We're just returned from a few days away in Shropshire, where we were able to explore many of the beautiful medieval churches of the county. There are many more parish churches than you might imagine and, unusually these days, many of them are always open to the public.
One of the most striking details of these churches are the pavement of medieval tiles. Perhaps it's an accident of survival, or perhaps this type of decoration took hold well in this area, but Shropshire certainly seems to have more than its fair share of two-colour tiled floors.
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In St Bartholomew's Church, Benthall
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| On the wall of the porch of St Giles' Church, Barrow |
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| Beside the Norman font in All Saints Church, Claverley |
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| In St James' Church, Shipton |
At the Jackfield Tile Museum there were loads of Victorian tiles which had taken inspiration from their medieval predecessors...
But the real reason for heading to Shropshire was to go to the wonderful Festival at the Edge. As well as being the best organised and friendliest festival going, they also have some of the very best performers. We enjoyed some of the world's greatest tale tellers who shared stories to make you think, laugh, cry, shiver and then laugh much more. It really is an amazing experience. Well worth making a diary date for next year's one, (15th-17th July 2016), which will be the 25th and so is going to be an extra special celebration.
We didn't get around to taking pictures at FatE, so to conclude, here are some 19th century tiles depicting folk tales which can be found in the museum at Jackfield...
