Misericord from the chancel at Cartmel Priory, Cumbria, copyright author
Diana Mary Rose, author of Atlantis and Gaia, out now with O-Books
Gaia’s artistry is another name for a carpenter, or indeed a joiner. Gaia instructs her soul folk at home in the higher sphere to produce the best version of Gaia there is, And here it is. A version of truth carefully crafted by the woodman of local ability. All souls come fully aware of their abiliteis. They do what is necessary to become the greatest artist there is. Many fail obviously, but you know what they try. This local craftsman is excellent.
I’m going to show you here, just how good that local craftsman is through his imagery and symbolic awareness.
The local church or abbey would pay their men a pittance for their work. However, they would give them shelter and that mattered back then. They would pay for them to stay in a local hostel and come over daily for a month or so to create a new chancel in all its glorious viewing. This misericord is placed in the chancel of Cartmel Priory, close to Cartmel Sands within the ancient county of Lancashire. Today this is Cumbria. My woodman here would have been given a place to sleep while he worked away to his heart’s content on this lovable misericord, and multiple others Warmth and shelter made up for his pittance of a salary. He was secure for now at least.
The misericord of yew
I don’t know this but I assume that my misericord here is made of ancient yew. That would be the local forest where yew was procured. Yew is the ancient symbol for Gaia, and most likely a misericord would follow that principle. Gaia represents hope and also renewal. That is the yew. If not, well, oak would be the next best thing, for oaks are stable. Oaks represent time.. But for the sake of my article on Gaia I will hope and also assume that the misericord here is made of yew,
Yew represents winter and the solstice moment when Father Gaia, that old version of Father Christmas, would take to his haunches and display his ambivalence about the weather. He would look both ways, rather like Father Janus, and keep a look out for you, the proletariat, on a winter’s morning. People were superstitious back then. They would carve ancient thoughts into their wooden artistry within the church. The local folk well away from London tended to retain their pagan beliefs.
Misericords are benches in the chancel of an ancient medieval cathedra. This means that they were used in places of worship to sit on, or rest against, while singing took place. That would be choral work today.. Choristers might enjoy the odd joke at the expense of the king here, for he was a butt for many a clerical joke outside of London. Misericords were a popular art form back then.
Representations
Wood is a medium for artistry . It can be crafted easily into faces as here, mythological creatures, indeed anything. I’ve seen an elephant before now. I would say this face is a king. He wears a crown too, a symbol of kingship. So he could be a king of the Earth realm, or indeed the king of a country. He is bisexual as well. His tufts of hair are wavy. That is an AC DC style of sexuality. Well, I am assuming here that the wood craftsman knew that. He could have simply believed he was carving out the king of the country for his employer. On the whole beards symbolises wis, or knowing. They are also wise counsel to God. This means they love you, the peasant who pops up on occasion for a sneak look around the chancel on a day out from working on the land. He would come and pray in the nave, but then on occasion walk within the chancel, unless chased out by a counsellor of God. That could be a deacon now. Chancels were sacred back then. You couldn’t just walk in and take a snap photo like I have just done above. You knew your place.
Chancels are for the few chosen by God, and not the proles who were only allowed to come and sit elsewhere. The beard is a feathered one. That suggests angelic realm to me. Feathers are to do with the angelic forces around us. Unless you were gay and then the entire picture could mean something else altogether.
My misericord’s eyes are piercing, and he sees. He knows. So is he a clairvoyant king, you ask me. No. I suggest this wood crafter here made him to order. He symbolises Richard 11 or maybe a King Henry. Who knows. He will represent whichever king was on the throne at the period the sculpture was blessed. The consecration date of the chancel is what I refer to, unless there was a later renovation.
Order and role
One thing is for sure, this misericord is an idealised portrait so to acknowledge the order of man. This means: king comes first, church comes second, and you the little person in town are nothing more than commonplace. The Middle Ages was hierarchical, and this excellent piece of wood sculpture reinforces that situation. Where is it? Well, I took this photo on holiday recently. It is placed securely in the chancel of Cartmel Abbey. That would be a Lancashire setting back then in the medieval period. It was also a location with a high calibre energy.