Tuxlith Chapel, hidden in woodland at Milland, preserves fabric dating to the late eleventh century, although its first written record is from 1532. Enlarged and altered across subsequent centuries, it was replaced by the neighbouring Victorian church in 1880. Now cared for by the Friends of Friendless Churches, it survives.
Not everything needs to be shiny and new to be perfect. Because of its age and patina, this latch from Tuxlith Chapel, West Sussex, has achieved a status beyond utility. The door behind has been storied through constant use. The imperfect upon the perfect makes the whole.
Look upon it as a landscape in miniature: iron polished where countless fingers have found it, rust settling into its hollows and the timber grain rising like contour lines. The latch is both scar and jewellery - a small, hand-wrought interruption upon the door’s weathered surface. Together they carry the beautiful evidence of touch, resistance, repair and time.
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