Eye of God...

[KGarrad]

Ingmar Bergman's The Seventh Seal covers that subject totally and completely...on of the heroes the man who was painting the church says - more horror images on the walls, that will scare them and keep them faithful believers.

   You're basing your views on a Swedish Historical Fantasy film?!

A skull and crossbones was a Memento Mori - a reminder to start thinking about your own mortality.

[lancsann]

Interestingly the church tower was restored in 1653 and the "Eye" may or may not have had a bearing on what occurred in 1612.

You might like to read up on the Pendle Witches.   "The trials of the Pendle witches in 1612 are among the most famous witch trials in English history, and some of the best recorded of the 17th century. The twelve accused lived in the area surrounding Pendle Hill in Lancashire, and were charged with the murders of ten people by the use of witchcraft"

St Mary's church was at the centre of where the witches reportedly lived and also has a 'witches grave' (as incidentally does Woodplumpton Church). One of the witches, Chattox, is said to have desecrated graves ther

[Viktoria]

Yes Ruslan, it was Jesus who was crucified at Golgotha.
The skull and crossed bones was indeed a reminder that we are all mortal and some  day will die,
we never know when so we have to live well and be good people all our lives,not just before we die, assuming we could know that!
There was a very old village church where I lived as a child, it had   the skull and crossed bones above the door. We children were convinced it was a pirates` church.
If you have not already done so look up the Pendle Witches.I think there were three women who ere associated with unexpected deaths etc and in the those times people were very superstitious .
I can remember the names, Demdyke, Chattox and Ann Nutter. Roughlee was the home of one.
We are talking of the early 1600`s.
Best of luck with your research.Viktoria.
 

[lancsann]

There is a little known village just outside Lancaster called Golgotha which is where the Lancashire witches were hung

[Viktoria]

Thanks Lancsman,I did not know that but I was meaning the hill outside Jerusalem where Jesus was crucified.It was the usual execution place during the Roman occupation.
Seemingly in the rocks there are small caves and some have a resemblance to a skull in that there are two openings and lower down a third one looking vaguely like two eyes and a mouth .
But there might have been real skulls there as it was the execution site.
Viktoria.

[RuslanPashayev]

No, its not that I base opinion on the movie etc, by the way its a great movie as well as script itself is amazing, I read it several times, quite impressive, and like I mentioned it covers the subject of decoration of medieval churches quite completely. Here's the traditional cross full version as practiced by Orthodox people of Europe. You can see Adam's head and bones...Jesus on the cross (it says NIKA victory in Greek), and shroud of Turin on top emblematic of the Resurrection and Salvation.

[RuslanPashayev]

also Catholic Encyclopedia says:
There was a tradition current among the Jews that the skull of Adam, after having been confided by Noah to his son Shem, and by the latter to Melchisedech, was finally deposited at the place called, for that reason, Golgotha. The Talmudists and the Fathers of the Church were aware of this tradition, and it survives in the skulls and bones placed at the foot of the crucifix. The Evangelists are not opposed to it, inasmuch as they speak of one and not of many skulls. (Luke, Mark, John, loc. cit.)

[RuslanPashayev]

medieval believers were mostly illiterate, so paintings, carvings, murals that was the ONLY language they could understand...again they didn't speak any Latin which was official language of church. So basically church building had to speak to them...and yes the horrors of hell etc. as well as angelic life in the paradise its all was there for the purpose TO SPEAK.

[RuslanPashayev]

It was quite early that Christian churches had established "unified" system of symbols which were used everywhere in Christian Universe (former Roman Empire). I am trying to understand what was the point of having all seeing eye outside...may be it wasn't originally an "eye" and was something else and the reasons of having it there were different. They call it "eye" now, that doesn't mean it always was an "eye".