(Sorry about the inevitable and dreadful pun.)
For some reason I quite like working for the Anglican Church. So far on the island I’ve made a new altar and cross for St. Mary’s, a quite nice small table for St. Mark’s, and recently undertook a makeover of the altar at All Saints in Ganges, the central Anglican Church on the island.
A brief account of the altaration:
The old altar. Some of its problems: too long, too narrow, too heavy, very hard to move, has (not visible) 1980’s kitchen-grade fake oak arborite top as well as a nailed-on piece of ¼” oak ply back. The front and side panels are quite nice though.
Once in the shop (after a struggle; no-one ever sends sufficient lifting power, whether it’s for Grand Pianos or overweight altars) the massive weight is explained. Hidden inside the quite decent outer panels is another complete altar. The inner altar is made of heavy fir, and has been built up to form a “foundation” for the three new panels. (N.B. There is another piece of church furniture in the background. Someone thought that I might find useful for the altar job.)
Salvageable components.
Once at this stage, it was easy to take the panels off and shorten the front:
One panel is being cut off either end. (Interestingly the gothic moulding at the top of each individual panel is held in place by two small coil-springs partly inset into the top rail. The springs keep the arched coved mouldings/tracery below the top rails pushed down onto the straight coved mouldings at the sides, thus ingeniously compensating for expansion and shrinkage.)
The shortened Altar, back in position…..
….with a new (and wider) top, and much easier to move on the invisible new castors.