In the late 19th century the screen was brought back
from Nuremberg having been purchased by the Reverend
William Herbert Seddon from a local antique dealer
J.Christian Wohlbold who also supplied a number
of pieces to the Germanisches National Museum. In
1890 he donated it to St Mary’s Church, Painswick,
Gloucester* and it remained in use as the chancel screen
until repairs to the church necessitated its removal in the
1940s.
The six panels are filled by a series of intricate and
interlaced geometrical patterns combined with incised
leafy fronds and foliage. The two central panels are
surmounted by an elaborate crest of scrolling leafy
tendrils and stylised winged cherubs flanked by foliated
and spiral pinnacles.
Similar examples of this kind of decorative wrought
ironwork can be found in the Germanisches National
museum and the Victoria & Albert museum but the
closest parallel is a pair of wrought iron gates dated 1649
in front of one of the portals on the south side of St
Lorenz Church, Nuremberg.
This magnificent screen, a rare survival outside
Nuremburg, demonstrates, despite losses and minor
restorations, the skill of the blacksmith at the highest
level.
*Hyett, Francis A’Glimpses of the History of Painswick’
pp 40-41 1928
Garden Ornament
Gates
