Rare medieval wall painting uncovered in Wiltshire church

The fragments of medieval wall painting, which have been discovered, have been separated by later memorials

A medieval wall painting uncovered in a Wiltshire church is of "national and international significance".

Peter Martindale, the conservator who revealed the work in St Mary's Church, Alton Barnes, said the oldest layer could date as far back as Saxon times.

"Saxon wall painting is rare, so if the lower level of paint is Saxon, the importance is further heightened."

The discovery has given church members "tantalising glimpses" of the original picture.

Speaking to BBC Wiltshire, David Carson, a member of the Parochial Church Council (PCC) said, "Peter has uncovered areas of what looks like a border around a painting, like a painted frame, in red and orange ochres.

"There are some tiny little fishes at the bottom of the wall and it leads him to believe that potentially there might be a figure of St Christopher," he said.

The fragments of painting have revealed a border in red and orange ochres

The painting is believed to have been covered up during the Reformation, when Henry VIII broke from Rome.

"He wanted to get rid of all the 'Popish adornments', as he referred to them, and everything was whitewashed.

"So those paintings haven't seen the light of day for over 500 years.

"Unfortunately in the intervening years, generations of people have used the church and have put up their family memorials, some of which are from the Georgian period.

"These covered up great chunks of the painting," added Mr Carson.

St Mary's Church in Alton Barnes is of Saxon origin and has been a place of worship for over 1,000 years

St Mary's is thought to be one of the oldest and smallest churches in England, of Saxon origin, and has been a place of worship for over 1,000 years.

Mr Martindale, who gave a talk to local residents on the discovery, explained why he was called in to look at the decoration.

"Internally, as a result of a need to redecorate, two layers of wall painting were revealed.

"The upper is medieval, possibly from the 15th Century, but the lower could be Saxon as the plaster upon which that paint lies could be original to the nave."

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Peter Martindale is a conservator, who was called in to examine the medieval wall painting

Mr Martindale said further areas of wall painting still remain hidden under later plain paint.

"It is important that this is kept in mind to prevent damage or loss in the future."

The PCC now hopes to raise money to enable work to restore the paintings and expose more of them.

"There is no time limit," said Mr Carson, "but this is something we'd love to do. It's very exciting - it's the beginning, not the end."