The Church of Our Lady of the Pillar was financed by the Aragonese Kights of St John and built in the 1670s; damaged in the earthquake of 1693 and remodelled by Ramano Carapecchia. The main painting, depicting Our Lady appearing to St James is by Stefano Erardi. The ceiling was painted by Gian Nikola Buhagiar and depicts the coronation of Our Lady.
Saturday 9 June 2018
Church of Our Lady of the Pillar, Valletta
The Church of Our Lady of the Pillar was financed by the Aragonese Kights of St John and built in the 1670s; damaged in the earthquake of 1693 and remodelled by Ramano Carapecchia. The main painting, depicting Our Lady appearing to St James is by Stefano Erardi. The ceiling was painted by Gian Nikola Buhagiar and depicts the coronation of Our Lady.
Saturday 2 June 2018
St George's Church, Bloomsbury, London
All Hawksmoor's churches are quirky. That's probably why I like them. St George's is perhaps the weirdest of all. Near the British Museum it might be expected to be on the tourist list. (Apparently some tourists even mistake it for the British Museum!)Alas it is more often passed by and the exterior can still give an air of neglect. Despite major resoration and reopening in 2006 it is often closed to visitors. The opening of a Comedy Museum underneath might have led it to be more often visited. It also contains a fascinating exhibition about the church.
It is the last and most complex of the 6 churches Hawksmoor designed in London.It is one of the churches built by the Commission of 1711 to provide for the expansion of London east and west. (12 were built in all from 1716 to 1731). I am not clear how it obtained its original appearance and why it was given a spire relating to the Mausoleum at Harlicarnassus with George I on top! It is so unlike Christchurch Spitalfields or St Mary Woolnoth. Mind you those are also unusual too to put it mildly!
The mighty portico at the front could have been modelled on the Temple of Jupiter at Baalbeck in the Lebanon.
Sir John Vanbrugh had earlier submitted a design in 1715 which had been accepted. It was a constricted site and a north south orientation seemed the best solution. Apparently the site was not yet paid for and Vanbrugh's plans were set aside in favour of those of Nicholas Hawksmoor. Work started in 1716 with a portico and entrance at the front at right angles to the axis of the church, spire at the side, and altar at the east end. By 1721 church and tower were at cornice level, ready to roof in 1723 and the steeple built 1724. Consecration came in 1731.
Hawksmoor had the altar in the east in an apse with a carved wooden reredos, and semi-dome enriched with cherubs, ears of wheat, mires, croziers, clouds and a pelican. When entering from the portico there was a gallery overhead and opposite. Parishioners also had a west gallery added later.In 1780 the orientation of the seating was moved north-south and the altar and reredos moved. In Victorian times more changes were made to accomodate the larger congregation. In the 1970s a decoration scheme also changedthe character of the interior.
It was ripe for restoration and the World Monuments Fund stepped in. Generous donations from the estate of Paul Mellon, the Heritage Lottery Fund, and many others have enabled World Monuments Fund to restore the building, enhancing its architectural significance and enabling greatly enhanced use by both the local community and many others.
For more detail and excellent photos see the World Monuments Fund site.
If you are fortunate enough to get inside today you are in for a treat. This interior has real splendour and atmosphere.A splendid 17th century chandelier from a church in the Netherlands on long loan from the Victoria and Albert Museum enlightens the nave. The reredos from Hawksmoor's time is back in the east end. Made of West Indian mahogany it depicts John the Baptist, St Philip, and the Holy Family. A joy to see rather than the customary Ten Commandments in our London Baroque churches!
It is the last and most complex of the 6 churches Hawksmoor designed in London.It is one of the churches built by the Commission of 1711 to provide for the expansion of London east and west. (12 were built in all from 1716 to 1731). I am not clear how it obtained its original appearance and why it was given a spire relating to the Mausoleum at Harlicarnassus with George I on top! It is so unlike Christchurch Spitalfields or St Mary Woolnoth. Mind you those are also unusual too to put it mildly!
The mighty portico at the front could have been modelled on the Temple of Jupiter at Baalbeck in the Lebanon.
Sir John Vanbrugh had earlier submitted a design in 1715 which had been accepted. It was a constricted site and a north south orientation seemed the best solution. Apparently the site was not yet paid for and Vanbrugh's plans were set aside in favour of those of Nicholas Hawksmoor. Work started in 1716 with a portico and entrance at the front at right angles to the axis of the church, spire at the side, and altar at the east end. By 1721 church and tower were at cornice level, ready to roof in 1723 and the steeple built 1724. Consecration came in 1731.
Hawksmoor had the altar in the east in an apse with a carved wooden reredos, and semi-dome enriched with cherubs, ears of wheat, mires, croziers, clouds and a pelican. When entering from the portico there was a gallery overhead and opposite. Parishioners also had a west gallery added later.In 1780 the orientation of the seating was moved north-south and the altar and reredos moved. In Victorian times more changes were made to accomodate the larger congregation. In the 1970s a decoration scheme also changedthe character of the interior.
It was ripe for restoration and the World Monuments Fund stepped in. Generous donations from the estate of Paul Mellon, the Heritage Lottery Fund, and many others have enabled World Monuments Fund to restore the building, enhancing its architectural significance and enabling greatly enhanced use by both the local community and many others.
For more detail and excellent photos see the World Monuments Fund site.
If you are fortunate enough to get inside today you are in for a treat. This interior has real splendour and atmosphere.A splendid 17th century chandelier from a church in the Netherlands on long loan from the Victoria and Albert Museum enlightens the nave. The reredos from Hawksmoor's time is back in the east end. Made of West Indian mahogany it depicts John the Baptist, St Philip, and the Holy Family. A joy to see rather than the customary Ten Commandments in our London Baroque churches!
The tip of the spire with Georege ! just appearing at th top of SDhaftesbury Avenue |
The grandiose front of St George's |
The portico |
Looking out |
The majestic interior |
View as you enter |
Into the vault |
View down toward the altar and reredos |
The reredos |
THe 18th century pulpit |
View from altar back toward the tower |
View in 1799 Temple at Baalbek |
A significant day for St George's : funeral of Emily Davison, the Suffraagette who ran in front of the King's horse at the Grand National in 1913 Here is a link to the tragic story of how Emily Davison ran into the front of the King's horse during a race at Epsom in 1913. |
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