681 and its church survives as the chancel of the present building (with a few later modifications). A few years later a second church (a larger building with aisles) was built on the site of the present nave which remained a separate building until the two were linked by the construction of what is now the lower half of the central tower in c800, but the upper half wasn't built until shortly after the Norman Conquest in 1072, and thus is still decidedly Anglo Saxon in design (the lower half of the structure wasn't originally intended to become a tower which accounts for its unusual rectangular design).
Following the Reformation the monastery was dissolved and St Paul's became a parish church. Substantial ruins of the old monastic buildings remain on the south side of the nave, mostly dating from the Norman period. The old Saxon nave had sadly fallen into disrepair by 1782 and was demolished; it was rebuilt in 1866 by George Gilbert Scott in a simplified early Gothic style with a north aisle. Externally the two halves have weathered harmoniously and the newer parts are less obvious.
Inside the church the eye is drawn to the ancient chancel beyond the mysterious space beneath the low arches of the tower. The original tiny window-openings remain in the side walls and one is even glazed with a roundel of Anglo Saxon glass excavated at the site and leaded into an abstract composition in more recent years, and is thus the oldest coloured glass to be seen in any British church. Further pieces from the site (including some leaded into more complete patterns and even a figure) can be seen at the nearby Bede Museum at Jarrow Hall a short walk to the north.
St Paul's is one of the most historic and ancient churches in the country and is well worth a visit. The church is open most days, though it is currently struggling to raise money for urgent repairwork to the ancient tower. Opening times are given on their website.
www.jarrowparish.info/our-churches-and-congregations/st-p...
For more on this fascinating ancient church see the link below:-
East Window, Jarrow
Detail of the east window by Leonard Evetts 1951, depicting Christ flanked by two figures, presumably St Paul and the Venerable Bede.
St Paul's in Jarrow was the site of one of the most famous Anglo Saxon monasteries in England, famed as the residence of the Venerable Bede. The monastery was founded by Benedict Biscop in c681 and its church survives as the chancel of the present building (with a few later modifications). A few years later a second church (a larger building with aisles) was built on the site of the present nave which remained a separate building until the two were linked by the construction of what is now the lower half of the central tower in c800, but the upper half wasn't built until shortly after the Norman Conquest in 1072, and thus is still decidedly Anglo Saxon in design (the lower half of the structure wasn't originally intended to become a tower which accounts for its unusual rectangular design).
Following the Reformation the monastery was dissolved and St Paul's became a parish church. Substantial ruins of the old monastic buildings remain on the south side of the nave, mostly dating from the Norman period. The old Saxon nave had sadly fallen into disrepair by 1782 and was demolished; it was rebuilt in 1866 by George Gilbert Scott in a simplified early Gothic style with a north aisle. Externally the two halves have weathered harmoniously and the newer parts are less obvious.
Inside the church the eye is drawn to the ancient chancel beyond the mysterious space beneath the low arches of the tower. The original tiny window-openings remain in the side walls and one is even glazed with a roundel of Anglo Saxon glass excavated at the site and leaded into an abstract composition in more recent years, and is thus the oldest coloured glass to be seen in any British church. Further pieces from the site (including some leaded into more complete patterns and even a figure) can be seen at the nearby Bede Museum at Jarrow Hall a short walk to the north.
St Paul's is one of the most historic and ancient churches in the country and is well worth a visit. The church is open most days, though it is currently struggling to raise money for urgent repairwork to the ancient tower. Opening times are given on their website.
www.jarrowparish.info/our-churches-and-congregations/st-p...
For more on this fascinating ancient church see the link below:-