Parish Church Of St James

TL 17 SW SPALDWICK

6/124 Parish Church 28.1.58 of St. James (Formerly listed as Church of St. James) GV I

Parish church. Nave wall and north door, and part of east wall C12. Nave arcade to south C13. Chancel and chancel arch early C14, tower mid C14 and spire completed by end of C14. Clerestorey added to nave c.1370, and south porch. South chapel c.1500 and south aisle and porch rebuilt. C17 buttresses added to north side of nave and parapets rebuilt. Restoration began in 1810, and 1815, (nave reroofed in 1843) again in 1863. Chancel restored in 1908 and tower in 1914, spire in 1850, 1873, and 1905. Walls of stone and pebble rubble, tower of coursed rubble with ashlar spire. Barnack, Weldon and Ketton limestone dressings. Roofs of slate and lead. South facing elevation: west tower of four stages has a lozenge shaped window with reticulate tracery, coupled, two-light belfrey windows with transomes in two-centred arches and square buttresses. Octagonal spire has projecting figure at top of broaches, three tiers of spire lights, the top light has a carved stone 'J. Rivitt 1873'. Clerestorey of three bays with paired lights in squared-headed arches possibly C16, and plain parapet; shallow pitched nave roof. Aisle and chapel walls of six buttressed bays with three-light windows in four-centred arches with plain parapet to pent-roof. Chancel with low-pitch roof and similar parapet has a two-light window with geometric tracery. South porch c.1500, has a reset late C14 archway with shafted jambs with moulded capitals and bases. North doorway with semi-circular head and continuous moulded jambs with beak-head ornament. Interior. Two-centred chancel arch, early C14 of two chamfered orders resting on moulded corbels. Tower arch C14, two-centred with three moulded orders. Nave arcade c.1250 of four bays with two-centred arches with two chamfered orders and moulded labels with nail-head ornament on circular columns with moulded capitals and bases. Reset doorway in south aisle c.1250 with two-centred arch and two moulded and chamfered orders. Piscena with two-centred head, quatre-foil basin and stone shelf. The chapel has an early C16 roof with moulded beams and a carved boss. Early C16 oak screen repaired. C13 font has an octagonal bowl. On either side of north door are two early C14 coped coffin-lids. VCH (Hunts) p98-100. RCHM (Hunts) p242-244. Norris Museum, St. Ives. Inskip Ladds Collection. Pevsner: Buildings of England, p345.

Listing NGR: TL1275872809