Church seeks help to solve ancient mystery

[Adsos Letter]

Source: EDP24
EMILY DENNIS

An isolated rural church at the centre of an extraordinary archaeological discovery now has a fresh problem to solve.

Two garter boards have hung on the west wall of St Andrew's Church at Ilketshall St Andrew, near Bungay, for as long as anyone can remember and were saved from a bonfire during a recent clear out.

But despite painstaking conservation work on the circular wooden boards very little is known about them and now the church is appealing for people who may know about their history or function to get in touch.

It is not the first time the church has yielded some impressive secrets.

Parishioners and conservationists were stunned when extremely rare medieval wall paintings were discovered in the church in 2001 following a lightning strike.

The images have now been conserved under a £50,000 project made possible by the Heritage Lottery Fund and visitors come from far and wide to view the colourful illustrations, which include a Wheel of Fortune on the south wall of the church painted in the early 14th century.

Catriona Hodge, a member of the parochial church council, said: “The garter boards have hung on the back wall - but when they were put there nobody knows. They have been there for as long as anyone can remember and nobody seems to know much about them.”

http://new.edp24.co.uk/content/News/story.aspx?brand=EDPOnline&category=News&tBrand=edponline&tCategory=news&itemid=NOED07%20Feb%202009%2010%3A43%3A20%3A380

[Kitty Herder]

1. Pardon my ignorance, but what is a garter board? nt

[Adsos Letter]

4. No ignorance need be pardoned...I have the same question.

[merh]

2. Here is a link to the images

http://www.flickr.com/photos/norfolkodyssey/tags/wallpaintings/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/norfolkodyssey/2646556450/

[Adsos Letter]

3. Thanks mehr! Nothin' like teamwork!

:hi:

[merh]

6. you are welcome

:hi:

[Adsos Letter]

8. The Aquino comment in your "comments" is great!

:thumbsup:

[merh]

9. thanks

[aquart]

10. I clearly saw carved gamboling naked people.

[Adsos Letter]

11. We ofttimes see what we wish to see aquart...

:rofl: :hi:

[aquart]

14. You go look at the slide show.

Carved. Wood. Gamboling. Naked people.

[merh]

13. you must have special glasses

:silly:

[ananda]

5. It's something to do with the order of the garter..

.. as in Knights of the Garter.

The board was probably hung in the
church to signify the membership or
death of a knight of the garter..
as Howard's coat of arms was hung
to signify the importance of his
family.

Yes, it's a matter of heraldry. From the Wiki link:

The flags hanging in the church bear the personal arms of the thirteen members of the College of Arms with the Duke of Norfolk's Banner completing the set. On the east wall there is a seventeenth century carved and painted Coat of Arms of the College, while on the north wall can be seen the Garter Board, which bears the personal arms, of each Garter Principal King of Arms since the inception of the office in 1398. In addition to this, many officers of arms are buried in the church, and services are still held here by the officers of arms.

[Adsos Letter]

7. Thankyou ananda! DU'ers are full of good information!

:hi:

[BlooInBloo]

12. Aw crap - thought you guys had googled it by now. It holds a coat of arms.