9th May 2012
St Mary's Aldworth - a historical seminar
Come and see what we have done in St Mary’s Church and listen to three eminent speakers explain the significance of this small village church and its contents – the Aldworth Giants.
We are delighted and extremely fortunate to be able to welcome three eminent speakers who will look at the history of Berkshire Downland churches, the history of St Mary's Aldworth and a presentation of what we have been doing over the last few months in the restoration of the "Aldworth Giants".
Dr Tyack has edited much of the current Pevsner on Berkshire. This is the “bible” for anyone who is interested in the architectural heritage of the Royal County of Berkshire. Aldworth has nearly two pages of this definitive treatise of our heritage with much devoted to the church and the “Aldworth Giants”.
Brian Kemp has an active involvement in the churches of Berkshire through his membership of the Diocesan Advisory Committee (DAC) for the Oxford Diocese and his membership of the executive committee of the Berkshire Churches Trust. He has also made St Mary’s a particular interest of his and has carried out much research particularly with our patron St John’s College Cambridge. He has particular views on the identity (or lack of documented proof) of each of the “Giants”.
During the last 6 months the PCC with the help of a number of Trusts, local fundraising and individual donations have been undertaking the conservation of the “Giants” and the canopies over them. Nimbus, the conservators, will show what they have done and more particularly what they have discovered. This takes the form of a number of significant pieces of the “Giants” which were buried by the Victorians when they undertook the last conservation over a hundred years ago
Our speakers are
Dr Geoffrey Tyack – a fellow of Kellogg College, University of Oxford, Director of the Stanford University Centre in Oxford, Trustee of the Oxford Preservation Trust, co-organiser of the Oxford Architectural History Seminar and editor of the Georgian Group Journal. His books include: Sir James Pennethorne and the Making of Victorian London, Warwickshire Country Houses; Modern Architecture in an Oxford College: St John’s 1945–2005. He was co-editor of the revised volume on Berkshire in the Pevsner Buildings of England, and is editor of John Nash: Architect of the Picturesque, to be published by English Heritage in 2012. He has also contributed articles to numerous academic journals, to the Grove Dictionary of Art, to the Oxford Dictionary of National Biography and to several volumes of essays and papers, including John Ruskin and Architecture and The Intellectual and Cultural World of the Early Modern Inns of Court.
Brian Kemp - is emeritus professor of medieval history at Reading University, sits on the DAC for Oxford diocese and is a member of the executive council of the Berkshire Churches Trust; author of English Church Monuments (Batsford) and Church Monuments (Shire Books). He has carried out research on the documented history of St Mary's, Aldworth, and its 'Giants', and will speak on 'The History of St Mary's, Aldworth'.
Ben Wild - senior conservator and director of Nimbus the conservators who have been undertaking the conservation of the Aldworth Giants and their canopies. He will talk through what they have done and then show some of the surprising discoveries that they have made.
Please apply for tickets at £10 to include a glass of wine and nibbles to mich...@soamesonline.com.