Astbury Bagpipe Carving

The county of Cheshire has a wealth of medieval churches which are well worth a visit. Several of these churches still have fine collections of carvings from the 13th – 15th centuries depicting musicians. The bagpipes were a very popular instrument with medieval pilgrims, so we have collected here the examples of medieval bagpiper carvings in Cheshire, look out for them if you are visiting.

In the porch of St Mary’s Church, Astbury, there are three musician carvings, and a further mysterious character. The musicians play oud, harp and bagpipes. The church guides suggest that the other character is the devil being driven away, but without any clear devilish attributes it could just as likely be a dancer or a fool. The bagpiper carving here is very clear, and shows a single chanter pipe, but without a drone.

Nantwich Bagpipe Carving

There are more musicians on the north aisle pillars at St Boniface’s Church in Bunbury. Here they are angels playing box fiddle, psaltery, rote, shawm and bagpipes. The bagpiper carving has lost its head, but evidence of a drone survives, which is the only medieval bagpipes with drone we have so far found in Cheshire.

Chester Cathedral was known as the Abbey of St Werburgh in medieval times. Here you can see two bagpipers, both are playing double chanter pipes. The chanter is the part of the bagpipe upon which the tune is played, so these pipes would have the potential to play harmonies. In the cloister, there is a very worn and eroded carving of a bagpiper from the later 15th century playing upon a double chanter bagpipe, there is no surviving evidence of a drone, nor for that matter a blowpipe to inflate the bag, but then again he hasn’t run out of wind over the past five centuries! In the late 14th century quire, there is a bench end carving of a piper, seemingly hairy or leafy so perhaps he may be a wodwo, continuing to play a set of double chanter bagpipes whilst being swallowed up by a lion like beast!

St Mary’s, Nantwich also has some fine 14th century wood carvings in the quire. Amongst the proverbs, fables and mythical creatures are several musicians playing cittern, fiddle, symphony/hurdy-gurdy, organ and two with bagpipes. All of the musicians are depicted as angels, with the exception of the bagpipers they have feathery wings. Those of the pipers appear leathery and bat-like, perhaps suggesting some devilish association with the bagpipes.

Gawsworth Bagpipe Carving

At the church of St Mary’s and All Saints, Great Budworth, is a rarely spotted carving of a piper with a droneless single chanter bagpipe. It can be quite difficult to see as it is located very high up, just below the clerestory on the south side of the nave. In this instance the bagpiper is an ape.

A very cheery bagpiper is to be found on the outside of the church of St James at Gawsworth. This carving is from the later 15th century and is finely and crisply detailed. Along with a pipe & tabor playing companion, they frame a window by the main door into the church.