A glimpse of local history
through the collection of hassocks in St. Peter’s Church.
We are fortunate to have a large collection of hassocks in our church, celebrating a diversity of subjects, stitched by those associated with our church in the recent past.
On this page, you can discover a sample of our wonderful collection. We plan to photograph and record the details of all the hassocks – at the moment this is a project in progress.
Firstly, a little more about hassocks – what is a hassock and is it the same as a kneeler?
According to Wikipedia, the word hassock can refer to: a kneeler, a piece of furniture for resting in a kneeling position; a tuffet, a cushion for kneeling (British) or an ottoman (furniture). Wikipedia defines a kneeler as: a cushion, also called a tuffet, or a piece of furniture used for resting in a kneeling position.
The online dictionary Vocabulary.com defines a hassock as: a soft cushion for sitting, kneeling, or resting your feet on is a hassock. You can also call a hassock a tuffet, like Little Miss Muffet’s tuffet in the nursery rhyme. One place you can find hassocks is in a church in which the congregation kneels during prayers. These hassocks are also known as kneelers.
And finally! After browsing through various dictionaries, it seems that hassock is the far older word. Interestingly, you will discover that the word hassock may also refer to a firm clump of grass in marshy or boggy ground.
This is pertinent when looking in the Vocabulary of East Anglia, compiled by Reverend Robert Forby in 1830, where you can find the following: “Hassocks in bogs were formerly taken up … shaped, trimmed and dressed …to make kneeling much easier than on the pavement of the church. ”
Hassocks, or kneelers, are a modern development in churches. Kneeling was not part of the Mass in early Christianity, it has been part of the Catholic Mass only since the 16th century. In some churches, pews are equipped with hassocks so that members of the congregation can kneel on them instead of the floor during prayer. You can often find hassocks in confessionals and in front of an altar. Traditionally, altar rails have built-in knee cushions to facilitate reception of Holy Communion while kneeling.
Our collection of hassocks has been divided into some main themes. In due course we will add more details about each of the hassocks, such as who stitched or donated it and any dates or other pertinent information. Here are links to some examples of the Haveringland Hassocks collection:
Haveringland Hassocks – a selection commemorating groups
Haveringland Hassocks – a selection of patterns
Haveringland Hassocks – a selection of nature-themed hassocks
Haveringland Hassocks – a selection commemorating different occasions
Haveringland Hassocks – a selection commemorating people
Haveringland 