Avening / Aveninge

Image copyright © John Wilkes, 2012

Standing permission

Results: 9 records

design element - architectural - arcade - round arches

Scene Description: [cf. FontNotes]

Copyright Statement: Image copyright © John Wilkes, 2012

Image Source: digital photograph taken 28 July 2012 by John Wilkes

Copyright Instructions: Standing permission

scene [unidentified]

Scene Description: [cf. FontNotes]

Copyright Statement: Image copyright © John Wilkes, 2012

Image Source: digital photograph taken 28 July 2012 by John Wilkes

Copyright Instructions: Standing permission

scene [unidentified]

Scene Description: [cf. FontNotes]

Copyright Statement: Image copyright © John Wilkes, 2012

Image Source: digital photograph taken 28 July 2012 by John Wilkes

Copyright Instructions: Standing permission

view of church exterior

Copyright Statement: Image copyright © John Wilkes, 2012

Image Source: digital photograph taken 28 July 2012 by John Wilkes

Copyright Instructions: Standing permission

view of church exterior

Copyright Statement: Image copyright © John Wilkes, 2012

Image Source: digital photograph taken 28 July 2012 by John Wilkes

Copyright Instructions: Standing permission

view of church interior - capital

Copyright Statement: Image copyright © John Wilkes, 2012

Image Source: digital photograph taken 28 July 2012 by John Wilkes

Copyright Instructions: Standing permission

view of church interior - looking east

Copyright Statement: Image copyright © John Wilkes, 2008

Image Source: digital photograph taken December 2008 by John Wilkes [www.allthecotswolds.com]

Copyright Instructions: Standing permission

view of font and cover

Scene Description: the 1905 font, in use now [July 2012]

Copyright Statement: Image copyright © John Wilkes, 2012

Image Source: digital photograph taken 28 July 2012 by John Wilkes

Copyright Instructions: Standing permission

view of fragment

Scene Description: among them a pair of legs that may have belonged to the Norman font here

Copyright Statement: Image copyright © John Wilkes, 2012

Image Source: digital photograph taken 28 July 2012 by John Wilkes

Copyright Instructions: Standing permission

INFORMATION

FontID: 13836AVE
Church/Chapel: Parish Church of the Holy Cross
Church Patron Saints: The Holy Cross
Church Location: High St, Avening, Tetbury GL8 8ND, UK -- Tel.: +44 1453 835541
Country Name: England
Location: Gloucestershire, South West
Directions to Site: Located 3 km S of Minchinhampton, 5 km N of Tetbury
Ecclesiastic Region: Diocese of Gloucester
Historical Region: Hundred of Longtree
Font Location in Church: [cf. FontNotes]
Century and Period: 11th - 12th century, Norman
Credit and Acknowledgements: We are grateful to John Wilkes, of www.allthecotswolds.com, for his photographs of church and fonts
There is an entry for Avening [variant spelling] in the Domesday survey [https://opendomesday.org/place/ST8897/avening/] [accessed 19 February 2019] but it mentions neither cleric nor church in it. The entry for this parish in the Victoria County History (Gloucester, vol. 11, 1976) notes: "The church at Avening, which retains Norman features, [...] was recorded from 1105. [...] Parts of the nave and chancel arch are probably the oldest sections of the fabric and may date from the late 11th century. [...] Fragments of Norman sculpture inserted in the north wall of the nave are said to come from a font [...] and there are fragments of similar origin in the north aisle." The VCH reference to the font is footnoted to: "Trans. B.G.A.S. xxxiv. 202." Two modern fonts are noted in Verey & Brooks (1999-2002): "Fonts. One, in the porch, is C18, of baluster shape. The other of 1905, in plain Perp[endicular] style. The entry for this church in Historic England [Listing NGR: ST8795898002] notes: "Church. Late Cll with later medieval additions (transepts probably of late C13) and restored in 1902", but mentions no whole font or fragments. The Parish guide [www.aveningchurch.info/guide.html] [accessed 27 July 2012] notes: "The present font is modern and replaced an earlier one now placed in the north transept; but, built into the wall by the main door, are two fragments considered to be part of the original Norman font. The six figures may represent the Apostles, as these are commonly used for decoration at this time. The smaller fragment was thought by Fosbury to be Adam and Eve, often associated with original sin and baptism." The large fragment, built into the wall right inside the door, to the left, has three pairs of arches with figures facing each other inside each pair, with no column supporting the arch between them; the pair on the left appear to be exchanging or sharing objects; the arches are round; the columns, some plain some with capitals and bases ************************************** ************************************* ************************************ A reference to Frye's text on this church [TO BE REPLACED WHEN FULL/CORRECT TEXT AVAILABLE]: "On entering the Church, two curious carvings are to be seen built into the wall. Dr. Fryer says of these fragments : — " Two fragments belonging to a Norman font are built into the ancient Church at Avening. One small, sadly mutilated fragment (7" x 7") indicates that it once formed a fraction of a rectangular stone font ornamented with a round-headed arch, supported by a pillar and a wall bracket. The larger part of this rectangular bowl is in the north wall of the nave, and forms part of the internal jamb of the north door. This fragment is sufficiently large (2' 2^" X i' if) to show that the bowl was originally 2f feet in length. The Avening font has an arcade of rudely cut, round-headed arches, supported alternately on pillars and wall brackets, containing three pairs of figures. Five figures still remain, and one circular pillar, supporting the arcade, has its capital and base. The apostles were so frequently sculptured on Norman fonts that it is probable the bowl at Avening had six apostles on the one side and six on the other, while the two other faces would doubtless be ornamented in some other way." [source: Arthur Twisden Playne's A history of the parishes of Minchinhampton and Avening (page 17?) [www.ebooksread.com/authors-eng/arthur-twisden-playne.shtml] [accessed 27 July 2012]

COORDINATES

Church Latitude & Longitude Decimal: 51.680631, -2.176406
Church Latitude & Longitude DMS: 51° 40′ 50.27″ N, 2° 10′ 35.06″ W
UTM: 30U 556941 5725839

MEDIUM AND MEASUREMENTS

Material: stone
Number of Pieces: fragments
Font Shape: square (mounted) [cf. FontNotes]
Basin Exterior Shape: square

REFERENCES

Victoria County History [online], University of London, 1993-. Accessed: 2012-07-27 00:00:00. URL: https://www.british-history.ac.uk.
Davies, Oliver, "Old Churches in County Louth", XI (1945), The Journal of the County Louth Archaeological and Historical Society, 1945, pp. 22-23, fig. 1; pl. IV, no. 7; r["References"]