Since June I have been out and about exploring areas of Suffolk that are largely new to me and visiting lots of ancient village churches. In total I have visited and photographed around 60 churches most of which I had not previously been to.
Now with some wet weather I have started processing those photos. First up is Battisford. The main reason it comes first is because I liked it a lot.
I visited twice, once on a cloudy day, and then went back as soon as I could when the sun was out. The first time I approached from the relatively high land to the west, the second up a narrow climbing lane from the Needham Market to Bildeston road.
The church is on a bend in the lane with only a few cottages nearby. It’s quite a secluded spot and deeply rural in nature. The building is small with a simple intimate interior. I particularly liked the ancient churchyard with its mature lime trees and inside the interesting patterned stained glass from 1902. My guide to Nineteenth Century Suffolk Stained Glass by Birkin Haward describes the glass as ‘mildly Art Nouveau’ and suggests that the unknown artist was possibly local.
My pictures of Battisford are available on www.geogphotos.com ( use the search function)
Also in a gallery within the Suffolk churches archive on www.geographyphotos.com I’m not linking to the actual gallery in the hope that you might look a round a little!
