The Bells of Drayton, Norfolk

Описание: The Victorians were generally busy in the suburbs of Norwich, and the interior of St Margaret is as crisp and neat as the outside. But I liked it for this; it felt a busy place, obviously well loved and looked after, with the smell of lilies and wood polish that are evocative of the pride of that century before we were born. The church was pretty much rebuilt during the third quarter of that century, a process made necessary by the tower collapsing into the nave in 1850.

The restoration has left a great curiosity. When the chancel arch was rebuilt further east, and an aisle added to the north, the stone entrance to the old rood loft stairway was rescued, and now sits like a sentry box in the north arcade. There are two excellent panels of continental glass in a south window. One depicts Anna at the Presentation in the Temple, while the other is a beautiful Visitation, the Blessed Virgin placing her comforting hand on the arm of the elderly St Elizabeth, their eyes meeting in an expression of hope. Interestingly, the window sill beneath it has a piscina drain set into it, showing that there was once an altar here.
The east end of the north aisle forms a little chapel, and the glass in the north corner is a beautiful etched glass rendition of the Blessed Virgin and child.

The bells themselves form one of the nicest peals of bells in Norfolk. They were cast in 1966 by Mears & Stainbank of Whitechapel, but the tenor was recast in 1968 - I presume because it cracked. The bells are serviced every year, until its closure by the Whitechapel Bell Foundry and now by John Taylor & Co of Loughborough. The bells are kept in very good condition, and they are very easy to ring and are very evenly struck. They are rung from the ground floor of the church. The tenor weighs 1lb shy of 8 hundredweight, at 7cwt 3qtrs 27lbs and it is tuned to 'A'.

-o0o- Infomation -o0o-
Location: St Margaret's Church, Drayton, Norfolk.
Bells: 6 bells, 7-3-27cwt in A. Mears & Stainbank 1966 & 1968.
Date: Saturday 2nd April 2022.

-------------------------------------------------------------_o0o_----------------------------------------------------------------
** If you feel like making a donation towards the cost of producing the videos it would be very much appreciated. If you donate through our Patreon page, you will unlock access to regular behind-the-scenes content and more! Follow the link below to find our page!

P A T R E O N :
⇢ *Ringer Ollie Patreon Page: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=7161380


** Follow My Socials! **
Twitter:   / ringerollie  
Instagram:   / ollie_w_03  
Blog: https://ringerollieblogs.blogspot.com/
Website: https://oliverepwatson.weebly.com/

© Ringer Ollie 2021
(Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988)