Church of St Mary

Details

WEST WALTON SCHOOL ROAD TF 41 SE 2/72 Church of St. Mary 11.8.51 G.V. I Parish church, c.1240-50, altered C15, restored 1907. Barnack stone with some brick. Nave, aisles and chancel. At west end 2 massive buttresses interrupt blind arcading to left and right of door at site of original polygonal turret buttresses. Buttresses are stepped reusing plinth courses of a different, unidentified, building. 2 tiers of undercut arches survive of polygonal turrets standing on shafts with stiff-leaf capitals. Doorway of 2 undercut arches standing on central trumeau in form of shaft with capital. Undercut round arch encloses these subsidiary arches with jambs decorated by 5 orders of shafts. These shafts, like the trumeau, with restored stiff-leaf capitals. In the main arch dog tooth, fleuron and billet mouldings. Dog tooth jambs to west window which is 5-light C15 replacement with cusped lights under segmental arch. Similar 5-light west windows to aisles. Angle buttresses to aisles west and east, stepped to flanks. 2 2-light south aisle windows west of south porch of C14 date with mouchette tracery under hoods on label stops. 2 C15 3-light cusped windows east of porch under basket arches and in eastern bay a 2-light bar tracery window : this of c.1240-50 contemporary with bar tracery of Westminster Abbey. One order of shafts with stiff-leaf capitals and waterholding bases. Lights are arched and without capitals and support encircled quatrefoil with pierced spandrels below undercut moulded arch. Hood mould terminates on head stops. To right of this window a priest's door, now mutilated. Stiff-leaf capitals survive below, deeply undercut moulded arch with hood mould on head stops. Gabled south porch with arched entrance flanked by turret buttresses, the buttresses with arched blind arcade on columns with moulded capitals and waterholding bases. Set-off below polygonal turrets also with blind arcading below plain conical finials. Entrance arch with 3 orders of shafts with moulded capitals and waterholding bases further decorated by dog tooth between shafts. Undercut arch also with a single order of dog tooth and dog tooth hood mould. Above is C16 stepped brick gable. Interior of porch has blind arched arcade to flanking walls also on columns with moulded capitals and bases. Arched inner door on 4 orders of shafts with stiff-leaf capitals and very elaborate arch mouldings. To right and left of door one further blind arch. South clerestory in form of continuous arcade of arches on corbels with each third arch pierced with a lancent (8 lancets). Above is eaves line corbel table. North clerestory has all arches blocked to facilitate raising of aisle roof. Chancel supported by 2 stepped buttresses north and south but originally aisled. Lines of 2 pointed arches remain to each side, the western arch on the north hidden by C19 lean-to extension housing organ. Arched south priest's door within square surround. 3-light intersecting east chancel window of 1907. Aisle east windows C15, of 5 lights below depressed arch. North aisle buttressing irregular. 4 3-light C15 windows under segmental arches. North door with deeply undercut moulded arch supported on 4 orders of shafts carrying stiff left capitals. To right and left a further blind arch also with shafts with stiff-leaf capitals. Above doorway 2 punched quartrefoils. Interior. 6 bay arcade of circular piers each with 4 free standing annulated Purbeck marble shafts on waterholding bases. Magnificent stiff-leaf capitals support undercut moulded arches. String course runs below clerestory which has blind arcade on shafts with moulded capitals and bases. To south each second arch pierced by lancent, on north all lancets blocked. Remains of wall paintings in clerestory arches in form of wall hangings with various decorative and figurative devices. In spandrels of arcade arches C18 painted roundels depicting the 10 tribes of Israel. West window retains jambs of paired shafts and dog tooth decoration. Chancel arch as nave arches but on responds with 7 annulated free standing shafts, those to north and south of purbeck marble, remainder of Barnack stone. Above chancel arch 3 shafts set into gable wall. Late C15 nave roof of hammerbeams and tie beams, 2 hammerbeams to each tie. Hammerbeams in form of carved figures bearing instruments of passion on shields. These hammerbeams and tie beams on moulded arched braces and wall posts. Further moulded arched braces rise to moulded principals and one tier moulded butt purlins and ridge piece. Late C15 south aisle roof of moulded principals on arched braces and 2 tiers moulded butt purlins. Plain north aisle roof of C18 : principals on arched braces and 3 tiers butt purlins. Interior of south-east aisle window with 2 orders of shafts in jambs carrying stiff-leaf capitals, those to east reduced to facilitate priest's door. In undercut arch mouldings one order of fleurons and one of dog tooth. C15 octagonal font with arched panels to stem and bowl with large pointed quatrefoils in square panels. Chancel with 2 arches to each side now blocked except that to north-west : moulded undercut arches upon circular piers with 8 annulated free-standing shafts, those to cardinal points of Purbeck marble. Five stiff-leaf capitals mostly embedded in wall blocking the arches. To east of arches a wall arcade of 4 blind arches on free standing columns with moulded capitals and bases. East of southern arches a shelf decorated with dog tooth and supported on 2 brackets, each a transition between dog tooth and stiff-leaf lugs. In north nave aisle tomb of a priest. Mid C13 of Purbeck marble with reclining effigy upon pedestal. Trefoiled canopy frames head.

Listing NGR: TF4711313361

Legacy

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221857

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LBS

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