Horsefield Table Tomb in Churchyard of Church of St Mary is a Grade II listed building in the Bury local planning authority area, England. First listed on 21 February 2012. Tomb.
Horsefield Table Tomb in Churchyard of Church of St Mary
- WRENN ID
- distant-pinnacle-evening
- Grade
- II
- Local Planning Authority
- Bury
- Constituency
- Bury South MP: Christian Wakeford (Lab)
- Country
- England
- Date first listed
- 21 February 2012
- Type
- Tomb
- Address
- Horsefield Table Tomb in Churchyard of Church of St Mary, Church Lane, Prestwich, Manchester
- OS grid reference
- SD 810 036
- Coordinates
- 53.52952, -2.28761
- Source
- Historic England listing
Description
The Horsefield table tomb is located in the churchyard of the Church of St Mary and is made of dressed sandstone. It features decorative relief carving and has a lain base supported by six short, square legs. The rectangular table has a moulded margin and a carved surface design that includes an elliptical arch, which is supported by scrolled consoles with imposts that incorporate an ivy-leaf motif. The arch band contains a medallion at the apex featuring a dove descending while holding an olive branch. To the left of the dove is a naturalistic carving of vines, and to the right, there are oak leaves and acorns. The spandrels are adorned with carved foliation. Below the arch is an oval-shaped panel that displays a carved relief of Horsefield's hybridised 'Trigridia conchiflora var. Watkinsoni'.
The inscription on the tomb reads: "IN MEMORY OF JOHN HORSEFIELD OF WHITEFIELD, BOTANIST who died March 6th 1854, in the 62nd Year of his age." Below this are 18 lines of verse by the poet Charles Swain, which reflect on Horsefield's contributions to botany and his humble beginnings. The further inscription at the bottom of the table notes: "Also of Esther Horsefield, widow of the above who died June 17th, 1872 in the 79th year of her Age (and James their son and Alice his wife)."
Local climate
Horsefield Table Tomb in Churchyard of Church of St Mary sits in a wetter-than-average part of the UK, with an average of 1,060 mm of rain a year. This makes it wetter than 85% of listed buildings in the UK. Its exposure to wind-driven rain is greater than that of 77% of listed buildings.
It experiences an average of 43 freeze-thaw cycles a year, more than 81% of listed buildings. Of these, 23 follow at least 1 mm of rain in the preceding 48 hours. Average temperatures at this location have risen by 0.3°C per decade since 1991.
Averages for 1991–2020; temperature trend 1991–2025. Figures describe the wider area (a grid cell of roughly 10 km), not the individual site. Contains modified Copernicus Climate Change Service information 2026.
More on this building
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- No EPC on record for this property
- No sale records on file
- No related consent applications matched
- Detailed attributes — period, style, materials, features
- Flood risk assessment
- Radon risk assessment
- Weather exposure and heating demand — rain and frost month by month and year by year, wind direction, solar and humidity
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Nearby listed buildings
- Monument to John Brooks to West of Church of St Mary
- Sturgeon Family Grave Slab in Churchyard of Church of St Mary
- Hardman Grave Slab in Churchyard of Church of St Mary
- Mason Family Grave Slab in Churchyard of Church of St Mary
- Ramsbotham Family Grave Slab in Churchyard of Church of St Mary
- Scholefeild Grave Slab in Churchyard of Church of St Mary
- Memorial to Lawrence Hollinshed to South of West End of Church of St Mary, Close to South Boundary of Churchyard
- James Grimshaw Grave Slab in Churchyard of Church of St Mary
- Sundial to South of Church of St Mary
- Church of St Mary