Illustrated tour part 2 - nave and chancel

The nave

The nave of St Peter's Church, Nottingham, looking eastLooking down the nave from the west door you can see the rood screen with the chancel beyond. The screen was built in 1897 along with the choir stalls, in memory of William Gibson. Notes made by the Rev H P Hale in 1934 say that the blank cross flanked by the figures of Mary and St. John was a compromise reached by the evangelical rector George Edgcome and the donors.

The pulpit and sounding board (to the left of the screen) are modern, and are a memorial to the rectors and their helpers working in Broad Marsh between 1843 and 1935. They were designed by Stephen Dykes-Bower, Surveyor at Westminster Abbey at the time.

 

Rood screen stair

The rood screen stair of St Peter's Church, NottinghamNote the strange spacing of the carved figures on the screen (some people say that the twelfth figure, just squeezed in at the right end of the screen, represents Judas who - despite betraying our Lord - could not put himself beyond God's love). We do not know the real reason for this spacing. At the foot of the screen can be seen the opening of a staircase which led to a rood loft above the chancel which was removed in 1719. It now leads to the top of the rood screen. Near the top of the stair are fragments of the original Norman church fabric.

 

The chancel

Monuments on the north wall of the chancel of St Peter's Church, NottinghamThe present chancel and north transept were designed by William Jolley and built in 1878 on the foundations of an Elizabethan chancel which probably followed a Norman one, rectangular in form. This Victorian chancel replaced a small and apse-like one built in 1670 after the devastation caused in the Civil War in 1644. For about 26 years the church appears to have been without one.

The sanctuary was repaired in 1951 under the direction of Mr Stephen Dykes-Bower, when steps were removed, the general height lowered, the area paved in Mansfield stone, and curtains introduced on the east wall. There are several memorials on the north wall including alabaster memorials in memory of the wives of Sir John Locke of Hertfordshire, who died in 1633 and 1639.

Triptych

The triptych in the chancel of St Peter's Church, NottinghamA new triptych was installed at the east end of the chancel behind the altar on 29th November 2003, replacing the "ferial" curtain that had hung there since 1951. The triptych was commissioned by the Rector, Andrew Deuchar, and the PCC from the artist Tiffany Groves, and represents the Trinity.

The chancel has been repainted in its original design and colouring, and the whole is considered one of the best examples of a Victorian chancel.

Part one
Exterior
Forward to part three
North aisle
Part four
South aisle
Part five
Churchyard

The text is adapted from the Church Guide written by the late Allan Derry.


http://www.stpetersnottingham.org/guide/church2.htm
© St Peter's Church, Nottingham
Last revised 4th December 2003