Stanley Spencer at Burghclere

The Sandham Memorial Chapel is Stanley Spencer''s monument to the ''forgotten dead'' of the First World War. Drawing on his experiences as a medical orderly in a Bristol hospital and in Macedonia, he commemorates the everyday routine of the soldier''s life with an intensely personal religious faith that reaches its triumphant climax in the huge Resurrection of the Soldiers above the altar. Spencer''s touching murals are widely considered to be his masterpiece. In this new guidebook Amanda Bradley discusses the genesis of the commission and the role of its patrons. For the first time, all 19 panels are reproduced in colour, together with revealing details of key elements in the scheme.