Warwick

Last stop on our way back to Coventry was Warwick (1/2 hour drive south of Coventry). It is famous for its castle and moat which we've visited on numerous occasions in the past. What we had not done in past is explore St. Mary's Church, which turned out to be very interesting! We could hear (but not see) a children's choir rehearsing in an annex to the church; there was an primary and secondary school art display at the front of the church, including a 6' palm tree, complete with paper mache bananas.

Top photo: gate to the City.

Second photo: underground crypt in St. Mary's church;

Third photo: the remains of the "ducking stool" - believe it or not, this was a medieval disciplinary device! The offender (thief, adulterer, etc.) would sit in a chair fastened to a beam which acted like a teeter-tooter (note illustration to the right of the stool). Their hands and legs would be clamped down by iron bars fastened to the chair. The offender would then be pushed through the city streets down to the river where they would be dunked the requisite number of times acording to the offence. Suprisingly, this "ducking" practice (which I surmise is another way of saying "dunking") only ceased in the early 1900's!