Hide

NEWTON CHURCH

hide
Hide

THE STRUCTURE OF THE CHURCH.

Newton Church is a typical example of the village fane chancel, aisleless nave, with south porch and tower.

The present tower is generally ascribed to the Tudor period, when Jasper Tudor (died 1495), Uncle of King Henry VII, was Lord of Glamorgan, and Lord of the Pembroke Manor in the Parish of Newton-Nottage. Its width, north to south, is 27 feet, its length 22 feet, its height 54 feet. The walls are 4 feet 6 inches in thickness, and are supported by six very heavy buttresses, probably these additional supports were necessary to strengthen the foundations which, presumably, rest on sand.

From the eastern side of the tower, eight massive corbels project about two feet, and one theory suggests that they formed a support for a wooden platform, from which archers could defend the nave against intruders , the doorway above these corbels is considered to be evidence in support of this. That the tower was built for defensive purposes seems to be evident, but a detailed examination of the walling shows masonry of different periods; the part above the corbels was added in the 15th century, when the saddleback roof replaced one that was flat, the doorway on the eastern face, already referred to, appears to be of the same period as a doorway high up In the north wall Inside the nave, which is a 15th century structure. The conditions that rendered necessary a Church with means of defence did not prevail in the 15th century, and the conclusion is that the tower was built as a part of the original 12th century Church, which was altered in the 15th century, the corbels probably formed the supports on which the embattlements were erected. Possibly the original corbels on the north and south sides were replaced by carved stones which are still in situ. Another interesting feature is the Spiral stone stairway with loopholes which might command a view of the west doorway from inside.

The west face of the tower is of surpassing interest. The 15th century produced expert craftsmen and often their work, ordinary in appearance, included emblems which have been cleverly veiled. The illustration definitely shows lack of balance of the parts north and south of the plumb line from the apex stone; the upper windows would not be divided equally by such a line while the length of battlement coping stones on the south side of the gable is shorter than that on the north. This fact is evidence of different periods in the building of the tower. The sculptured head in bas relief, of St. John the Baptist, is to be seen above the modern louvre window under the gables of the roof. Whether burning summer suns and wintry blasts have beaten upon that visage for four-and-a-half or for seven-and-a-half centuries is a problem difficult to solve, yet it is but natural to believe that the original west face included this representation of the martyrdom of the Patron Saint of the Church.

Under the louvre window is a shallow niche, to the purpose of which no references have been found. Hereby the suggestion is made that this niche, too shallow for a statue, contains at its centre the representation of a lamb ; the latter faces north, and is composed of four parts, each of a stone whiter than the surround, one horizontal stone forming the body, another the head, and two others the forelegs. Again a conspicuous yellowish stone forms a part of the tower masonry, almost on the level of the lamb, and a few feet from the south edge of the west face. One of its corners has been lopped off; on its other vertical side may be observed two comparatively long mortar marks in line, apparently made for a specific purpose, as such work is an unexpected feature in good masonry. Surely this is a representation of a flag. Thus the emblems-Lamb and Flag - of St. John the Baptist and of the Knights Hospitallers would be separately represented, but not readily detected by casual observation. The illustration shows the lamb and the flag which may have been overemphasised by the artist. On the south side of the west door may be seen a shattered holy water stoop, hallowed by the pious usage of countless communicants long since dead ; it has a Gothic look and is of Sutton stone, so favoured by the Normans.

The beautiful west doorway is the work of the 15th century craftsmen; for the crocheted labels and pinnacles, mutilated by the beheading of the two archangels, are definitely of this period. If the suggestion already made, that the tower was part of the earlier church, is true, the west doorway and the three light window above it would have been built in during 15th century re-construction. This west portal might have replaced a Norman archway which was re-erected in the south doorway and in the porch, as will be explained later.

THE SOUTH PORCH

The nave is entered from the south through the porch, the outer opening into which consists of an arch and jambs, with distinctive Norman carvings. With the capitals at their base, the pillars appear to have been set upside down, and the conclusion to be drawn is that the arch with its supports was removed from some other position. Possibly the keystone did not form part of the original arch, but was inserted so as to increase the width of the opening, above which may be seen the monogram IHC and the remains of a sun-dial.

While the inside of the inner or nave doorway is a Norman arch, the external is typical of the 14th century. The hole for the original wooden bolt for securing the door on the inside has been retained on the eastern side. In the porch may be seen a holy water stoop of the early English period - 13th century-as is indicated by the three-seried-leaf forming the brim ; but only the base and the two leaves on the eastern side are original, the remaining leaves having been carved and fixed in with cement during the reconstruction of 1927. A niche above the 14th century arch in the south doorway held a statue, probably of Christ or of the Patron Saint, until about the 10th year of the reign of Queen Elizabeth, when orders were given to have all statues and crosses in churches destroyed.

Correlating the above changes, the sequence in the development of the south entrance might have been as follows :

The west doorway of the original 12th century church probably had a Norman arch; the south entrance might have consisted of a three-point archway. Newton Church served the parishes of Newton and Nottage, when they were amalgamated for ecclesiastical purposes towards the close of the 13th century. The holy water stoop was fixed near the south door through which parishioners would now enter. In the 14th century, appearance was improved by the addition of the outer part of an archway in the south door. The re-building of the Church took place in the latter part of the 15th century when perhaps the porch was built; the Norman doorway in the west was removed, the arch and pillars forming the external section to form the entrance to the porch, its inner season to the inner side of the south doorway, thus displacing the three-point arch which was built into the north wall of the nave to serve as an entrance to the pulpit and the rood loft.

During the period ending in 1826, the porch was used as a vestry, warmed by a stove with a flue in the wall above the entrance arch. A crude drawing, executed in 1819, shows a chimney which has since been removed, but the hole for the flue has not been filled in.

THE NAVE.

The aisleless nave was re-built in the 15th century on the old foundations, a part of which may be examined on the north-west side. Sections of the original south wall were retained, especially that which included the outer part of the south entrance - the 14th century arch. The north wall was made of sufficient thickness so is to allow for the construction, within its body, of two stairways, to the pulpit on the west side, and to the rood loft on the east. Entrance to these stairways is through the three-point archway to which reference has already been made.

THE PULPIT

The pulpit of this little parish church dates from pre-Reforrmation days, and is an excellent example of 15th century grotesque work. Its carvings depict a story which, if generally known, was soon forgotten, as otherwise it would not have escaped destruction at the hands of the iconoclasts of the 16th century.

Recently Dr. Hartland, of Porthcawl, lifted the veil which, for over 400 years, has obscured the artist's message. He has shown how work, previously considered rough and uncouth, can be vested with the sublimest symbolic meaning. A fine example of the Noble Grotesque School, it expresses, in a moment, by a series of symbols, truths which would require a considerable amount of verbal description. All noble grotesques have this character of conveying portents of almost infinite meaning with an awfulness which mere language cannot utter.

The pulpit bears evidence of mutilation, and this rendered the researches of Dr. Hartland all the more remarkable. Its barrel, as it is today, is composed of three sections of Quarrella Sandstone-the centre piece 18 inches wide, the one on the sinister (east side) 36 inches, while the dexter (west) section is only 20 inches wide. Originally this last was also 36 Inches wide, completing a semi-circular barrel of 90 inches, or 1 inch per 2 degrees.

Prior to 1826, the pulpit protruded into the nave to a depth of about 5 feet, with straight side wails 2½ feet long at right angles to the north wall. In this year, the sections were taken apart, 16 inches of the west panel sliced away, and re-set without side walls. The cantilever supporting the pulpit was composed of three sections, each a slab of sandstone ; two only remain, the western one having been removed. A 9-inch slab was placed on the cantilever, making the barrel 9 inches higher, while a corresponding alteration was made in the staircase. The alterations show ignorance of the sublime theme, and lack of appreciation of art, as the work now shows absence of balance, whale the crude workmanship of the village mason is plainly evident. Having escaped the mutilation of the desecrators of the 16th and 17th centuries, it was left to the advisors of a Rector of the 19th century-the Rev. Robert Knight, of Tythegstone Court-to destroy a perfect work of art which, perhaps, was unique in the British Isles, if not in the world.

The Grotesque School of Architecture was a creation of mediaeval days, and its canon was to veil all things ; its plan was to execute a form of hieroglyph to the onlookers. Such works of art dealing with religious subjets were termed 'Noble Grotesque' and the pulpit in Newton Church exhibits a beautiful example.

The subjects include :

Two angels holding a chalice.
The five wounds of Christ
A veiled ECCE AGNUS DEI
(Behold the Lamb of God).
A veiled Christ.

The story carved on the pulpit is based on the words of St. John the Baptist, the Patron Saint of the Church :

"Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sins of the world."

Early in the Christian Era, the inadvisability of drinking from the one chalice was realized ; in 1019 the practice of communicating in one kind - that is, the partaking of the Host only by the laity - became popular.

Another explanation that may be offered for the origin of Communion in one kind is that the Sacrament was reserved as such from very early times for the communion of the sick, definitely since the 3rd or 4th century. There were obvious difficulties in conveying the Sacrament in both kinds on horseback. People were accustomed to receiving in one kind at home, and hallowed stories of confessors and martyrs, told of their last Communion made in this way, so that an unofficial but inevitable trend made Communion in one kind a very widespread practice before the Council of Constance in 1415, when it was officially established. The laity partook only of the Host which might be dipped in wine, and this is the rule of the Greek Church.

The altar and the mass were the centre of worship in preReformation days in Newton Church, and the chalice was reserved for the priest only, so the artist emphasised on the pulpit, to the full view of the congregation, the complete story of the blood of Christ shed at the crucifixion.

By the decision of the Council of Basle in 1431, ending in Rome in 1442, blood shed at the scourging of Christ at the pillar was to be considered as having been shed during the "triduum" or three days of the Passion. This act was therefore depicted on the pulpit, the date of which must be after 1442, thus discrediting the traditional story of its salvage from the wreck of a French ship.

Details of the representations and symbolism of the carvings on the pulpit may now be examined.

An angelic monstrance above the lintel shows two angels, holding forth the chalice as if to proclaim, "This chalice is the new testament of my blood which is shed for you." Its formation consists of two E's, having in common, one limb, for which the chalice is made to serve. The middle limb of each E and each concavity of the chalice form a C, and so together forming "ECCE", the Latin for "Behold''. Dr Hartland is of the opinion that the "ECCE" is formed in the following manner : the E is composed of the two arms and a wing of the angel, the concavity of the chalice forms the C , there are two such E's and C's, but, for the sake of symmetry and balance, an E and a C have, according to the view of the Doctor, been reversed. The design of the angels holding the chalice lends itself beautifully to the formation of the word ECCE, whichever interpretation of the details seems appropriate. Immediately below, on the lintel, may be seen five crosses, representing, allegorically, the five wounds which Christ suffered on the Cross. This is traditional, but the forms of the presentation are of great significance in that they-the paterae are characteristic of the architecture of the late 14th and 15th centuries, thus serving as a confirmation of the date of execution of the pulpit.

The Cornice of the pulpit presents a vine scroll with beautifully carved foliage, tendrils, and a branch of grapes; seven-anda-half leaves are now to be seen, with seven interfolial tendrils. Taking into consideration the 16 inches of barrel sliced away, there must have been originally nine leaves and eight sets of tendrils. The plate showing the pulpit gives the development of the vine scroll as it is today; a finial on the right side shows the completeness of the original work, and emphasises the mutilation on the left side. Older illuminations with the words AGNES DEI are said to have a cross before and after each letter, and so is one fashioned, on the pulpit, out of each vine leaf, while each and every one of the interfolial tendrils is different in construction; no two letters of the words AGUS DEI are the same. This strikmg coincidence enabled Dr Hartland to match the tendrils with the words. The correspondence may now be perceived without difficulty, especially as the setting is in harmony with the rest of the theme, but to unravel the mystery of this mutilated cryptic script is a tribute to the learned doctor's discernment. During the three days of the Passion, the blood of Christ was first shed at the scourging pillar; the last, at the ninth hour; surely, there is more than a mere comcldence between the nine hours and the nine leaves of the artist.

No cruciform nimbus which, in mediaeval art, signifies the divinity of Christ, encircles the head of the central figure, with which the penetrating imagination of the artist seems to have associated words used by the Patron Saint, "There is one among you whom ye know not, whose shoe's latched I am not worthy to unloose," and how, by distorting the feet, he draws our eyes to the foot-sore sufferer. The original positions of the cornice and panels below were undoubtedly different, for the expert craftsman of the 15th century would not have had the joint in the cornice immediately above that in the drum. A diagrammatic reconstruction of the pulpit of original dimensions places the bunch of grapes directly above the scourging pillar, and more especially above the head of Christ, who, of himself, said "I am the true Vine."

In olden times, the Church was known as the "Liber Idiotorum'' (Book of the Unlearned), and while the priest was unfolding the story of the Cross and the Redeemmg Blood of Christ, meditation and reverence would absorb the minds of the congregation as their eyes gazed upon the message so beautifully symbolized in the art of the sculptor on this remarkable pulpit. But soon the scene was obscured, because the Protestant Puritans, the governing ecclesiasts in the reign of Elizabeth, considered that high sacramental doctrine was idolatrous; it was decreed that all church furniture, suggestive of idolatrous practices, were to be destroyed. Statues, crosses, and rood lofts were smashed, but happily this pulpit survived, just as later it was to escape the iconoclasts of the Cromwellian period.

The words of St. John, "ECCE AGNUS DEI," so cleverly veiled, elevate the pulpit from what has been regarded as a simple crude ornament into an exquisite work of art.

THE ROOD LOFT

The staircase, opposite that to the pulpit, leads to a doorway which serves no purpose now, originally this was the way by which one passed to the Rood Loft or platform, over the screen separating the nave from the chancel. The crucifix, also called the Rood, was an indispensable part of church furniture and was placed over the screen, with the figure of St. Mary on the one side, and that of St. John on the other.

The present chancel arch might have replaced a central arch with two smaller side ones, of which the two carved heads St. Mary and St. John the Evangelist-to be seen on the ledge at the south-east corner of the nave formed the keystones.

According to some authorities, the Rood Loft was occupied for the reading of the Gospels ; others surmise that passiondeacons used it for chanting the crucifixion ceremonial during Holy Week, especially on Palm Sunday. The loft appears to have been designed with the two hagioscopes or squints for the convenience of two observers, who would advise the choristers of the progress, at the altar, of the ceremony in which they were to participate.

The first rood loft dates from about 1380, but would appear in Wales at a later date. Grindley, Archbishop of Canterbury in the reign of Queen Elizabeth, ordered all such to be destroyed, and all crosses to be dispensed with. The beautiful floreated cross of the 13th century, now standing on the ledge north of the chancel arch, was discovered during the alterations of 1927, resting on its side with the carving towards the wall; its shaft had been broken, but the broken section corresponded to the irregular end of the carved stone on the right side of the arch, so that presumably the cross was mutilated and used as ordinary building material. This suggests that the chancel arch was constructed at the close of the 16th century.

THE FONT

The Font seems to have been carved out of a solid block of fine-grained sandstone, and is of the followed dimensions :

Height 2ft. 10ins.; Width 2ft. 8ins. ; Diameter of Bowl, inside, 2ft. 0ins.; Depth of Bowl 0ft. 11ins.

The bowl is of a size suitable for the total immersion of the babe. It is set on an octagonal shaft, chamfered off to rest on a square base of 14 inch side, which again has a foundation stone- possibly of an older date - 28 inches square. The shape suggests that the date is later than the 12th century. Furthermore, the sandstone, of which it is composed, appears to be of the same type as that which forms the cantilevers supported the pulpit, and is also found in the fine arch at the west end of the nave - all of which are probably of the same period, namely late 15th century.

THE CHANCEL

The present chancel was built in the 15th century, the labels over the priest's door and over the two two-light windows being evidence of the perpendicular period, as is also the label over the three-light window.

Of the greatest interest is the Altar which was, and as it is today, the centre of the sacred ritual. All such were ordered to be destroyed during the reign of Edward V1 (1548-1553), the name being replaced by that of Communion Table which was placed towards the centre of the Church. The Altar at Newton Church is one of very few remaining on the original stone base probably undisturbed. The footpace, or step surrounding it, was built when Roman Catholicism was in disfavour, its effect being to reduce the height of the altar to that of a Communion Table. The tiles might give a clue to its date - The marks of the five crosses representing the wounds of Christ, said to have been defined during the earlier part of last century, are not now visible.

In the south-east of the chancel may be seen the piscina or sacrarium - a perforated basin drained through the wall into consecrated ground , this contained water for washing the celebrant's hands, and for cleaning the sacred chalices. Such vessels were discarded soon after the accession of Elizabeth in 1558 ; the piscina in Newton Church, of a ruggedness that is said to be suggestive of Saxon or pre-Norman work, was walled up, but was exposed again during the renovations of 1885 ; the base is not original, but is a cast of concrete fixed in during the renovations of 1927. Its present position dates from the 15th century when the Chancel was built, and possibly the piscina in the original Chancel or apse was re-used.

The reredos, erected as a memorial to Charles Morris, of Clevis House, Newton, who died of wounds, 7th May, 1917, is a beautiful structural substitute for three olden black boards with the Lord's Prayer (or Paternoster), the Creed, and the Ten Commandments written thereon, and which had to be recited in English by the Incumbent by command of Thomas Cromwell of the reign of Henry VIII

Fixed on the principals along the south and north walls of the chancel are nine shields bearing representations of the Instruments of the Passion ; taken in order from the south-west corner they are :

(1) Thirty pieces of silver arranged in the form of a hoop. "Judas betrayed Jesus for thirty pieces of silver."
(2) Ladder and Spear. "One of the soldiers with a spear pierced His side "
(3) Hammer and Pincers.
(4) The Three Nails.
(5) Three dice. "The coat was without searn, woven from the top throughout." "Let us not rend it, but cast lots for it."
(6) The Scourge."Pilate took Jesus, and scourged Him."
(7) The Cross.
(8) The Crown of Thorns "The soldiers platted a Crown of Thorns and put it on His head"
(9) I.H S.
Other forms to be seen are J.H.S , I.H.C., C.H.S , C.H.R
Illuminations of the 13th century show this sign, but it is subject to various interpretations. The letters are said to be the first in the Greek word for Jesus. It is also claimed that they are the initial letters of the Latm words "Jesus Hominum Salvator'' (Jesus, Saviour of Men). A further possible suggestion is that they are the initial letters of the words written on the Cross, "Jesus, King of the Jews," in Greek, Latin and Hebrew The letters on the older illuminations were highly decorated and could have lost their significance in successive ages by mis-interpretaton.

Image : West Face of Tower

 

image

__________

Image : East View Showing two Maltese Crosses and Corbels

 

image

__________

Image : The Pupit - with a development of the cryptic script

 

image

__________

Image : Chancel and East End of Nave

 

image

__________

Back to Orientation and Dedication

Orientation and DedicationChurch Plate

Forward to Church Plate

[Last Updated : 11 Nov 2002 by Gareth Hicks]