St Mary and St Peter's Church is an active
Anglican
Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christianity, Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the ...
parish church
A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the Church (building), church which acts as the religious centre of a parish. In many parts of the world, especially in rural areas, the parish church may play a significant role in com ...
in the village of
Barham near
Ipswich
Ipswich () is a port town and Borough status in the United Kingdom, borough in Suffolk, England. It is the county town, and largest in Suffolk, followed by Lowestoft and Bury St Edmunds, and the third-largest population centre in East Anglia, ...
. It contains a
Henry Moore
Henry Spencer Moore (30 July 1898 – 31 August 1986) was an English artist. He is best known for his semi-abstract art, abstract monumental Bronze sculpture, bronze sculptures which are located around the world as public works of art. Moore ...
statue of Madonna and the Child originally held at
St Peter, Claydon. It is in the deanery of Bosmere, part of the archdeaconry of Ipswich, and the
Diocese of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich.
History
A church is recorded as being within the village of Barham in the
Domesday Book
Domesday Book ( ; the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book") is a manuscript record of the Great Survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 at the behest of William the Conqueror. The manuscript was originally known by ...
. Architectural features in the tower of
long-and-short work (or quoins), which is typical of Anglo-Saxon architecture, suggests the church dates from Saxon times. It was known as St Mary from at least 1538, when the parishioners included the inhabitants of Barham Green. In 1975, the parish extended to include the village of
Claydon, and when
St Peter's Church in Claydon was officially made redundant, St Mary was retitled as St Mary and St Peter.
Monuments
The best-known monument in the church is that of the
Henry Moore
Henry Spencer Moore (30 July 1898 – 31 August 1986) was an English artist. He is best known for his semi-abstract art, abstract monumental Bronze sculpture, bronze sculptures which are located around the world as public works of art. Moore ...
statue of Madonna and Child originally held at
St Peter's Church, Claydon. Crafted as a war memorial in commemoration for those in the village who died in the Second World War it was moved to St Mary after the closure of St Peter.
Other monuments and brasswork have been part of the church but were removed or destroyed over the course of its history.
In the chancel of the church were monuments to Jon Southwell, grandfather to
Thomas Bedingfield as well as a tomb used for the burial of an unnamed inhabitant of the local estate of
Shrubland Hall
Shrubland Palace, Coddenham, Coddenham, Suffolk, is an historic English Palace with planned gardens in Suffolk, England, built in the 1770s.
The Palace was used by the Royal Family members and briefly reopened as a hotel, restaurant and spa in ...
.
Current status
St Mary and St Peter's Church was
listed at Grade I on 9 December 1955.
Communion services, using the
Book of Common Worship are offered on every Sunday morning at 8am except on the fifth Sunday of a month.
On the first Sunday of each month a shorter communion service based on the Book of Common Worship is held at 10am, on the second and fourth Sundays a full communion service is held at 10am.
On the third Sunday of each month at 10am a community worship service is held. This service is aimed at a wider age range of the congregation including families with children, adults and those with little or no experience of the Church. The services are often run by community groups or local charitable organisations otherwise unaffiliated with the Church itself.
Where a 5th Sunday falls within a month a family communion service is held at one of the three parishes served by the same parish grouping. One in three of these is held at St Mary and St Peter; the others being held at
St Mary's Church, Great Blakenham or
St Peter's Church, Henley.
Notable clergy
William Kirby 1782–1850
Entomologist
See also
*
Grade I listed buildings in Suffolk
As of April 2006 there were 410 Grade I listed buildings in Suffolk, England. In the United Kingdom, the term listed building refers to a building or other structure officially designated as being of "exceptional architectural or historic specia ...
References
{{reflist, 30em
Church of England church buildings in Suffolk
Grade I listed churches in Suffolk