New ILLUMINATIONS page on FACEBOOK
Merry Illuminations by Alison Merry
The ‘young ones’ have told me I should be on Facebook and who am I to disagree? I shall add new images as and when and hope this will mean my artwork reaches a new audience!
Llyndy Isaf Farm, where dragons fought, bought by the Welsh National Trust
The hills around Llyndy Isaf are rich in mythology. Legend has it that an epic battle between a red dragon and white dragon took place at one of the local mountains, Dinas Emrys. The red dragon won, becoming the national emblem of Wales.
The dragons fight above Llyndy Isaf
Two new cards
I have printed a very few of these two new designs. Not enough to warrant creating a box for them in the shop! Send an email or written order if you’d like either of these. £1.20 each plus the p&p (according to quantity ordered). I’ll send them out with an invoice.
Oranges and Lemons
The exact date and origin of this rhyme and singing game is unknown but there was a square dance popular in the late seventeenth century called ‘Oranges and Lemons’ (published 1665 in Playford’s Dancing Master). The earliest printed version of the rhyme, as we would recognise it today, appears in the 1744 Tommy Thumb’s Pretty Song Book (the oldest printed collection of English language nursery rhymes). Card measures 150mm x 105mm and is blank – no message.
Norwich Nativity
The Holy Family seated beneath the guiding star. The artwork was inspired by the late fifteenth century carved roof bosses in Norwich Cathedral.
Card measures 136mm x 136mm and has the message – With best wishes for Christmas and the New Year
New Christmas Card for 2011
Norwich Shepherds
Norwich Cathedral has a wonderful and unique collection of late fifteenth century carved roof bosses. I have designed a Christmas card for 2011 which makes reference to some of the shepherds featured on two of these bosses. One of the shepherds plays on his pipe whilst another points heavenwards towards the stars. Perhaps he has just heard the first call of the angels?
Christmas card packs now available online in the www.merryilluminations.co.uk shop. £4.50 for a pack of 10 cards and envelopes.
St Beornwald goes fishing
St Beornwald of Bampton goes fishing on the Thames.
Little is known of St Beornwald’s life or even of his dates. He was possibly the founder of the Anglo Saxon Minster church in Bampton, Oxfordshire. An early 12th century charter refers to his feast day being celebrated at Bampton and to his shrine in the church. His feast day was December 21st.
Celtic Fairy Tales
Some Celtic designs illustrating traditional Welsh, Irish and Scottish fairy tales.
The Stolen Child
The Prince and the Raven
Liam and the Wolfhounds
The Cloth of the Land
I love my cats
- The artist and her cat
- Gloucester Cats
- The Holy Man and Magnificat
- Carl and his cat
St Thomas Cantilupe of Hereford and his cat
- Hekla and Olaf. My real cats.
Eton Mess
Eton Mess
I was enjoying a delicious lunch at The Chequers restaurant in Churchill, Oxon last week and observed a fellow diner tucking in to an Eton Mess from the pudding menu. It reminded me of my own version of the same subject. Much less dangerous to the waistline!
Lovely blog
If you’re stuck inside and fancy a virtual walk in the woods or up and over the hills – try walking quite fast with Sue Clapham. Lovely photos and interesting literary references.
The Sandon Pax
I was delighted to have been able to contribute in a very small way (literally!) to the Experience of Worship Research Project events this summer at St Teilo’s. I painted a crucifixion scene for the little replica pax board used during the celebrations of the re-enacted medieval mass. The little miniature (the wooden pax board measures approx 16cm x 12cm) was not intended to be an exact copy of the original but a sympathetic re working in gouache on parchment of the pax (dated to circa 1500). The article below gives more details. (Article taken from News Wales 9 Sep 2011)
The Replica Sandon Pax
The Original Sandon Pax
Experience a Medieval mass at St Teilo’s
Section Education | Published on 9 Sep 2011
Step into the Medieval Church of St Teilo’s next week (Tuesday 13th and Thursday 15th 11.30 & 4.00) and you will experience, as closely as possible, the sights and sounds that accompanied our Medieval ancestors at prayer. The rare and unusual services take place at the reconstructed medieval decorated church of St Teilo at St Fagans: National History Museum of Wales.
In the morning, a medieval Mass and Procession with authentic music, will be celebrated by people in period dress and using recreated religious artefacts. Compline, the final church service of the day, and a short related devotion in honour of the Holy Name of Jesus will also be celebrated at 4pm. All of these services will be sung to Latin plainchant, with some polyphonic music for choir or organ.
Members of the public are also welcome to attend.
The ritual enactments take place as part of a Bangor University research project: The Experience of Worship in Medieval Cathedral and Parish Church.
“What we’re doing is trying to recreate the medieval experience of worship as authentically as possible. We’re also reliving the devotional services that we think would have been heard regularly at St Teilo’s. The recreations also help those of us who study music to better understand that element and bring new insights to our colleagues in several other subject areas – the medieval church, social history, art and archaeology,” said Sally Harper, one of the project investigators.
The Arms of Christ based on the carving made for Cardinal David Beaton c. 1530 painted by Lois Raine for The Experience of Worship Research Project to stand on the Jesus Altar, St Teilo’s Church, St Fagans Museum 7 xi 2011Professor John Harper, who leads the project says: “A long period of research lies behind these church services. The project team has examined many early written sources and surviving artefacts. A complete set of historically-informed vestments and essential ritual objects have now been made, in addition to a rare reconstruction of a medieval organ.”
Prof Harper explains further: “About a dozen craftspeople have contributed to the project to date. No fewer than five individuals (including a wood turner and a blacksmith) collaborated in making a copy of the very rare painted pax board that survives at Sandon Parish Church in Essex, and dates from around1500. This object was kissed during the Mass by each member of the medieval congregation in strict status order – a moment of particular reverence. The project has also enabled recreation of a painting of the ‘Arms of Christ’, two pyxes or containers used for consecrated bread, flagons, an incense boat and spoon, and hanging lamps.
Professor John Harper of Bangor’s International Centre for Sacred Music Studies, is working in association with Dr Sally Harper and Judith Aveling of Bangor University’s School of Music and colleagues from Oxford University and Newcastle University. The project is funded by both the Arts & Humanities Research Council and the Economic & Social Research Council as part of the ‘Religion and Society’ programme.
The project seeks to reveal not only how worship was conducted and experienced in the Middle Ages, but also how this might lead to new insights about worship in medieval buildings today. The project’s partner organizations are St Fagans and Salisbury Cathedral, and a team of associated clergy is led by Canon Jeremy Davies, precentor of Salisbury Cathedral.
The Latin liturgies themselves have been assembled from a variety of manuscript and printed sources of the widespread liturgical Use of Salisbury rite (‘Sarum Use’) and will be published online. Some of the melodies will be sung direct from original notation. The project team will be leading further enactments in Salisbury Cathedral on 6 October and 9 October.
http://www.bangor.ac.uk/music/AHRC/index.php.en
