Parish Church Of St Andrew

Parish Church of St Andrew

This parish church at Althorne combines work from several periods. The main structure dates from the late 14th century, with significant alterations made in the early 16th century and later restoration in the 20th century. The building is constructed of dressed flint and stone rubble with limestone, clunch and red brick dressings. The chancel is built of red brick in English bond, and the whole is roofed with handmade red clay tiles.

The nave is late 14th-century work. On the north wall are three windows: the two easternmost are 15th-century, each with two trefoiled lights under a four-centred head with moulded label, partly restored with rebuilt heads featuring alternating flint and red brick voussoirs; the western window is late 15th-century with two pointed lights in a square head with moulded label, similarly treated. Between the two western windows stands the 14th-century north doorway of clunch with moulded jambs and two-centred arch, much decayed externally and plain within, now blocked with red brick. At the east end of this wall is a rood stair projecting externally, with a plain lower doorway having a square head (blocked) and an upper doorway positioned in the angle of the north and east walls, each with half an arch of four-centred curvature, rebuilt.

The south wall contains three windows matching those in the north wall. Between the western pair is the 14th-century south doorway with moulded jambs and four-centred arch. The nave has a moulded cornice and crenellated parapet, restored.

The west tower, dating from around 1500, is arranged in three stages with a stair-turret in the north-east corner. The two-centred tower-arch has three chamfered orders; its lower part is blocked and the responds are rebuilt in brick. The west window is 20th-century work. On either side are two plain brick crosses. The west doorway has moulded jambs and a segmental-pointed arch with a moulded label enriched with carved flowers. In the second stage, both the south and west walls have windows with trefoiled heads and jambs carved with flowers. The bell-chamber contains windows in each wall with two cinquefoiled lights under a four-centred head with moulded label. The stair-turret is lit by two chamfered loops and two quatrefoils. A string course runs at the level of the bell-chamber windows, above which is a moulded cornice and crenellated parapet faced with dressed flint in a stone trellis pattern, restored. Above the west doorway is an inscription in black letter reading '+ Orate pro animabus dominorum Johannis Wylson et Johannis Hyll quorum animabus propicietur deus amen', now decayed at the bottom.

The chancel is early 16th-century work. Its windows in the east, north and south walls are substantially 20th-century, as is the south doorway. The chancel arch is mostly 20th-century except for the plain responds.

A plain 18th-century south porch is cement-rendered.

Notable fittings include a 15th-century piscina in the south wall of the nave with rounded head and round drain. The font, dating from around 1400, has an octagonal bowl richly carved with sunk panels depicting the baptism of a king, a man and woman, a king and queen, a seraph, two men with scrolls, the martyrdom of St Andrew, and two figures of men. The underside of the bowl is moulded and carved with angels (defaced). The stem is panelled with two ranges of cusped panels divided by a crenellated band, and the base is moulded and carved with square flowers.

Two important brasses remain in the nave. The first is to William Hyklott, 1508, showing a figure in civil costume with the Trinity and indents of two children, noting that he 'paide for the werkmanship of the wall of this churche'. The second is to Margaret Hyklott, 1502, with figures of two daughters (one habited as a nun) and a Virgin and child, with only an indent remaining of the main figure. A floor slab beneath the font commemorates Elizabeth Gordon, 1701.

There are two bells: the first cast by Thomas Harrys in the late 15th century, inscribed 'Vox Augustine Sonet in Aure Dei', and the second by Miles Graye, 1638. A roughly scratched sundial can be seen on a south buttress of the nave.