Posted 10 years ago
vetraio50
(751 items)
Gothic Revival Creates A Riot!!
The Millers visited Bristol Cathedral in 1906. The cards I have shown so far do indeed show an interest in the Gothic Style. But why did they choose this card? The North Porch pictured here is not even an original section of the Gothic cathedral. It is part of a rebuilding project completed in 1877.
But the North Porch is a fine example of Gothic Revival.
It was designed by one of the great Victorian architects George Edmund Street.
William Morris was one of G. E. Street's apprentices!
In its time this restoration project was VERY controversial.
Gothic Revival was controversial!
Was the Church of England becoming more Catholic? Papism!
This architectural restoration in the Gothic Revival Style caused a riot!
People took great offence at four of the statues created for the niches by the renowned sculptor James Redfern. The images were those of St. Gregory, St. Ambrose, St. Jerome, and St. Augustine. It made the papers soon after and there were demands for the removal of the images considered to be too "Papist"!
Someone had made some serious miscalculations!
"April 4 1876.
A chapter meeting was held at Bristol Cathedral, at which petitions and protests were voiced against statues that had been placed in niches in the north porch of the cathedral. The statues, sculpted by James Redfern, depicted saints with their traditional attributes: The Virgin Mary, the Virgin Mary with Christ Child, St Gregory crowned with Papal tiara, St Ambrose carrying a triple scourge, St Jerome in a Cardinal’s hat and St Augustine carrying a burning heart. The figures led to some protesting by some Protestants who claimed that they were evidence for a creeping Catholicism in the Church of England. Without consultation the Dean engaged a gang of workmen to remove the statues from their niches. This brought about a series of protests from the architect G.E. Street who wrote to the Dean and the Guardian newspaper alleging that the Dean’s actions had damaged the statues and that the offending Catholic attributes could be easily removed. The statue 0f the Virgin Mary was badly damaged during the removal but others were repaired and removed by Street to the East Heslerton Church in the East Riding of Yorkshire". (The Bristol Book of Days by D G Amphlett.)
What we see in the card are four replacement statues - of four Evangelists.
As you can see the Virgin and Child above the door has been defaced.
The original statues of the offending saints St. Gregory,
St. Ambrose, St. Jerome, and St. Augustine are still at East Heslerton. I have only seen a photo of one of them on the net but it shows clearly that these statues too suffered in the dismantling process.
George Edmund Street was a big name in the Gothic Revival Movement. He was involved with the restoration of York Minster as well as Bristol. He was Diocesan Architect to the cathedrals of Oxford, York, Winchester and Ripon. He also undertook considerable commissions abroad, including building churches in Rome, Constantinople, Geneva, Lausanne and America.
The card is local to Bristol too. It was published by Harvey Barton & Son (1885-1960) St. Michael’s Hill, Bristol, England.
Beautiful post card
Many thanks PRINTSID, NUTSABOTAS 'n AGHCOLLECT too!
Beautiful pc and great history!!
Many thanks NADIA, KERRY 'n SEAN!
Another great researched historical poste, & I love history! Just curious Vetraio50, did you expect the response you have received from these cards?
Many thanks BLUNDERBUSS & POPS!
Well everyone loves glass on CW, BB. PC's are not that popular.
I'm just doing this cos it appeals at the moment.
I need to force myself to learn new things.
These cards are the Miller's taste not mine necessarily.
The challenge is to get inside Septimus and Clara's heads and to see what they were up to in 1906.
They may not be everyone's cup of tea but that's OK.
CW is a good way of putting down ideas on paper and bouncing them off others.
Great story. Amazing that the sculpture commissions were approved and the statues were installed without an idea they might be conroversial!
Sounds a lot like modern government decisions!
Your very welcome Kevin :)
Many thanks TOM, KAREN 'n PHIL!
It seems they all ran for cover too! The statues were high quality. James Redfern's work was very good.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Redfern
Here you'll see one of the statues that was so controversial.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:East_Heslerton_St_Andrew_James_Redfern.jpg
Note the missing hand.
"One of four statues of the Latin Fathers, sculpted by James Redfern for Bristol Cathedral. Rejected as being too 'papist', they were rescued by George Edward Street and placed on the tower of this church. James Redfern from the church in East Heslerton, Yorkshire."
Many thanks MIKELV, ANNE 'n DON too!
can you imagine if William Morris's textiles had been draped from the rafters...is their suspicion that here worked on this Kevin?For some reason and I have no idea why I had thought Morris had been part of Josiah Wedgwoods group of Artisans in th north who had been a collective of great minds but from this I see he's much later..a true nouvean!
Many thanks GEO!
Morris worked with Street when he left Oxford in 1856. He had gone to university intending to become a minister and take holy orders. Burne-Jones too. "Together, they read theology, ecclesiastical history, and medieval poetry; studied art, and during the long vacations visited English churches and the Continental cathedrals.
In Street’s office Morris formed an intimate and lifelong friendship with the senior clerk, Philip Webb, which had an important influence over the development taken by English domestic architecture during the next generation. He worked in Street’s office for nine months, first at Oxford and afterwards in London when Street removed there in the autumn. Morris worked hard both in and out of office hours at architecture and painting, and he studied architectural drawing under Webb. Rossetti persuaded him that he was better suited for a painter, and after a while he devoted himself exclusively to that branch of art. That summer the two friends visited Oxford and finding the new Oxford Union debating-hall under construction, pursued a commission to paint the upper walls with scenes from Le Morte d'Arthur and to decorate the roof between the open timbers. Seven artists were recruited, among them Valentine Prinsep and Arthur Hughes, and the work was hastily begun. Morris worked with feverish energy and on finishing the portion assigned to him, proceeded to decorate the roof. The frescoes, done too soon and too fast, began to fade at once and now are barely decipherable."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Morris
And so it all began ....
You're very informed. I was lucky enough to go to England for 3 weeks, I'll always be thankful for it!
Many thanks SPUNKYSMUM!
Many thanks GARY 'n ANTIQUES IN NJ too!
Many thanks ANTIQUEROSE!
Many thanks AIMATHENA!
Many thanks LEAH!
Many thanks GARGOYLECOLLECTOR!
Many thanks BRACKEN 3!
Many thanks THOMAS & CLOCKERMAN !!!!
Many thanks ELISABETHAN !!!!!!