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This most recent find is a roof boss green man in the waterfront church at BERE FERRERS

The monastic church at BUCKLAND MONACHORUM has this striking, and strangely classical,
Green Man supporting part of an elaborate vaulted arcade.

 FRITHLESTOCK has this typical leaf-disgorging Green Man - once painted - on a capital as well as 3 of these strange skull-like gilded roof bosses. It is on record that, in the 14th century, the monks of the now ruined Frithlestock Priory, of which the church is all that remains, were discovered worshipping a statue of a Goddess at a woodland altar. The Bishop of Exeter castigated them, there was a spat between him and the Prior and the Prior is shown insulting the Bishop on a bench end in the church.

BARNSTAPLE - the fierce Green Man is on a shop; the capital in the church has a GM on each corner and probably dates from the restoration by Gilbert Scott.

BITTADON - in such a tiny church, the size of this memorial is overwhelming;
there is a Green Man and a skull at its base - which must have been terrifying
for generations of children spending Sunday sat beside them..

SHEBBEAR and BLACK TORRINGTON  -  These are a gravestone and a wall memorial respectively,
and might either represent life and resurrection, in that the leaves are growing out of death,
or they might represent death and corruption, the leaves parasitically
coming through the body in its decay.

from the Old Testament, Job 14:
"For there is hope of a tree, if it be cut down, that it will sprout again,
and that the tender branch thereof will not cease...
But man dieth, and wasteth away: yea, man giveth up the ghost, and where is he?"

Another, similar, design - this time above the church porch at MEAVY. Green Man or emblem of Death? Stems grow from the skull, which sits on a winged sandglass. There's also the rather Boschian funnel on the crown...

A strangely contradictory message - leaves as both Life and Death.

More hopefully, perhaps, one is reminded of a poem of e.e.cummings:
When God lets my body be // from each brave eye shall sprout a tree.

BURRINGTON - this wonderful fellow has awoken from a long sleep and is still a little dozey. There are two Green Men on the screen door, but placed upside-down.

CHITTLEHAMPTON - the Christ-like Green Man illuminated by light from a stained glass window.

....

CHULMLEIGH - No-one would find this tiny, inch-big Green Man on their own - a characature of some former rector,
according to the church warden... who hadn't heard of Green Men but knew every inch of his church.
Guarding over the screen door is this very colourful leafy king.

CLOVELLY - in all the hundreds of Green Men, this is the only example of an 'off-the-peg' Green Man I have seen.
A pair of them hold up a wall tablet here, they were originally painted but this has worn off.
The same design can also be seen at Colebrooke, Bishops Tawton and Exeter Cathedral.

COMBE MARTIN - These are above an ancient painted saint on the screen and on a stone capital.

EAST DOWN - dozens of Green Men in diferent style in this lovely church surrounded by a bluebell wood.
These Green Men are on the screen and on the unusual carved wooden font.

FREMINGTON - almost every corner of every capital in the church has a Green Man and there are many, such as this on a keystone, on the manor house beside the church.

ALWINGTON - these renaissance-style leaf masks are commonly found like this, in pairs, on bench ends.

ILFRACOMBE - the roof bosses have been recently restored but there is a pair of obviously ancient ones still on display and the 20th century screen also has the Green Man image.

MARWOOD - like East Down, the screen is filled with Green Men. Here, the leaves are like the sun. There is also this leafy ourobouros - a kind of dragon symbolising eternity.

NEWTON ST PETROC - This round Green Man is quite the size of a large dinner plate and confronts us as we enter the door. The other one is on one of those 'Glastonbury chairs', which are often found in churches here and are a kind of 'ecclesiastical deckchair'.

NORTHLEW - a green man on a benchend

PILTON - has a Green Man Festival based on one figure carved on the screen but this, lesser known, Green Man, is the most primitive I've yet seen - a skull, with cat's ears, disgorging leaves?

STOKE RIVERS - most Devon Green Men seem to be on the inside of the church, this one is on the outside, over the west door.

SUTCOMBE - the first Green Cat is 16th Century, the second pair are on a lectern c1900. The 'berry-headed' GM is on the pulpit.

THORNBURY - there are several fine modern poppyhead Green Men plus this 16th century one on a bench.

TIVERTON - there are Green Men on all four corners of this capital, one being this Green Cat.

TORRINGTON - there are several old Green Men in the church here, but this fellow,
carved by Herbert Read c1910, on the tower screen, right at the back of the church,
watched us silently and in perfect camouflage as we searched.
For months before we saw him, he watched us.

ZEAL MONACHORUM - beautiful colours surround this 18th century stained glass Green Man.

LITTLEHAM - Gothic Revival restoration in the church here offers several brightly-gilded Green Men.

Fremington church, 1st May

Devon must have more Green Men than any other English county. Having visited nearly all North Devon churches, perhaps missing only one or two, it is probably easier to list those which do not have Green Men than those which do!

last updated 12.10.03