It's good to be back!

If you have visited the Chapel in the last few years, you will have spotted the noticeable space in the antechapel that accommodated social distancing. During the half-term break, some old friends were able to take up their place there once more and four of the ancient oak stalls were returned to their previous position under the window in the antechapel. Two more stalls, which are rather more fragile, will remain in the Awbrey Chapel pro tem. 

The ebb and flow of new arrivals means that a few years in any school is a long time. Many of our pupils and staff never have seen the stalls, so we are encouraging them to take a closer look and enjoy a direct connection with the origins of Henry VIII's foundation. 

Though the history of the stalls remains a bit of a puzzle, there is no doubt that they originate from either side of the Reformation. They are not easy to date because of work done on them in the 1660s, but the original stalls probably date from the early 15th century with the carvings possibly being made much later. Twenty-three of these stalls, which were named for the Prebendaries associated with Henry VIII’s foundation, were arranged around the back and sides of the chapel and remained there until renovations in the 1890s.

Each seat folds up to form a shelf, known as a misericord or 'mercy seat', designed to be leant against while standing during (often lengthy) divine service. Under the seats in the antechapel are carvings of a dog, a skeleton, an angel and a lion; in the Awbrey Chapel the carvings represent something like a unicorn, and also a rather cute owl's face. The carvings on the Christ College misericords are far from the finely carved creatures seen on misericords elsewhere. One visiting researcher suggested they were carved by joiners who were working on the rafters of the chapel. She suggested that rather than employ ecclesiastical craftsmen to do the work, local joiners were called upon to carve the designs. Their rough execution makes the misericords highly unusual, if not unique. 

In the 1890s the stalls were discarded during modernisations undertaken by the Rev. Matthew Bayfield, the Headmaster at the time. The six stalls now remaining were rescued from the garden at Abercamlais in 1926 and returned to the Chapel. They were later placed in the antechapel. Thanks to the help of the Estates team during the half-term break, they are taking pride of place there once more.