Need Help Finding Info On Twyford School Wood Carving

[mister_winston_smith]

I attended Twyford School near Winchester in the mid to late 80s and remember in the chapel there was a wooden carving over the altar. It showed Jesus and 3 or 4 children. The wood was a light, honey coloured wood, but two of the children's faces were black.

I remember my Mum at the time telling me it had happened recently and I was often awed by it. However I was recently reminded of it and have looked for information on Google and cannot find anything, not even an image of the carving. Maybe carving is the wrong word and there's a proper name for the wooden picture over an altar. I'm not religious, but I do remember finding it quite moving as an 8 year old!

 

[EnolaGaia]

Better late than never, I guess ...

I located an interior photo of the chapel at Twyford School, from which I excerpted and enlarged the following image (such as it is) of the carved wall piece above the altar.

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According to the history section of the school's website the chapel was first built in 1869. It received 'additions' (unspecified) and was re-dedicated in the 1890's.

I found no specific mention or data about the carving itself, so I'm not sure if it was original to the chapel (1869) or added later.

 

[AnonyJ]

A small bit of online detective work brought me to a .pdf issue of the school magazine from 2015 which features the 120th anniversary of the carvings : https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct..._spreads.pdf&usg=AOvVaw2xgYaoo0bu7pfqhr_ZmNNt

The article also mentions the reredos was "designed by George Herbert Kitchin, an artist and architect and also son of Reverend G W Kitchin (former Headmaster 1855-61)"

The photo is pretty good, it's possible to see that the two children on the left of the Christ figure do appear to be African or black.

 

[EnolaGaia]

Here's the much better photo from the school magazine.

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Another large photo of the reredos can be found in an image slideshow at:

https://lhs.comptonshawford.uk/2017/08/two-local-architects/

The image caption at this website dates the reredos to 1895. This means it was installed during the remodeling and re-dedication era and wasn't original to the chapel.