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Aidan McRae Thomson
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Archangel Gabriel, Hoar Cross
Archangel Gabriel, Hoar Cross

Holy Angels at Hoar Cross is simply one of the very finest churches of it's date, a real tour de force of late Victorian architecture by architect George Frederick Bodley dating mostly from 1872-6. I'd always wanted to see Bodley's masterpiece so when the opportunity came up with an ex employer offering me a lift there whilst he did a survey I couldn't resist; of course this meant scaffolding would be covering a fair amount up, but if you've got access to that scaffold it's actually a major advantage!

Sometimes churches can disappoint if you're over familiar with photos of them before you visit, but this wasn't the case here, it's a truly superb church, incredibly ornate and beautifully crafted, internally it is a close relative of Bodley's Clumber Chapel. The chancel is the climax, with it's vaulted ceiling and walls encrusted with niches and statuary, all in rich red/pink stone. The only drawback is having to rely on artificial lighting, you can hardly see a thing in there without it! The stained glass is entirely the work of Burlison & Grylls and fills every window..

Some beautiful woodwork and fine tombs of Lord and Lady Meynell (the latter the builder of the church in memory of the former) in the chapels flanking the chancel. I believe the chancel is often locked and many visitors have to gaze longingly through the screen, a real pity as the best parts of the building lie beyond it and a visit would be so much the poorer without being to access these areas.

The external scaffolding covered most of the chancel so whilst I missed the overall intended effect, I did get up close and personal with numerous gargoyles and statues normally only seen at a distance. Alas the shadows cast by the scaffolding boards meant it was next to impossible to get good images of much of the stained glass inside.

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Taken on: July 5, 2012
Tags: Everybody's photos tagged with hoar cross hoar cross Everybody's photos tagged with church church Everybody's photos tagged with staffordshire staffordshire more » Everybody's photos tagged with victorian victorian Everybody's photos tagged with bodley bodley « less
Sets appears in:   • Staffordshire Churches    • Views from the Scaffold    more » • Hoar Cross    « less
Groups appears in:   • Bodley and Garner    • Staffordshire Parish Churches   
Camera: Fujifilm FinePix Z5fd, f/3.5, 1/110 sec, 6.1mm, ISO 400 (more info) (hide info)
Camera: Fujifilm FinePix Z5fd
Aperture: f/3.5
Exposure Time: 0.009 sec (1/110)
Focal Length: 6.1mm
ISO: 400
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Off, Did not fire
Exposure Program: Program AE
Exposure Mode: Auto
Metering Mode: Multi-segment
White Balance: Auto
Color Space: sRGB
Software: Microsoft Windows Photo Viewer 6.1.7600.16385
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Archangel Gabriel, Hoar Cross

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