The Corbels of St Swithin’s Church, Compton Bassett

Churches up and down the country are strewn with interesting medieval architectural detail. In this respect, St Swithin’s is no different.

Sitting level with the 15th-century clerestory, a row of stone corbels supports the oak timbers of the barrel-vaulted ceiling, with further rows of wooden corbels above these. But what are these structures and who, or what, do they represent?

The word corbel comes from old French and derives from the Latin corbellus, meaning ‘raven’. Equally, the French refer to a bracket-corbel or corbeau, again indicating a clear linguistic link to ravens, crows – corvids. There are two interpretations for this link: that the often beak-like nature of many corbels is indicative of a corvid; or that their position mimics perched or roosting corvids sitting high above a congregation. Either way, the term corbel has arrived with us, for use in sacral as well as secular settings.

As above, corbels have an important architectural purpose: in their original form, a type of bracket to bear weight. As the skill of masons developed through the Norman (Romanesque) period, into the Gothic, utilitarian purpose blended with more ambitious design, often loaded with meaning. These either tended to take an overtly religious form – angels, scenes of The Passion, etc. – or an earthlier iteration – kings, clergymen, and local gentry. Furthermore, as ceilings themselves became more ornate, corbels helped to create the appearance of suspending the heavens above. As we shall see below, the corbels of St Swithin’s share this mix of structural need and symbolic design.

The style and location of the corbels follow a regular pattern: the stone corbels sit mid-level in the clerestory, interspersed between the windows, running the length of the nave. On both the north and south walls running left to right; they alternatively represent bishops and kings (B, K, B, K). There are eight stone figures in total. They have a practical purpose in structurally supporting the heightened wall of the clerestory, helping carry the weight of the (extended) roof. 

These are almost certainly representations of kings and bishops rather than an attempt at true likeness. Prior to the early modern period, the most common, or indeed only, image of a monarch that the vast swathe of the population would have seen was through coinage. The good parishioners of Compton Bassett may have chosen to name their corbels, based on favourite kings or bishops, but the original sculptor was creating idealistic forms.    

The wooden corbels are placed higher than their stone counterparts, running the length of the base of the 15th-century wooden, barrel-vaulted roof, forming the top of the clerestory. Here, the alternating pattern is corrupted on the north side (from left: M, F, M, M, F, F, M) for unknown reasons. The south side, however, seems to maintain the otherwise male/female arrangement (from left: M, F, M, F, M, F, M), although deterioration through ageing makes some examples hard to determine. They are almost certainly more decorative in their purpose, perhaps helping to cover joints like a boss. 

Whilst the creator of the wooden corbels might have had specific individuals in mind when carving them, their common features (almond eyes, flared nostrils) indicate generic characters. The hatted individuals are almost certainly of mid-ranking social status – lawyers, merchants, masons; whilst those without headgear are likely to represent farmers and land workers.

Above each of the wooden corbels sits a small shield or crest. The decoration of both the corbels and the shields disappeared either in the Reformation (or naturally, through the passage of time), rendering an explanation merely guesswork. Were these figures representing guilds? Did they represent important families within the community? Either way, the corbels of St Swithin’s – much like most of the interior – would once have been awash with colour.

We can be as certain as possible that the wooden corbels are contemporaneous with the extension of the roof in the 15th century. Furthermore, the similarity in their facial characteristics suggests the same hand completed them all. The stone corbel carving hints at the work of another artist; eyes, nose and countenance contrast with their wooden cousins. They almost certainly date to the same period – the 15th century: not only do they equate stylistically but they currently sit on or above the wall plate that would have run along the top of the wall supporting the previous pitched roof. There is no evidence of them being moved to correspond with the introduction of a clerestory.

The corbels of St Swithin’s have endured both the ravages of time and the disapproving eye of the iconoclasts. Weathered as they are, they continue to keep an eye on parishioners and visitors alike.

JEFF WHEELER

Sources

Reynolds, A. 1993. A Survey of the Parish Church of St Swithin at Compton Bassett, Wiltshire. Wiltshire Archaeological and Natural History Magazine Vol. 86.

Halsey, Richard. 2015. Interpreting Medieval Corbel Structure. Building Conservation Magazine. 

Orme, Nicholas. 2022. Going to Church in Medieval England. Yale University Press.

Taylor, Richard. 2003. How to Read a Church. Ebury Press.