Screen Paintings, St Matthew's, Ipswich
St Matthew's church stands to the west of Ipswich town centre and tends to be one of the lesser known of the medieval churches here, being a little out of the way and normally closed to visitors outside of services. This is a pity as it is actually one of the most rewarding churches here and contains much of interest. It was sheer good fortune that enabled me to see inside here, having heard that it may be possible to get a key or someone to open the church at the parish office over the road I started there, only to find that the usual staff weren't present owing to it being Ascension Day and that being a holiday in the C of E, However at that very moment as luck would have it the vicar arrived and kindly offered to let me in as she was going over to the church anyway, so her timely arrival and generosity were much appreciated!
St Matthew's appears to be mostly of 15th century date externally and is quite a grand, sprawling building with spacious aisles and chapels flanking nave and chancel. Entry is via the west door under the tower, and within the pleasantly light whitewashed interior appears largely Victorian by contrast, but there are a few things here that should be sought out. The windows are full of Victorian and Edwardian glass by a mixture of firms so there is at least variety and the whiteness of the walls helps to counter any gloom these windows might induce.
The outstanding medieval features here are at either end of the north aisle, at the east is a Victorian screen which incorporates at its base several painted panels from the former rood screen, four figures of sainted bishops and two remarkable scenes showing groups of devotees, all dating from the first decades of the 16th century. Of a similar date is the striking font at the west end (sitting beneath a much more recent gilded cover) which is adorned with busy relief carvings around the bowl, six of which include scenes (the remaining two being foliate), one representing Christ's baptism but the rest all feature episodes from the Life of Mary, culminating in images of her Assumption and Coronation as Queen of Heaven, a highly unusual if not unique scheme for a font.
This was perhaps my favourite among the Ipswich churches I was able to visit (I went on to find a few others were locked that day, probably also as a result of marking Ascension Day) and I remain indebted to the Vicar and to Simon Knott who kindly gave me details of where to seek the key and also provides a much fuller account on his website below.
St Matthew's is not normally open outside of service times but visiting the parish office to gain entry is still recommended (on most days other than Ascension Day in May! ;-)
Screen Paintings, St Matthew's, Ipswich
St Matthew's church stands to the west of Ipswich town centre and tends to be one of the lesser known of the medieval churches here, being a little out of the way and normally closed to visitors outside of services. This is a pity as it is actually one of the most rewarding churches here and contains much of interest. It was sheer good fortune that enabled me to see inside here, having heard that it may be possible to get a key or someone to open the church at the parish office over the road I started there, only to find that the usual staff weren't present owing to it being Ascension Day and that being a holiday in the C of E, However at that very moment as luck would have it the vicar arrived and kindly offered to let me in as she was going over to the church anyway, so her timely arrival and generosity were much appreciated!
St Matthew's appears to be mostly of 15th century date externally and is quite a grand, sprawling building with spacious aisles and chapels flanking nave and chancel. Entry is via the west door under the tower, and within the pleasantly light whitewashed interior appears largely Victorian by contrast, but there are a few things here that should be sought out. The windows are full of Victorian and Edwardian glass by a mixture of firms so there is at least variety and the whiteness of the walls helps to counter any gloom these windows might induce.
The outstanding medieval features here are at either end of the north aisle, at the east is a Victorian screen which incorporates at its base several painted panels from the former rood screen, four figures of sainted bishops and two remarkable scenes showing groups of devotees, all dating from the first decades of the 16th century. Of a similar date is the striking font at the west end (sitting beneath a much more recent gilded cover) which is adorned with busy relief carvings around the bowl, six of which include scenes (the remaining two being foliate), one representing Christ's baptism but the rest all feature episodes from the Life of Mary, culminating in images of her Assumption and Coronation as Queen of Heaven, a highly unusual if not unique scheme for a font.
This was perhaps my favourite among the Ipswich churches I was able to visit (I went on to find a few others were locked that day, probably also as a result of marking Ascension Day) and I remain indebted to the Vicar and to Simon Knott who kindly gave me details of where to seek the key and also provides a much fuller account on his website below.
St Matthew's is not normally open outside of service times but visiting the parish office to gain entry is still recommended (on most days other than Ascension Day in May! ;-)