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Holy Grail and Holy Thorn: Glastonbury in the English Imagination explores the legends of King Arthur and Joseph of Arimathea at Glastonbury and how their influence has been felt from medieval to modern times. Joseph was said to have built at Glastonbury the first church in Christendom, which made it a centre of medieval pilgrimage, and gave Glastonbury an international profile in the fifteenth century. Through the winter-flowering holy thorn, said to have grown from Joseph’s staff, and later the Chalice Well, Glastonbury remained a focus of superstition in the Protestant centuries. In medieval romance Joseph of Arimathea had been the first keeper of the Holy Grail, a mystical past that wa...
Timber-framed buildings are a distinctive and treasured part of Britain's heritage, with such noteworthy examples as Little Moreton Hall, Anne Hathaway's Cottage and Lavenham Guildhall. The oldest are medieval but their numbers peaked in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, with a revival in the nineteenth. The majority of timber-framed buildings are houses, but wood was used in all kinds of other buildings, including shops, inns, churches, town halls and farm buildings. In this beautifully illustrated book, Richard Hayman outlines the history of timber-framed designs, and considers the techniques used in their construction, the regional variations in style that can be found, and how these buildings displayed social status. He also guides the reader in identifying structures now concealed behind later work and explores how these buildings have been treated in subsequent centuries.
Chinoiserie, a decorative style inspired by the art of the Far East, gripped Britain from the late seventeenth to the early nineteenth century. Despite taking its name from the French word for 'Chinese', the style also incorporated influences from other Asian countries, helping to shape the period's popular fantasy of the 'exotic Orient'. Wealthy consumers jostled to obtain imported wallpaper, lacquered cabinets and hand-painted porcelain, while domestic manufacturers such as Royal Worcester and Chippendale met demand with mass-produced items of their own. Though interest in the style waned as the Gothic Revival took hold, many examples of Chinoiserie have been preserved. In this beautifully illustrated book, Richard Hayman tells the story of this fascinating phenomenon, and explores the profound impact of Chinoiserie on the material culture of the West.--
The rood screen was the visual focus of the medieval parish church, dividing the nave from the chancel. Most were built of wood and were adorned with intricate carved decoration painted in bright colours, often with images of saints. Defaced and often dismantled during the Reformation in the mid-sixteenth century, most surviving screens have been restored to their former glory since the nineteenth century and are now among the most prized treasures of our parish churches. This fully illustrated book explains the symbolic and practical significance of rood screens and describes the ways in which they were constructed and decorated. There is also an extensive list of churches in England and Wales where screens can be found.
Green men are figures or heads that were carved in churches, abbeys and cathedrals from the twelfth to the sixteenth centuries. Inspired by the illustrations in book margins where heads were used to terminate trails of foliage, they were usually carved in the form of human masks, cats' or demons' heads. The earliest architectural green men are found in the churches of the wealthy and influential, such as Henry I's private chapel in Derbyshire but they were still produced in lesser numbers into the nineteenth century. Richard Hayman discusses the origins and definitions of these fascinating figures and traces their many declines and revivals throughout history - a valuable guide for any church history enthusiast.
A colorfully illustrated guide to the best-preserved medieval artworks, and the world for which they were created.
In this book, Richard Hayman traces the different values and virtues people have seen in trees and forests over the course of history, reflecting the changing use of woodland and the effects of deforestation and urbanization. Tacitus, followed by Romantics and historians of liberty, located freedom in the German forests. Medieval forests were both protected hunting parks and the refuge of Robin Hood. Shakespeare contrasted the simplicity of life in the Forest of Arden with the artificial manners of the court. Since the 18th century, poets such as Wordsworth, Clare, and Hardy have drawn inspiration from trees. How we see trees today will dictate how trees are treated in the future.
Written by teachers and successful entrepreneurs, this textbook includes guidance, instruction and practical lessons for the prospective entrepreneur.
An illustrated history of Britain's coal mines and the lives of the miners who worked in them. Coal heated the homes, fuelled the furnaces and powered the engines of the Industrial Revolution. In the nineteenth and twentieth centuries the coalfields – distinct landscapes of colliery winding frames, slag heaps and mining villages – made up Britain's industrial heartlands. Coal was known as 'black gold' but it was only brought to the surface with skill and at considerable risk, with flooding, rock falls and gas explosions a constant danger. Coal miners became a recognised force in British political life, forming a vociferous and often militant lobby for better working conditions and a decent standard of living. This beautifully illustrated guide to Britain's industrial heritage covers not just the mines, but the lives of the workers away from the pits, with a focus on the cultural and religious life of mining communities.
In this book, Richard Hayman traces the different values and virtues people have seen in trees and forests over the course of history, reflecting the changing use of woodland and the effects of deforestation and urbanization. Tacitus, followed by Romantics and historians of liberty, located freedom in the German forests. Medieval forests were both protected hunting parks and the refuge of Robin Hood. Shakespeare contrasted the simplicity of life in the Forest of Arden with the artificial manners of the court. Since the 18th century, poets such as Wordsworth, Clare, and Hardy have drawn inspiration from trees. How we see trees today will dictate how trees are treated in the future.