Church Of St Mary

The Church of St Mary is a Grade I listed building located on Easthorpe Road in Copford. It dates back to the 12th century, with alterations from the 13th, 15th, and 20th centuries. The church is constructed of mixed rubble and septaria, featuring dressings of Roman brick and clunch, topped with a red plain tile roof.

The early 12th-century nave includes three windows on the north wall: one from the 14th century with two trefoiled ogee lights and a quatrefoil in a two-centred head, one from the 13th century with a semi-circular head, and one from the 16th century with a rounded head. There is also a blocked 12th-century window above. The early 12th-century north doorway has a round arch made of Roman brick. The south wall features two 15th-century doorways leading to the rood loft stair, both with two-centred arches, and three windows. Two of these are 12th-century, similar to those on the north wall, while the remaining one is a late 14th-century window with cinquefoiled lights and tracery in a two-centred head.

The south doorway is from the 12th century, and the west wall has a mid-14th-century window with two cinquefoiled lights and a quatrefoil in a two-centred head, along with a modern window above it. The mid-13th-century chancel replaces a former apse and is undivided from the nave. The east wall has three mid-13th-century lancet windows adorned with dog tooth ornament and detached shafts with moulded bases and capitals, with the centre capitals being foliated. The north wall has two windows: one from the 13th century and one from the mid-14th century with two cinquefoiled lights in a two-centred head, featuring a moulded label and head stops. The south wall has four windows, including two 13th-century lancets that match those on the north wall, a 12th-century window with a semi-circular head in Roman brick, and a 14th-century window with a two-centred head and modern tracery.

There is a 13th-century doorway with chamfered jambs and a two-centred arch. The nave and chancel roof consists of seven cants with braced principals and moulded tie beams. The south porch was rebuilt in 1910, incorporating a 15th-century two-centred timber arch and a 15th-century tie beam with a crown post. Additionally, there are 13th-century wall paintings on the south-east window splays in the nave.