The Charred Cross is made from two medieval roof beams which had fallen in the shape of a cross in the rubble after the bombing of the Cathedral in 1940.
Cathedral Groundsman Jock Forbes’ instinctive action was to set up this sign of Christ’s suffering amidst the destruction. the beams were bound together and placed the Sanctuary of the Ruins. the Charred Cross remained there until 1978 whin it was brought to this location for safekeeping.
The beams were originally held in place with medieval roof nails. The ‘Cross of Nails’, formed from three such nails, is the internationally-recognised symbol of our peace and reconciliation ministry. You can see the original ‘cross of nails’ in the centre of the High Altar Cross. *
*from a sign board next to the Charred Cross
Tags: Cold war museum, Coventry, Coventry Cathedral, Cross of Nails, High Altar Cross, The Charred Cross
I managed to persuade the reluctant adventurer to join me for a walk. First we visited my mum, who once again wasn’t quite herself so we didn’t stay as long as we would have liked to. Next we went to Shrewsbury to purchase some Sherry from Majestic Wines which led us nicely into lunch in the Cote Kitchen at Churncote Farm Shop.
After lunch Mr C drove the scenic route to Newport where we parked in Water Lane carpark next to the start of our walk. The first part of the walk led us to a part of the canal that I had no idea existed. It was delightful and teaming with wildlife. I will definitely go back there again. The walk then lead us alongside fields, through fields, through a churchyard, country pathways and a long stretch of country road ending with some paddocks which involved navigating several styles before arriving back in Newport and the start of the walk.
Overall I enjoyed the walk, although after a while I found walking along the country lane a bit hard going.
My milage differed from the 4.75 miles mentioned on the walk page. By the time we had finished the walk my FitBit registered that I had walked around 6.5 miles. We did go a bit off track on one part of the walk (map reader failed to read instructions) leading us to retrace our steps but the small detour didn’t account for so much difference in mileage.
Tags: #walk1000miles, #walk1000miles2025, Edgmond, Newport, Newport Canal, Portrait, Shropshire, Telford Coronation Walks, There's Always One, Walk 1
A few days ago I took part in a training course that will allow me to lead community walks around Attingham Park. Community walks within Attingham Park is something new and I will be helping shape which walks will be on offer to start off the project.
After the training, which finished mid afternoon I put my best foot forward in the glorious sunshine. I walked my extended ‘mile walk’ route and took advantage of my favourite benches to sit and rest a while. Nearing the end of my walk I had to wait until the cows came home.
Tags: #walk1000miles, Attingham Park, Shropshire, Walk, Walk Leader, Walk Leader Training
Details from Coventry Cathedral website:
The artist John Piper was asked to design the stained glass. His view was that with 198 small areas of window to fill, the glass needed dazzling colour and an abstract pattern to create unity.
Working with glassmaker Patrick Reyntiens, he created the window from thousands of differently-sized pieces of glass to visually vary the space and rest the eye.
The baptismal font is situated in front of the baptistery window and is carved in the shape of a shell. The Inner City Peace Trail provides further information:
The font is carved into a boulder that was donated by the government of Jordan as a gesture towards Muslim, Christian and Jewish cooperation. It was shipped from a hillside near Bethlehem in 1960 and placed before John Piper’s stunning Baptistry window.
The font was carved into it by Ralph Beyer. He was a German letter-cutter, sculptor and teacher. He is most noted for his work on the new Coventry Cathedral, including carving not only the baptismal font but also the foundation stone of the cathedral, the greetings set into its floor and, what is perhaps his most famous work, the huge inscriptions in the nave.
Born in Berlin, Beyer served in the British Army during WWII. His mother was murdered in Auschwitz.
Tags: Baptismal Font, Coventry Cathedral, Coventy, John Piper, Ralph Beyer, Stained Glass Window, The Baptistery Window, Warwickshire
Thornflower has its roots deep in the artist’s childhood in Prague (which she left in 1939) in happy memories of her grandmothers’ home “Das Rosel Haus (the house of rose)” and in the death of her grandmother in Treblinka in 1942.
It is a reflection not only on the Nazi Holocaust but on “man’s inhumanity” across history, representing, in Charlotte Mayer’s own words “an urgent wish to make a sculpture uniting opposing elements of thorns and flowers, to speak of reconciliation, peace and oneness”.
Roses and thorns are never far apart in life, but it is the beauty of the rose that we remember.*
*from a signboard next to the artwork
Tags: Charlotte Mayer, Holocaust, Oneness, Peace, Reconciliation, Rose, The Thornflower, WW2, WWII
From Wiki:
The tapestry depicts a seated Risen Christ, within an oval mandorla on a green background, surrounded by the four living creatures mentioned in Chapter 4 of the Book of Revelation, which are also symbols of the Four Evangelists. The tetramorph (four shapes) of the title are the lion for St Mark, eagle for St John, calf for St Luke, and angel for St Matthew.
For the four living creatures, Sutherland sketched eagles and lions at Maidstone Zoo. The composition also draws influences from Egyptian sculpture, Italian mosaic, and images of Christ Pantocrator in Greek and Romanesque churches.[5]
The face of Christ is bearded, and is deliberately made more human than divine: it is based on several sources, including photographs of cyclists in Paris Match magazine.[6] The Christ figure wears a white robe, and is sitting on a throne, face on, with both hands raised towards his face. Loops around the head suggest a halo.
Between his feet is a life sized figure of a man, made diminutive by the colossal scale of the Christ-figure. At the base of the tapestry is a small Crucifixion scene.[4]
Tags: Altar, Christ in Glory, Coventry Cathedral, Tapestry, Warwickshire
The reflection of the ruined Cathedral Church of St Michael is reflected in the glass that surrounds the entrance to the new Cathedral in Coventry.
On 23rd March 1956. Her Majesty the Queen (Elizabeth II) laid the foundation stone for the New Cathedral.
*The ruined Cathedral Church of St Michael dates from 1300AD. One of the largest parish churches in England, built originally for the Earl’s half of Coventry, it became ‘The Cathedral’ of the diocese of Coventry in 1918.
The magnificent west tower and spire built 1374-1450 is 295 feet high. It dominates the city centre and survived the air raid of 14 November 1940 which destroyed the remainder of the church.*
*information from a plaque within the ruined church
Tags: Cathedral Church of St Michael, Coventry Cathedral, Warwickshire, WW2, WWII
