Church Of St John The Baptist

LOW DINSDALE LOW DINSDALE NZ 31 SW (East side)

8/44 Inset Church of St. John 20/3/67 the Baptist

II

Parish church. Late C12 nave and chancel; C14 south aisle; restored and tower, organ chamber/vestry and porch added in 1876 by J.P. Pritchett. Red sandstone: dressed medieval masonry on chancel and part of south aisle; remainder mainly 1876 tooled squared stone in harrow courses. Large Welsh slates on roofs. Nave with west tower and separately-roofed south aisle with porch; chancel with organ chamber/vestry on north. 1876 pointed windows mainly with Geometrical tracery.

Diagonally-buttressed, 4-stage tower has 2-light bell openings, embattled parapet with corner pinnacles and stair turret on north. 2-bay nave has fragmentary chamfered plinth and steep roof. 2-bay aisle has pointed chamfered doorway behind porch; and 2-light window, with original monolithic head, on south; restored window with intersecting tracery on east return; steeply- pitched roof. Lower, narrower 2-bay chancel: restored Priest's door on south flanked by square-headed 2-light windows, that to east with original jambs and shouldered rear-arch; east end has original plinth and quoins and 1876 3-light window; steeply-pitched roof. Organ chamber/vestry has pent roof and truncated stack. Gabled porch has pointed, double-chamfered doorway under hoodmould with headstops.

Interior. Nave and chancel have 1876 arch-braced roofs. Aisle arcade of 2 original double-chamfered, pointed arches on central octagonal pier and respond corbels. Restored aisle piscina with 2 original bowls. Pointed piscina with projecting bowl in chancel. Elaborate late C19 pulpit and font. 2 fragments of a pre-Conquest hogback and possibly C11 font with hexagonal bowl in aisle. Small brass to Mary Wyvill died 1668 above aisle pier. Aedicular wall monument in chancel to Cuthbert Routh died 1752 by Richard Fisher. Dramatic stained glass window, at east end of aisle, to Rev. John Surtees dated 1876 by O'Connor and Taylor. Built into porch: several pre-Conquest cross-shaft fragments; large grave slab to Goselynus Surtees died 1366; 2-light window head from chancel.

Listing NGR: NZ3468411210