The carvings at Shobdon have been severely weathered, while at sheltered Kilpeck they remain almost intact. Detail of a Welsh Warrior. One's first impression of the sandstone carvings is how different they are from the geometric motifs that characterise much Norman stonework . Everything is organic, almost pagan in its imagery. In places it appears Celtic, elswhere Nordic.
Oriental symbols are present.
The portal, shown in the illustration above, is the most immediate and striking example of the work. Over the top is a Tympanum, typical of the Herefordshire School, containing the Tree of Life. The pillars are adorned with a pair of snakes with their tails in ther mouths, symbolising the unending cycle of life and death. At the top of the right-hand pillar is the Green Man, fertility symbol of Springtime. Above the tympanum can be discerned an Angel, symbol of the Western Church and to its left, a Phoenix, symbol of the Eastern Church.