Mr John Dickinson: Misericords of NW England

 

 

A wife beating her husband with a ladle, a bare breasted mermaid and a noble griffin savaging a richly dressed man are just some of the intriguing images depicting the struggle between sin and virtue carved underneath choir stalls in major churches in the North West.  A misericord – also known as a mercy seat-is a small wooden shelf underneath the folding seats in churches which offers some solace to the weary monks, obliged to stand during long periods of prayer. The carvings underneath these seats are also known as misericords. These carvings are some of the very best examples of mediaeval craftsmanship but when they were carved their subject matter was not considered fit for the eyes of the general public. They were hidden away in the holiest part of the church where no-one save the monks  and priests were allowed to venture.  “The carvings depict the real humour of the world as it was understood by late mediaeval monks, clergy and carvers in the North West. Some are humourous, worldly wise, rude or even anticlerical. Their messages and teachings are far more complex than those images found elsewhere in churches”.