Medieval Gruel Bowl
By
The Winslow Wood Company
On the night of 15 October 1987, a storm hit our area of East Sussex, England. It hit with such force that it wiped out over 15 million trees and became ever known as The Great Storm. Towns like Seven Oaks lost six of their great oak trees and our landscape changed forever. The one upside for wood turners was a bonanza of storm felled wood.
At first light, as the storm subsided, I cut my way out of Church Street where I lived and travelled around the area, clearing roads and collecting precious hardwoods. Exhausted, in the late afternoon, I was heading home when I spotted that the ancient yew trees at St Mary’s Church in Willingdon had suffered damage. Several branches had been torn away by the ferocity of the night’s storm. Even before Christianity, Yew has been held high in mythology. The Druids and the Celts worshiped its amazing powers of regeneration and long life.
I managed to salvage just a few pieces from the tree, with the help of the reverend who was clearing the path. I carefully cut and sealed just four pieces and put them away to season. As the years went by two split but, after 30 years, the last remaining two pieces had stabilised and seasoned perfectly. The 142.5mm x 67.5mm piece of ancient wood shows the remarkable life it has had, with a unique patterning that tells a story of its past. In some places the grain is so tight that over 20 years of growth rings stretch little more than one inch!
In 2019, here at The Winslow Wood Company, we discussed what we were going to make out of this precious and rare wood. After much discussion it was decided that a medieval bowl, similar to a gruel bowl, would be perfect. The turning of the wood took six days as each knot, split and crack was painstakingly sealed. Eventually the extraordinary shape you see now, came to life.
No stains or dyes were used and all the colours and contours are natural. The wood was finally sealed with wax. A piece of beeswax (supplied from our local beekeepers) will be supplied with the bowl for future polishing. The bowl went on and off the lathes 24 times before we were finally satisfied that she was perfect. You can see in her astonishing grain the very trauma of The Great Storm of 1987.
This rare and timeless work of art is unique, tactile and beautiful. It represents the very finest of our craft. An object of historical importance, crafted to a museum quality standard by The Winslow Wood Company. This ancient piece of church yew is now preserved for prosperity. It shows us that sometimes out of a great calamity can come great beauty.
Alex Askaroff
Master Craftsman
