Still in Lincolnshire, but working our way back to Norwich--to be explained--we took in yet another 5-star parish church, the so-called Boston Stump. St. Botolph's. Simply stated, the early 14th century builders of this church just kept building the tower, never quite getting to a spire, and then apparently decided a spire might be too much weight on an already heavy edifice, and so stopped there. 16th century. The tower itself is the highest in England, 272 feet--any sort of steeple would have topped St. Wulfram's easily--but no, they stopped there with the tower, and the church has since then been known as the "Stump." Some stump! The church is impressive, nonetheless, both inside and outside. And historically: the Massachusetts Bay Colony was born from the Stump, five of its members becoming Governors of Massachusetts, and all duly noted in the memorials. Renovation work was going on in the tower, and much in the nave was covered up. But it was market day in Boston, and the church was nonetheless a hive of activity.
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| View from the river |
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| From the town market square |
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In its later history, 17th century, the Stump was a hotbed of radicalism and
religious reform: Puritans! And so fervent were they that they crossed the ocean
to the New World to found a "city upon a hill" [click to enlarge] |
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| A little church history |
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| Font |
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| In the hall beneath the tower |
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| Directly beneath the tower...now the coffee shop... |
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| Children's area...everything now covered for the renovation |
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| Yes! Among several fundraisers, they have a Lego project underway |
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| Vicki does our part, pressing a piece into what will be a window |
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| Nave ceiling |
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| Quire, altar |
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Another of the fundraisers is selling off bits of the tower that are being replaced;
alas, not for people who live in small RVs |
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| Interior grotesques |
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| Ceiling above the quire and altar |
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