Details
STAPLEFORD CHURCH STREET
SU 03 NE
(east side)
3/52 Church of St. Mary
23.3.60.
GV I
Anglican parish church. C12, C13, C14, C16, C17, 1861 restoration
by William Slater. Flint and limestone, tiled roof. Plan: Nave,
north and south aisles, chancel, south chapel, north tower and
south porch. Gabled C16 porch, formerly 2-storey, with moulded
Tudor-arched doorway with square hoodmould, diagonal buttresses, 2-
light cusped mullioned window with hoodmould over, coped verge with
cross finial, cusped windows to sides. South aisle has C14 two-
light ogee window to either side of porch, plain parapet with
saddleback coping to lean-to roof. South chapel has good 3-light
C14 window with reticulated tracery and pointed hoodmould, low-
pitched roof with coping and gargoyles. Nave clerestory has three
C16 two-light cusped windows, moulded stone eaves cornice with
rosettes. South side of chancel has ovolo-moulded doorway, 2-light
Perpendicular window to left and 2-light C19 window to right, east
end has large C19 four-light Decorated-style window, trefoiled
niche below, probably reset, north side has chamfered lancet and
Cl9 two-light window. North aisle has 2-light C16 window with
hoodmould to east, two cusped lancets to north, parapet, nave
clerestory has two 2-light C16 windows. Two-stage tower has angle
buttresses, C14 two-light pointed window to first stage, offset
string course to bell stage with ogee lancet and C17 round-arched
louvred windows, west side has roll-moulded pointed doorway, south
side has datestone 1674, battlemented parapet with corner
pinnacles. West end of nave has C12 clasping buttress to north,
Cl9 Decorated-style window, south aisle has cusped lancet to west.
Interior: Porch has integral moulded stone seat on west side and
Medieval tomb with cross on east side; upper floor removed, fine
C12 roll-moulded doorway with zig-zag and nailhead ornament,
attached shafts, left has scalloped capital, C19 planked door.
Nave has 4-bay Cl9 arch-braced collar roof with tie-beams, rendered
walls, tiled floor. Fine 4-bay C12 south arcade with cylindrical
piers with enriched multi-scalloped capitals and square abaci,
round arches with nailhead or pellet ornament and red painted
decoration to soffits. Triple chamfered tower arch with carved
head abaci, C19 Perpendicular-style screen. North chapel with
triple-chamfered pointed arch. South chapel, probably C14, has
ogee cusped piscina and ogee niche over stone coffin against south
wall. Chancel arch double chamfered on cylindrical corbels, 2-bay
C19 scissor-rafter roof with crown post on tie-beam. Fine C14
three-seat sedilia and piscina with cusped ogee arches and carved
finials on south wall. C12 scalloped cylindrical font in south
aisle. Cl9 marble pulpit. Good east window stained glass by James
Bell, tower glass by Clayton and Bell, 1862, chancel glass by
Lavers Barraud and J.S. Beckham. Cl9 south chapel window has
Seymour crest. Chest tomb in chancel to Christopher Fleetwood died
1705.
(J.P. Adams, Stapleford Parish Guide, 1983; N. Pevsner, The
Buildings of England; Wiltshire, 1975)
Listing NGR: SU0704437369
