Jacobean Screen, Great Hall, Audley End House

Although the Great Hall was redecorated in the Jacobean style in the 19th century, this wooden screen is from the original construction of the house and may once have been brightly painted. There are ornate carvings of grotesque masks and pairs of male and female half-figures known as herms. The screen rises through two storeys, creating a corridor running from the front door – and was the principal entrance to the Hall for guests and household staff.