Church Of St Mary

Church of St Mary, Sheriffhales

A parish church of mixed dates, primarily 12th and 14th century, with substantial later modifications. The church comprises a four-bay nave with a north aisle, a chancel, and a west tower, all with old tile roofs laid separately over nave, aisle, and chancel.

The nave was re-roofed and probably re-faced on its south side around 1661. The chancel was probably re-faced on its south side in the 18th century. The tower dates to around 1723. The entire church underwent restoration in 1884. The exterior is built of squared and coursed stone ashlar on the tower and the south facing of the nave and chancel, with a rendered east nave wall. The chancel and aisle eaves were rebuilt to the north.

The tower rises in three stages with a moulded plinth, set-offs, string courses, and a chamfered battlemented parapet. Louvred bellchamber openings on each face contain two round-arched lights set within a larger recessed round arch. Small round-arched windows appear on the north and south faces of the second stage. The west-facing first stage has a large window, probably early 19th century, with Y-tracery, and a two-light square window to the south with cast iron ogee tracery. A blocked round-arched doorway to the north has a plain architrave, imposts, and keystone. A clock occupies the top stage on the east face. A tablet on the second stage to the south is inscribed with the initials J.W., though the date was illegible at the time of survey.

The nave features a moulded eaves cornice and sprocketed eaves to the south. The south side displays two probably 17th-century windows with Y-tracery and moulded surrounds to the right, and two-light late 19th-century windows with quatrefoil tracery, projecting cills, and hoodmoulds with carved stops to the left. A doorway between the first and second windows from the left has a moulded surround, hoodmould with carved stops, and two boarded doors. The north side contains a small 12th-century round-arched window and a blocked, probably 17th-century, window above it, with two re-used carved corbels serving as brackets.

The chancel has a moulded eaves cornice to the south, post-medieval diagonal buttresses to the east, and a parapeted gable end. Its south side displays two probably 18th-century lancets with moulded surrounds flanking a central late 19th-century doorway with a chamfered arch, hoodmould with carved stops, and boarded door. The east end features a large uncusped three-light window. The north side has a two-light window to the right with cusped panelled tracery and a blocked door to the right with a projecting string above.

The north aisle has a dentil brick eaves cornice and parapeted gable end. Its east end contains a restored two-light window with cusped Y-tracery, hoodmould, and carved stops. The north side has three partly restored two-light windows with cusped Y-tracery, hoodmould, and carved stops. The west end features a three-light 19th-century window with cusped quatrefoil tracery and hoodmould with carved stops.

The interior contains a north aisle arcade of four unequal bays with octagonal piers, moulded bases and capitals, and double chamfered arches. Local tradition holds that this arcade came from Lilleshall Abbey, though this is unlikely. A chamfered tower arch has foliated capitals. A carved nave corbel table is present. The nave roof dates to around 1661 and comprises six bays of double hammer-beam construction with double purlins, windbraces, and scrolled brackets. Three brackets on the third bay from the last are carved with heads. Probably 17th-century painting survives on the east wall of the nave, though only two outstretched arms remain. A 19th-century king post roof covers the north aisle. The chancel has a waggon roof.

Fittings include a 17th-century stone font with a circular stem and octagonal bowl; an irregular octagonal 17th-century wooden pulpit with raised and fielded panels; a seven-bay 19th-century chancel screen with tracered square-headed divisions and a rood cross; a small 19th-century north aisle screen; 19th-century chancel panelling, reredos, and altar rails. A tablet on the north wall of the chancel commemorates John Blaremore.