Church Of St John The Baptist

Church of St John the Baptist

Parish church on Colsterworth High Street, with fabric ranging from the 11th century through the 19th century. The building is constructed in ashlar and squared limestone rubble with lead and slate roofs. It comprises a western tower, nave with clerestory, north and south aisles, south porch, chancel, north organ chamber and vestry.

The three-stage ashlar tower dates to 1305. It features wide clasping stepped buttresses, a deep chamfered and bell-moulded plinth, and a chamfered string course. The parapet is battlemented with a human head corbel table, and has panelled and crocketed corner pinnacles. The central merlon is ogee-headed and pinnacled, with angle grotesque corbels. On the south side, the west buttress plinth bears a worn inscription recording the tower's construction in 1305 by Thomas Somerby. Each face of the belfry contains two light louvred openings with cusped heads, quatrefoils above, and hood moulds terminating in animal or human head stops. The south side displays an early 19th-century clock face above the belfry light, and below that a narrow pointed blocked light with the stone beneath inscribed with a face. Above this is a narrow ogee-headed light with a plain hood mould. The two-light west window was recut in the 19th century and features Y tracery with a hood mould ending in debased animal head stops. Incised geometric consecration crosses appear on either side. The north side displays a consecration cross, an incised face, and an ogee-headed light.

The squared limestone rubble north aisle, with a lead roof, has a 15th-century three-light west window with panel tracery and a hood mould with beast head label stops. A 13th-century north doorway with a pointed moulded surround and annular angle shafts has a hood mould terminating in human head stops. To the west is a two-light pointed window with 19th-century tracery, and to the east a large flat-headed three-light window with a moulded surround, 19th-century tracery and hood.

The 15th-century ashlar clerestory features a moulded parapet and three two-light windows with trefoil heads to the lights set in round-headed openings with hood moulds. The north and south clerestories are identical except that the south clerestory includes an ashlar sundial.

The 19th-century vestry has a pointed doorway flanked by single two-light openings and a three-light eastern window.

The chancel was rebuilt in 1876 by James Fowler of Louth to commemorate Sir Isaac Newton. It has slate roofs and a three-light eastern window beneath which is a coat of arms set in a quatrefoil. The south side has four lancets.

The coursed limestone rubble south aisle has a late 14th-century east window with three ogee-headed lights and a four-centred head with hood mould. To the east of the porch is a three-light 14th-century window, and to the west a two-light window, both with flat heads and ogee heads to the individual lights. The west window has two lights with Y tracery.

The south porch dates to 1809 and features a double chamfered outer door with side benches. The 15th-century inner doorway has a single chamfered four-centred head and hood mould with possibly an earlier niche above.

Interior

The north aisle arcade comprises three bays. The stonework above the easternmost two bays consists of herringbone work terminating against a line of quoins above a square pier, possibly indicating the extent of the original 11th-century church. These two bays have semi-circular headed square-cut arches, with the easternmost one bearing lightly incised zigzag decoration. They are supported on a central squat drum pillar with a scalloped capital. The later 12th-century westernmost bay has a square-cut round arch with hood mould, supported on half-round responds with crocketed imposts.

The 14th-century south nave arcade has quatrefoil filleted piers with annular capitals, octagonal responds, and double chamfered arches with hood moulds and human head label stops.

The early 14th-century tower arch has four chamfers and a hood mould, with double octagonal responds and annular capitals. Above the arch, the earlier nave roof pitch is visible.

The wide 14th-century chancel arch features a double chamfered arch and octagonal responds; the hood mould is 19th-century work.

In the north aisle wall, the opening to the rood loft stair survives, along with an aumbry. At the east end of the north aisle, a 19th-century archway leads to the organ chamber.

The chancel's two-bay north arcade is 19th-century work in 13th-century style. The rear of the south wall lancets have angle shafts.

The nave roof has moulded principals and cambered tie beams with large timber corbels.

Fittings and Contents

Most fittings are 19th-century, including the mosaic and reredos, except for a 17th-century chest in the south aisle.

In the organ chamber is a quatrefoil plaque inscribed "ET 1806" bearing Newton's Arms and an inscription commemorating Sir Isaac Newton of the parish. On the north wall is a marble plaque with an inset limestone sundial, recording that Newton, aged nine years, cut this dial with his penknife. The stone was given by C. Turnor, Esq.

The octagonal font has a 15th-century stem in part, with panels bearing pointed arches containing sacred symbols and floriate designs. It also incorporates 12th-century billet moulded blank arcading with panels filled with fleurons and trefoils. The 19th-century bowl repeats this decorative theme.

Two fragments of Anglo-Saxon cross shafts survive. One, positioned by the chancel arch, bears interlace patterns on all faces.