Martin M. Miles' photos with the keyword: mouth of hell

The town and castle date back to the founding of the Norman noble family Lacy. Walter de Lacy was given land here by William the Conqueror for his participation in the Battle of Hastings. He and his descendants founded the town and equipped it with strong fortifications. Following the Norman tradition, a wooden motte was first erected on a mound of earth. The oldest surviving stone part of the castle is the inner courtyard, which was built between 1086 and 1094 by Walter de Lacy's son Roger de Lacy. The town was expanded by donations from the de Lacy family and was first mentioned in a document in 1138. In 1177, the town is said to have already had 1172 inhabitants. In 1306, the town and castle passed to the Mortimer family by inheritance. During the Wars of the Roses, Ludlow Castle was briefly the headquarters of the leaders of the House of York: the future Edward IV lost the Battle of Ludlow in 1459, which led to his flight abroad and the provisional victory of the House of Lancaster. A parish church was established in the late 11th century. It is situated atop the hill around which the medieval town developed. After its initial construction the church was expanded and rebuilt in 1199 to accommodate a growing town population. In the late Middle Ages considerable wealth accrued to the town based upon the wool trade. Correspondingly the church underwent several further additions in that era. The major works occurred between 1433 and 1471 with a virtual re-building of the nave, tower and chancel elements. Two scenes of the choir stalls. Above: A mermaid flanked by two fish. She holds a mirror in her hand and symbolises vanity Below: On the left the devil, on the right the mouth of hell. In the centre, two woodwoses, the devil's assistants. The one on the right is holding a bagpipe, the one on the left has a drunken sinner on his shoulder.

Vicofertile, located at the old Via Francigena, is meanwhile is a small suburb of the City of Parma. A church probably existed in Vicofertile already within the 9th century, but the church mentioned in a document from 1039 was smaller than the church seen here. Excavations found the foundations about 50cms under the floor of San Geminiano. Today´s church was erected around 1200. The roof burned down in 1325, but got rebuilt soon after. The church got modified a couple of times, but a a restoration undertaken in the early 20th century got rid of all interior Baroque additions. The capitals were probably created around 1220/1230 - and all six are somehow enigmatic. Is the Mouth of Hell in the dark corner??