Dr Sally Spong
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drsalspong.bsky.social
Dr Sally Spong
@drsalspong.bsky.social
1.2K followers 1.5K following 440 posts
Medievalist. First gen. Obsessed with all things 1050-1250. Political, cultural, social history, England & France. Currently researching women and rebellion. #churchcrawling. Annoyed by (VERY) Long Covid. Owned by a mini wire-haired Dachshun
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drsalspong.bsky.social
Fallen angels. #stoneworkSunday All Saints, Southill
Two medieval stone corbels, depicting angels holding books. They've ended up tucked into a corner of the church, balanced on an old crate.
November 16, 2025 at 11:10 AM
drsalspong.bsky.social
Feast day of St Martin of Tours. 15th C Laon Cathedral #medieval
Statue of a man dressed in the uniform of a Roman soldier, on horseback, turning to face the viewer. His leg, and both arms are missing, but his cloak (the main part of his legend) is visible to the left, draped over both Martin and his horse.
November 11, 2025 at 11:06 AM
drsalspong.bsky.social
Laon Cathedral
Memorial to the dead of the Great War. Above the text are the emblems for India, Canada, New Zealand, South Africa and Newfoundland. The text is in both English and French, and reads: To the glory of God and to the memory of one million dead of the British Empire who fell in the Great War 1914-1918 and of whom the greater part rest in France
November 9, 2025 at 9:22 AM
drsalspong.bsky.social
Walking on gorgeous Therfield Heath today, so here are some #tombsonTuesday. The Heath is an ancient chalk landscape and home to tumuli and barrows spanning several thousand years. Most of it is still common land. More info in alt text. Bonus points for spotting smol dog
View of hilly grassland, some of which has been mown as it's a golf course. On the centre right is a wood, of which this section is mostly beech trees. A chalk path can be seen on the left, winding up the hill. To it's right is a round tumuli emerging from the rough grass. Another tumuli can just be seen on the top of the hill, up and to the right of the first. These are both early bronze age. At the bottom left of image is a wire-haired dachshund, snuffling about in the grass. This image shows the next ridge along. Again, the chalk path can be seen to the left and to its right three tumuli are visible on the crest of the hill. To their right, a neolithic long barrow can just be seen on the horizon.
November 4, 2025 at 6:11 PM
drsalspong.bsky.social
An early #mementomoriMonday for All Hallows Eve.
Gravestone covered in lichen, moss, and shrouded by ivy. The top of the stone displays carved shrouded curtains, which are tied back to reveal a skull.
October 31, 2025 at 8:35 PM
drsalspong.bsky.social
Spotted in the wall at Bath Spa Uni yesterday @pavementgeology.bsky.social #stoneworkSunday
The wall of a building containing a large-ish fossil used as construction material. The fossil looks like an ammonite, but I could be completely wrong!
October 26, 2025 at 9:42 AM
drsalspong.bsky.social
'Alexa. Show me a dog who has totally got it made.' #dogsofbsky #dachshund
A very handsome* mini wire-haired dachshund lounging on a red sofa with his head propped on a cushion. *opinions are my own
October 21, 2025 at 12:43 PM
drsalspong.bsky.social
A reminder of life before vaccines. #memorialsMonday #earlymodern All Saints, Southill 📷 my own
Wall memorial to members of the Ringsted family, commemorating - amongst others - 'Four of their sons John, George, Charles, and Ralph, who were cut off in their bloom of life by that fatal distemper the small pox'
October 20, 2025 at 9:37 AM
drsalspong.bsky.social
Not much beats an autumnal Green Lane.
Image shows a sunken lane in north Herts. The bottom of the lane is deep is in fallen leaves, while the trees curve overhead to form a tunnel winding away down the hill.
October 18, 2025 at 7:49 AM
drsalspong.bsky.social
Designed by Sir Albert Richardson in 1937 and dedicated to Joscelyne Whitbread, daughter of Samuel Howard and Madeline Whitbread, who died in 1936, aged 29. All Saints, Southill. #fontsonFriday @poorfrankraw.co.uk any idea who did the lettering? 📷 my own More info in alt text
Beautifully carved round bowl of pale stone, sitting on a slim pedestal. This is mounted on a small octagonal base, which sits on a larger octagonal surround, all of the same stone. Around the edge of the basin is carved the name Joscelyne Whitbread. The Whitbreads were a local Bedfordshire family who made their fortune from brewing. Since 1795 the family have owned and lived in Southill Park, next to the church. My ancestors are documented as living in the village from as early as the first surviving records in the 1500s.
October 17, 2025 at 9:25 AM
drsalspong.bsky.social
Nature doing what nature does. Autumnal churchyard bench #woodensday 📷 my own
Part of a wooden bench covered in vigorously growing moss and lichens.
October 15, 2025 at 6:55 AM
drsalspong.bsky.social
Exquisite. 2 of 4 semi-circular enamels depicting the evangelists. End of 12th beginning of 13th century. Troyes cathedral treasury. 📷 my own #medievalMonday more info in alt text
Set together to form a circle, each enamel is set in gold and surrounded by precious stones (including, I think, citrines and an amethyst), with floral and filigree gold decorative work surrounding them. Some of the other stones appear to be intaglios, though it's hard to make out what they show. Even though there wasn't any information on the display, my guess is that they are probably re-used Roman intaglios. The left semi-circle depicts Matthew as an angel, while the right is an eagle to represent John.
October 13, 2025 at 11:54 AM
drsalspong.bsky.social
Lovely people of Suffolk (and nearby bits of Cambs & Essex). Happening on Oct 11th in Suffolk's smallest town to fundraise for the school. Bar, Food, and laughs!
claredoescustardcomedy.eventbrite.co.uk
October 6, 2025 at 8:44 PM
drsalspong.bsky.social
#medievalMonday Laon Cathedral 📷 my own
Image of cathedral nave, with aisles visible through early gothic arches. At the far end is a massive rose window filled with medieval stained glass, with three lancet windows underneath it, also filled with medieval stained glass. The nave does not have much seating, giving it a much more authentic medieval feel.
October 6, 2025 at 8:16 AM
drsalspong.bsky.social
What lies beneath. #ceilingsonSunday #alwayslookup Église Saint-Pantaléon, Troyes. Repairs ongoing... 📷 my own More info in alt text
The wooden ceiling of the church - which should be covered and decorated - can be seen exposed. The planks have the remnants of plaster on them, so are off-white in colour. The ceiling bosses can clearly be seen at the intersections. The ceiling is supported by pillars which have been seriously baroqued in the middle and upper sections. The church itself is a total mash-up of architectural styles, all slamming into each other, but is crazily appealing. It wins the prize for the most plastic flowers and lace doilies around an altar I have ever seen, and desperately needs a lot of money to stop more bits of it falling into the nave and aisles.
October 5, 2025 at 5:35 PM
drsalspong.bsky.social
A bit of late 17th century woodwork for #adoorableThursday Chapelle Notre-Dame de Compassion, Bulle, Switzerland
Carved, wooden doors into the church. The wood is light coloured (it looked like walnut), and decorated with scrolls, arches, pillars, cherub-heads, and flowers. The date 1688 is on the surrounding stonework.
October 2, 2025 at 12:32 PM
drsalspong.bsky.social
Magnificent moustache #woodensday Bench end at St Peter's, Coton
Carved, wooden bench end of a man's head with a full, droopy moustache and long, curling beard.
October 1, 2025 at 12:35 PM
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Dating to 1472 (date on the fireplace), the Maison du Dauphin is one of the oldest house in Troyes. #medievalMonday 📷 my own
The beautifully wonky end-gable wall of a timber-framed house. The rendered walls are washed in an ochre colour, with the window frames and drain pipes in red. In front are cobbles, and to the left is a later building
September 29, 2025 at 2:31 PM
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Stunning stuff from the 13th century. #stainedglassSunday at Laon Cathedral 📷 my own. More info in alt text #medievalsky
3 lancet windows, with the central being the most visible. They are full of beautiful stained glass. The central window shows (bottom to top), the story of the crucifixion, beginning in the bottom left hand corner with Jesus riding into Jerusalem on a donkey. The windows are surrounded by slim Gothic arches of light coloured stone. The cathedral has introduced subtle lighting at the bottom and top of each window to enhance their impact and reflect the candlelight which would have originally lit the scene. Detail from the bottom of the window showing Jesus entering Jerusalem, the last supper, and the betrayal in the the garden of Gethsemane
September 28, 2025 at 7:24 AM
drsalspong.bsky.social
Early 12th century fabulousness for #fontsonFriday. St Peter's, Coton #medieval 📷 my own. More info in alt text
Description from the Corpus of Romanesque Sculpture. "The bowl is square and supported on five shafts, the four at the corners slender and modern, the central shaft thicker with a cushion base. The inner bowl is circular and lead lined. The faces of the bowl are carved with four different designs as follows: E face: sixbay arcade with block capitals and bases supporting semicircular intersecting arches. S face: five bay arcade with block capitals and no bases supporting semicircular arches. The arcade appears to lean alarmingly, but this is mainly due to inaccurate fitting of the bowl on its base. W face: Arcade of three bays without capitals or bases. Under each arch is a bundle of four-five vertical reeds. N face: three rows of lateral face chevron at the top meeting another three rows at the bottom point-to-point to form a horizontal row of lozenges at the centre of the face. That, at any rate, seems to have been the intention, but the whole thing is inaccurately carved and the second lozenge from the R is one unit of chevron higher than it should be." W face: Arcade of three bays without capitals or bases. Under each arch is a bundle of four-five vertical reeds. This photo also includes details of the inner font bowl and wooden lid
September 26, 2025 at 12:02 PM
drsalspong.bsky.social
Mind the gap. #adoorableThursday at Château de Gruyeres
Restored part of the castle, now a gallery and missing a floor. A doorway is set in the stonework above a window. The posts for the missing floor cane be seen on the right, below the door level.
September 25, 2025 at 7:05 PM
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Jettied building with carvings. Troyes, France. 📷 my own #earlymodern #woodensday
Carved, oak timbers, paled by weathering, support a tiled, timbered building. An iron bracket in the very top right of the image sticks out beyond the beams, showing how much shrinkage has happened due to age and damage.
September 24, 2025 at 7:01 AM
drsalspong.bsky.social
#medieval #towersonTuesday Laon Cathedral above the walls of the old hospital and 13th century cloisters. 📷 my own
Top of image L-R romanesque tower topped by grey tiles. Next an ornate early French gothic tower with 4 layers visible above the red-tiled roof of the cloister. This tower is topped by a small campanile. Foregrounding the top right of the image is street lamp hanging from a curled, iron wall holder. Bottom left is a gateway into the cloister containing a black, iron double gate. The buildings are both made of light coloured stone, darkened by age and pollution in places
September 23, 2025 at 9:29 AM
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Restored #earlymodern bling for #momentomoriMonday & #memorialsMonday for Andrew Downes, one of the translators of the King James Bible. Regius Prof. of Greek at Cambridge and one of six who revised the translation for publication. Died, aged 77, in 1627. Buried at St Peter's, Coton
Ornate memorial set on the bare brick wall of the chancel. Several parts indicate death and the passage of time: coloured gold, a skull and crossbones is set over a gold, crossed pick and shovel, and 2 hourglasses set on either side above Cambridge College coats of arms. The latin inscription white lettering on a black background, set inside a frame. 3 red tudor roses sit below, while a very bling angel with red and gold wings peeps over the top of the words. The memorial is topped by 3 red pillars crowned by gold balls
September 22, 2025 at 8:30 AM
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Yesterday, at a very warm St Peter's, Coton. #steepleSaturday #churchcrawling
Medieval church, renovated by the Victorians. Photo taken standing in the churchyard shows from right to left chancel with east end window, nave, south aisle with large late medieval window, tower with top 2 stages visible. Top stage has crenellations, with a steeple topped by a shiny, cockerel weather vane. Bright blue last-of-summer sky and a warm 27 degrees.
September 20, 2025 at 7:42 AM