Where were these panels originally placed?

Many panels originated inside churches as part of altarpieces, screens, or ceilings, depicting religious narratives and figures like the Virgin, angels, and Christ. Others formed part of secular interior wall panelling and furniture within substantial Tudor and Jacobean residences.

How should I hang a heavy oak panel?

Solid oak panels possess significant weight and require secure fixing directly into wall studs or masonry using appropriate metal brackets and mirror plates. Professional installation ensures the wooden backing supports the load safely without placing undue stress on historic joints.

How can I tell a sixteenth-century panel from a nineteenth-century copy?

Early pieces display tool marks, timber shrinkage, and hand-wrought joinery consistent with sixteenth-century construction methods and material age. Nineteenth-century Gothic Revival interpretations often utilise machine-sawn timber elements or distinct stylistic proportions associated with later Victorian craftsmanship.

Did these carvings always have colour?

Numerous medieval and sixteenth-century carvings received applications of gesso, gold leaf, and polychrome paint to enhance figurative details. Over the centuries, many surfaces lost their pigment through cleaning and wear, leaving bare oak patination.