Turner Mausoleum Adjoining Church Of St Cuthbert

The Turner Mausoleum, dating to 1739/40 and designed by James Gibbs, adjoins the Church of St Cuthbert. It was restored in 1839, with internal cladding added at that time. Constructed from sandstone ashlar with a plinth of coursed rubble, the mausoleum has a lead roof. The design is octagonal, with three sides sharing the church’s structure. It is an example of the Baroque style, comprising a single tall storey above a basement burial chamber, entered from within the church.

The mausoleum features a deep plinth, diagonal buttresses topped with inverted volutes, and pilaster strips above. Alternating keyed round-headed niches and recesses are framed by rusticated surrounds and bands, below a continuous band inscribed "THIS MAUSOLEUM WAS ERECTED 1740 TO THE MEMORY OF MARWOOD WILLIAM TURNER ESQUIRE THE BEST OF SONS". Circular windows with radial glazing bars are topped by architraves, and sit below a modillion cornice. A pyramidal roof, with panelled faces rising from a concave drum, is topped by a richly carved flaming urn finial.

The interior is circular, the walls and domed ceiling rendered and scored to resemble ashlar. Original stucco detailing includes a waterleaf rosette in the dome and a moulded cornice with fleuron ornament. Eight niches, alternating in size, contain monuments and other features. One niche holds a boarded door dating to around 1839, while others contain monuments. A statue of Marwood W. Turner, sculpted between 1740 and 1742 by Peter Scheemakers, stands in the north-east niche. The south-east niche holds a 1761 statue by Sir Henry Cheere, depicting Cholmley Turner in Roman costume; while a 1810 statue by Richard Westmacott, depicting a female figure in Greek dress, occupies the north-east niche. Two smaller niches contain mid-19th-century sarcophagi and draped urns with epitaphs. A marble and slate chest tomb of Sir William Turner, who died in 1692, is located in the centre of the floor, featuring concave, gadrooned, cyma recta bands and epitaph panels, along with sculpted arms. Nine floor slabs with epitaphs, and a 14th-century grave cover also rest on the floor. An octagonal, now sealed, burial chamber is reached by a staircase in the church’s sanctuary and contains an umbrella vault with an inscription dated 1739, five stone benches intended to support coffins.