The Church of St John the Baptist, Barnack is a Church of England parish church in the village of

Barnack Barnack is a village and civil parish, now in the Peterborough unitary authority of the ceremonial county of Cambridgeshire, England and the historic county of Northamptonshire. Barnack is in the north-west of the unitary authority, south-east ...

, now in the City of Peterborough

unitary authority A unitary authority is a local authority responsible for all local government functions within its area or performing additional functions that elsewhere are usually performed by a higher level of sub-national government or the national governmen ...

area of the ceremonial county of

Cambridgeshire Cambridgeshire (abbreviated Cambs.) is a county in the East of England, bordering Lincolnshire to the north, Norfolk to the north-east, Suffolk to the east, Essex and Hertfordshire to the south, and Bedfordshire and Northamptonshire to the ...

, England. Barnack was part of the

Soke of Peterborough The Soke of Peterborough is a historic area of England associated with the City and Diocese of Peterborough, but considered part of Northamptonshire. The Soke was also described as the Liberty of Peterborough, or Nassaburgh hundred, and comp ...

, an historic area that was traditionally part of

Northamptonshire Northamptonshire (; abbreviated Northants.) is a county in the East Midlands of England. In 2015, it had a population of 723,000. The county is administered by two unitary authorities: North Northamptonshire and West Northamptonshire. It is ...

. Barnack is south-east of Stamford in

Lincolnshire Lincolnshire (abbreviated Lincs.) is a Counties of England, county in the East Midlands of England, with a long coastline on the North Sea to the east. It borders Norfolk to the south-east, Cambridgeshire to the south, Rutland to the south-we ...

. The church is a

Grade I listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

. The church, dedicated to

John the Baptist John the Baptist or , , or , ;Wetterau, Bruce. ''World history''. New York: Henry Holt and Company. 1994. syc, ܝܘܿܚܲܢܵܢ ܡܲܥܡܕ݂ܵܢܵܐ, Yoḥanān Maʿmḏānā; he, יוחנן המטביל, Yohanān HaMatbil; la, Ioannes Bapti ...

, is noted in particular for its Anglo-Saxon tower to which was added a spire of circa 1200, possibly one of the earliest spires in England. In the north aisle is a large

Romanesque sculpture Romanesque art is the art of Europe from approximately 1000 AD to the rise of the Gothic style in the 12th century, or later depending on region. The preceding period is known as the Pre-Romanesque period. The term was invented by 19th-century ...

of a seated

Christ in Majesty Christ in Majesty or Christ in Glory ( la, Maiestas Domini) is the Western Christian image of Christ seated on a throne as ruler of the world, always seen frontally in the centre of the composition, and often flanked by other sacred figures, whos ...

that was discovered under the floor in 1931. Estimates of the date of the Christ vary widely, from the latter part of the 10th century to circa 1200; the Corpus of Romanesque Sculpture in Britain and Ireland settles on the late 12th century. Simon Jenkins gives the church four stars in his ''England's Thousand Best Churches'' (1999) and highlights as features the tower, the stiff-leaf font and the Christ in Majesty. The height of the surviving Saxon work in the tower is 55 feet (17 metres), topped by an octagon and spire of 59 feet high (18 metres), giving a total height to the base of the weathervane of 114 feet (35 metres). Flannery, Julian (2016). ''Fifty English Steeples: The Finest Medieval Parish Church Towers and Spires in England''.

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

, New York, United States:

Thames and Hudson Thames & Hudson (sometimes T&H for brevity) is a publisher of illustrated books in all visually creative categories: art, architecture, design, photography, fashion, film, and the performing arts. It also publishes books on archaeology, history, ...

. pp. 64–69. .

Gallery

File:St.John the Baptist's church, Barnack - geograph.org.uk - 204111.jpg, St John from the southeast showing the Lady Chapel File:A thousand years old - geograph.org.uk - 204116.jpg, The Anglo-Saxon tower File:Saxon doorway - geograph.org.uk - 204121.jpg, Anglo-Saxon south doorway in the tower File:Barnack Churchyard - geograph.org.uk - 204123.jpg, Gravestones in the Churchyard File:Barnack - geograph.org.uk - 204124.jpg, Distant view from the north File:Barnack - KMB - 16001000154286.jpg, Porch and south aisle, photographed in 1926 by

Berit Wallenberg Anna Berit Wallenberg (19 February 1902 – 4 September 1995) was a Swedish archaeologist, anthropologist, art historian, photographer, and philanthropist. She established a research foundation, the Berit Wallenberg Foundation, that awards funds ...

References

External links

Church services information

{{DEFAULTSORT:Barnack, John the Baptist 11th-century church buildings in England Churches in Peterborough Church of England church buildings in Cambridgeshire Grade I listed churches in Cambridgeshire Standing Anglo-Saxon churches