Details
SHREWTON HIGH STREET
SU 04 SE
(east side)
3/238 Church of St. Mary the Virgin
18/2/58
GV II*
Anglican parish church. Late C12 to early C13 nave, C16 tower,
chancel and restoration of 1855 by T. H. Wyatt. Limestone and
flint chequers, limestone ashlar tower, Welsh slate roofs, stone
coped verges. Plan: nave and aisles, chancel with south vestry and
north organ chamber, west tower, north porch. Gabled north porch
of 1855, has pointed door with hoodmould and foliated terminals,
side windows are cusped lancets. To right, north aisle has one 2-
light Perpendicular-style window with hoodmould and foliated term-
inals, diagonal buttress and 2-light Perpendicular-style window to
west end of aisle, to left of porch is 3-light Perpendicular-style
window, east end of aisle has similar window and good C18
cartouche. Clerestory with three trefoils. North side of chancel
has pair of cusped lancets, 3-light east window with C19
flowing tracery with carved head terminals to hoodmould, south
side has two cusped lancets, one has its original C13 head. South
aisle has 2-light Perpendicular-style window to east. Tudor-arched
door and two 2-light and one 3-light Perpendicular-style windows.
Clerestory has three trefoils. 3-stage west tower has moulded
plinth and diagonal buttresses, C19 Tudor-arched door to west
side, above is string course to second stage; one 3-light
Perpendicular window, bell stage has pair of 2-light C16 square-
headed louvres to north, south and west faces, string course to
battlemented parapet, stair turret on north side of tower has two
loops. Interior: Porch has scissor-rafter roof. 3-bay nave has
C19 arch-braced collar roof on foliated corbels. Double-chamfered
pointed arcade of c1200, the eastern bay was added 1855;
cylindrical columns with scalloped capitals, some are very
convincingly restored by Wyatt, but the west respond of south aisle
is original, north aisle has one square pier with square west
respond, with zig-zag capitals and carved heads to stops of
chamfers. Double chamfered tower arch and chancel arch, the latter
reset by Wyatt, has grouped shafts with finely carved stiff-leaf
and water-leaf capitals. Chancel has arch-braced scissor roof of 4
bays, with good foliated corbels. Double-chamfered arches to
vestry and organ chamber. Reused Cl7 arcaded screen on north side.
Trefoiled piscina on south wall. Chancel stained glass includes
two signed windows by Lavers, Barraud and Westlake of London of
late C19, very fine east window is unsigned. Glass in south aisle
by Gibbs in two windows of 1855 and 1856, and by G. E. R. Smith to
Edith Wansborough, died 1954. Wall tablets mostly in south aisle,
such as a marble to R. Gouldisborough died 1735 and classical
tablet to John Wansborough, died 1833. Pews, pulpit and especially
good Romanesque-style font by Wyatt. (N. Pevsner, Buildings of
England: Wiltshire, 1975. Unpublished records of RCHM (England),
Salisbury).
Legacy
The contents of this record have been generated from a legacy data system.
Legacy System number:
319846
Legacy System:
LBS
Sources
Books and journals
Legal
This building is listed under the Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990 as amended for its special architectural or historic interest.
End of official list entry
