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The tradition of Norman architectural ornamentation led to some magnificent English Romanesque portals. The one in the southern narthex of St Mary and St Aldhelm in Malmesbury (Wiltshire) is one of the most exceptional and unusual examples of its type.
On the side walls of the narthex are two lunettes opposite each other, each containing six seated Apostles, and an angel floating above their heads holding a banderole. The elongated figures are reminiscent of Burgundian works around 1130, and their quality is the equal of the sculptural works in Autun.
The picture shows one of the lunettes.
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