T for trefoil

The trefoil is an outline drawing which consists of three overlapping rings.

In Christianity, it is used to symbolise the trinity; God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. If you look around a Christian church, it is possible to spot quite a few trefoils. These were all taken inside Holy Trinity, Low Moor, Bradford.

On the lectern...

in the roof joists...

...and on the carvings of the old stone font.

Today is T day at Alphabe-Thursday.

M is for magi

For us, Christmas is well and truly over for another year, decorations are safely stowed and work probably seems like it has continued without pause, but in some traditions, today is celebrated as the day Jesus was born.

In the Western church, January 6th is Epiphany, the day which marks the coming of the magi to the birthplace of Jesus, so I thought I'd set a little magi quiz to see how much you know about these characters who we probably see each Christmas.

Which of these do you think are true and which are false?

1. There were three magi (wise men).

2. They were astronomers who studied the stars

3. The magi travelled East because of a star which they had spotted in the night sky.

4. They rode on camels.

5. They were expecting to find a baby king.

6. They brought gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh.

7. They went to King Herod, who hadn't got a clue what they were talking about.

8. Herod asked them to tell him the location of this new baby king, so that he could go and worship him too.

9. Herod secretly meant to kill Jesus.

10. The magi arrived at the stable to visit Jesus.

11. They went back to Herod.

12. In order to get rid of Jesus, Herod had every boy in Bethlehem, under the age of 2 years, killed.

13. Jesus and his parents escaped to Nazereth.

How do you think you did? The answers are below.

The ones which are not true are:

1. The Bible does not specify the number of magi, just the number of gifts.
3. I'm sure you spotted the sneaky one here! They came from the East, which means they travelled West!
4. No mention of camels either, but they look good on Christmas cards.
10. The magi did not visit Jesus in the stable. They must have come some time after the birth because the Bible says they visited him in the 'house' where he was staying. - Oops, all of those stable nativity scenes with magi :)
11, The didn't go back to Herod. They were warned in a dream and went home by a different route.
13. Jesus and his parents escaped to Egypt and didn't return to Nazareth until Herod had died.

How did you do? And, more importantly, did you find it fun?

For much more fun elsewhere, mosey over to Jenny Matlock's and Alphabe-Thursday It's good stuff :)

Holy Trinity, Low Moor

Holy Trinity, Low Moor is one of the sister churches to St Mary's Wyke. The local CE Primary School were in the church when we arrived, rehearsing for their Christmas carol concert. By now, they will have performed for parents.

Of course I wouldn't photograph someone else's children, but it was lovely to hear them singing and to see all of the nativity costumes; typical tea-towel head-dresses for shepherds and Joseph, lots of animal ears for sheep, cows, camels and the inevitable 'Little Donkey', unwanted velor curtains for the cloaks of the kings! It's exactly what they need to extract the parental "Ooooh"s and "Aaaaah"s.

Meanwhile, outside, the sun was still shining and I just had to photograph yet another graveyard with all those stone designs, beautifully set off by the holly, snow, sunlight and shadows.

And how handy to have a lunch-serving pub over the road!!

St Mary's Wyke, graveyard

The graveyard at St Mary's used to be bigger, but some of the memorials were relocated when the new extension was added.

When I took this photo, I was wondering if SCHORAH was Hebrew or Greek. Turns out it's neither. Apparently, the Schorah family was big around these parts some years back :) Doesn't sound typically Yorkshire!

I loved the shape and design on some of the other crosses in the graveyard, but it was difficult to find good angles without trampling through the snow and I didn't want to do that because I couldn't quite make out where the smaller paths were. I didn't really want to go marching over someone's grave.

This last one is by the front gate of the church. I was attracted by the simple obelisk-like shape and also the distant view behind.

Wyke

It was a beautiful day on Wednesday; sunny, crisp, clear and freezing cold! (though not quite so freezing cold as Tuesday), so I grabbed the opportunity to take some snow photos up north, before I headed back down the M1.

This is the church of St Mary the Virgin, in Wyke, which is in the Parish of South Bradford. It's one of three linked churches; the other two being Holy Trinity, Low Moor and St Andrew's, Oakenshaw.

Originally, Wyke was in the Parish of Birstall in the Diocese of Ripon, but in 1844, the Ecclesiastical Commissioners designated Wyke a parish in its own right and three years later, this church was built. In 1850, a school and vicarage were built nearby and much more recently, in 1993, a modern wing was added with a new church hall , community room, offices and kitchen. Part of the new addition can be seen in the photograph below.

The church is very active in the community, with groups meeting on the premises most days of the week (some specifically run by the church and others using the facilities) and services every Sunday. The Monday Club provides lunch and social activities for elderly people in and around Wyke; particularly those who would otherwise be housebound, and there are youth activities and uniformed organisations for the younger people. Once a month, there is also Messy Church, which offers craft and creative activities for all the family and, of course, there are Christmas activities imminent. Sounds like a fun place to belong!

Do you spot the visitor? Also, there are clocks on each of the four sides of this tower and my photos have captured all of them, but do you notice anything?

It's a very photogenic church in an elevated position, so I enjoyed crunching around in the sunshine.  Round the back, it looks like someone from the local housing estate has been having fun too; building a snowman :)

Special event

If you've been reading over the last couple of days, you can't fail to have noticed that I've been up to Bradford. Actually, more accurately, I've been up to Shipley, but Bradford was high on the agenda because of the specific reason for the visit.

I was invited to an event which was taking place here.

A Grade II listed building, designed by Henry Francis Lockwood and William Mawson and opened in 1853, St George's Hall is a neoclassical style sandstone construction just across the square from City Hall.

The concert hall originally had a capacity of 3,500. After interior remodelling, that is now reduced to 1,500, but it is still an impressive place with tiered seating on three levels. My seat was waaaaaay up on tier three; the Grand Tier!, so I had a birds eye view of proceedings.

But what were these proceedings?

The stage is set...

This is more of a clue...

The academic dress is a bit of a giveaway isn't it?! The College dignitaries are out in force while the Lord Mayor and Lady Mayoress take centre seats. The banner hangs proudly, if slightly askew, right of stage, the college principal takes the podium and the official recorder is ready to document recordings.

I was here to share in the ceremony of my good friend's graduation! He's worked very hard for his 'Post Compulsory Education and Training' teaching qualification, studying long hours whilst continuing to work in a half-time job, plus fit in some college teaching (which comes coupled with much preparation). He richly deserves this celebration of his success!

He may well grin :)

Nice one Sacristan!

Bradford City Hall

Bradford City Hall began life, in 1873, as Bradford Town hall, but was upgraded in recognition of the status of this ever growing conurbation. The building was designed by architects Lockwood and Mawon in respnse to a competition to design a town hall which would rival those of Leeds and Halifax.

It was intended to be Venetian in character but was built by the Shipley firm of John Ives & Son. Inspired by the town hall in Florence, the bell tower reaches a height of 220 feet and contains a peal of 13 bells which mark the quarter hours. They weigh 17 tons and play carols in December.

The clock was added in 1937.

Bradford by night

On Tuesday, I travelled up to Bradford in West Yorkshire and ended up here, on level 9 of the NCP car park, right near the centre of the city. It was about 16.45 and already dark. I was attracted to the lights and thought I'd see what I could capture on 'film'.

This is Bradford Interchange. Rebuilt in 2001, such bus companies as Arriva Yorkshire, First West Yorkshire, Centrebus and others, run services to cities and towns around West Yorkshire, as well as locally. From here, it is also posiible to catch a coach and one of the potential destinations is Derby :)

Add to this a railway station, and you can pretty much go wherever you want!

Looking in the other direction, is Bradford City Hall, a Grade I listed building in Centenary Square. In spite of being in the bottom of the valley, its distinctive tower can be seen from all around this hilly city, rising to a height of 220 feet (8 feet higher than the cathedral tower in Derby). With the steam from the heating vents curling around the base of the tower and across the face of the clock, the effect was decidedly atmospheric.

Looking along the road is Jacob's Well, named after the pub to the left of the scene, with the Central Library dominating the centre of the shot and the National Media Museum to the right. The tall building behind the Media Museum is the ice skating rink which now also contains many student flats.

Although this last one is not a good shot, I included it because I saw a photo of this building and poster on someone else's blog on Tuesday morning not long after I arrived in West Yorkshire, and then saw it 'in the flesh' twice on Tuesday and once on Wednesday! I'll let JennyFreckles tell you all about it because she is much better informed about the whole complex than I am.

Looking over Bradford

One of the distinctive features of West Yorkshire is the juxtaposition of moorland with urban sprawl. This photograph was taken from a quiet moorland, populated mainly by birds and the odd dog walker, but looks out over the busy city of Bradford.

Bradford began as a village in Saxon times, it's name meaning Broad Ford since it grew around the confluence of three brooks. It is recorded in the Domesday book of 1086 as having a population of around 300 - 350 people. Today, it is slightly larger, being in the region of 467,000.

A number of factors contributed to Bradford's growth into a significant urban area. It became a town when it was granted permission to hold a market and, in 1461, was allowed to hold two annual fairs, to which buyers and sellers from all over Yorkshire would travel. The local woollen industry continued to grow and by the sixteenth century, the town was servicing a significant number of cottage weavers. There was also a tanning industry in the town.

The town had a difficult time around the English Civil war, being a Parliamentarian stronghold in the midst of a sea of Royalist support. It was attacked on a number of occasions and eventually sacked by the Royalists. When it was abandoned by them in 1644, the Parliamentarians moved back in, but within a year, Bradford was hit by her second bout of the plague. 

It was not until the late seventeenth century that Bradford once again became prosperous when the local textile industry began to combine wool with cotton to make worsted cloth. This put the town in the ideal position to take advantage of the Industrial Revolution. By 1841, there were 38 worsted mills in the town and 70 in the borough (including Lister Mill to the right of the photograph below). Bradford was the wool capital of the world and, by 1851, the population had grown to 103,000, many of whom lived in appalling conditions.The infrastructure of the city began to take shape with gas lit streets, drains and sewers and piped water. An infirmary was built in 1843 and Peel Park opened in 1863. In 1846, the railway reached the city and by 1898, electric trams ran through the streets.

The textile industry continued to be important in Bradford until it's decline after the second world war. For a while, it's place was taken by the manufacture of tractors and televisions, but recession and mass unemployment hit in the 1980s. The economy diversified and survived through engineering, printing, packaging and chemical industries. Tourism was also something of a lifeline, with a number of museums being opened reflecting the history of the city.

When I mention Bradford to friends who live away from the city, I get a mixed reaction. It is known as a strongly multicultural city with significant populations of Bangladeshis, Pakistanis, Indians and Afro-Carrribeans. In itself, this is not a problem, but the riots of 1995 and 2001 still remain in memories. On the other hand, some of my friends have visited the National Media Museum and speak highly of their visits to the city, saying it is a very friendly place.

For an outsider, the truth is always difficult to perceive, but I remember teaching a lad in London. He moved down from Bradford and into my class very soon after the beginning of the year, but his family didn't stay long. One morning, after about six months, he came into the classroom and announced that he was leaving. When I asked him why his reply was very clear "My dad says we can go back Miss. It's much better in Bradford than it is down here."

Ground floor gallery

According to the Visitors Guide,

The 1853 Gallery is so named because that was the year the Victorian Mill was originally opened for manufacturing fabrics.

The Victorian Mill in question is that built by Sir Titus Salt close to the market town of Shipley in the West Riding of Yorkshire and alongside the waters of the River Aire. Now renovated, the ground floor is given over to the 1853 Gallery, which houses a permanent exhibition of works by the Bradford born artist David Hockney. http://www.davidhockney.com/

My first impression of the gallery was the airy feel of the large, high roofed room with its regimented rows of tall arched windows and beautiful stone tiled floor. The second was of colour. Many of Hockney's paintings are awash with colour and the vibrancy of the artwork gives a surprisingly modern feel to the historic building.

I'd be hard pushed to say what caught my eye the most, but I was drawn to this display of pottery; just one part of the much larger Burmantoft Pottery Exhibition.




There was something strangely satisfying about the combination of the pattern, colour, shape and size of the pieces, arranged in juxtaposition, which just made me want to look.