Read the captions by hovering over the images, and click on them to see them enlarged. South Acre is little more than a church and a few houses, and the church is humble and homely in comparison with the splendour and delights of the nearby larger village. But inside this building is one of the most atmospheric and fascinating interiors in Norfolk, full of historical details and a sense of the numinous. It is one of my favourite small churches in England. Externally, the building is rather curious, its south and north sides being completely different in character.
The north face, which it turns to the road, is organic and earthy, full of 14th century grandeur. The south side is crisper and of the character of the 15th century, although I suspect this is mainly the result of 19th century restoration.
The entrance is from the north, and you step into a perfectly rural and ancient space, with brick floors spreading in all directions, and the rugged, primitive Norman font topped by a 16th century Perpendicular canopy which lifts the eyes to the beautiful hammerbeam roofs. To the east runs a homely, low arcade, dividing off the north aisle. This aisle contains the most significant feature of the church, the Barkham mausoleum of the early 17th century, behind a contemporary wrought iron screen.
Sir Edward Barkham, who died in , was a former Lord Mayor of London, and the memorial he shares with his wife Penelope is one of the most delightful in Norfolk. It was made by the Christmas Brothers, and features Sir Edward and Lady Penelope lying together, their heads facing west.
They are dressed elegantly in the clothes of the day, but it is really the details of the tomb which catch the eye: Life as a young girl, and death as a grinning, shrouded skeleton, flank the inscription, while an hour glass sprouts gilt wings. Below, two sons and three daughters kneel in prayer, but they seem distracted, lost in thought and peering around corners.
