Parish Church Of St Mary

TL 01 SE REDBOURN CHURCH END TL 11 SW (west side) REDBOURN COMMON

4/153 Parish Church of St Mary 5/153

19.10.53

GV I

Parish Church. Circa 1100 nave and west tower. N aisle c.1140. Circa 1340 chancel. S. aisle, mid C14; S chancel chapel and porch 1444-55. Clerestorey c.1478. N aisle c.1497. Flint rubble with stone and brick dessings. Some reused Roman brick. East chancel wall in chequered stone and knapped flint; plain flint to N wall; brick and stone buttresses. Low pitched lead roofs; chancel with steep plain tile roof. Large 3-stage tower has straight parapet and small spike. C15 W door and belfry lights. Flat buttresses; stepped buttress on SW. Billet courses below belfry. S aisle has very good moulded brick eaves corbel table with trefoiled arcading, an early dated example. Porch with moulded stone door arch. S wall with 2 C15 3-light windows and a 4-centre arched door. Chancel has a 3-light E window with cusped net tracery, restored 1801. N aisle has 2- light windows with hood moulds. Clerestorey windows also 2- light, but with chamfered surrounds.

Interior: N nave arcade is c.1140. 3 drum piers with scalloped capitals. 2-step arches with outer billet label. S arcade has octagonal piers and double-chamfer arches. Similar-style W arch. Chancel arch with moulded and stepped arches, probably before c.1300. Late C15 nave roof with short crown posts. Good C15 N aisle roof with moulded beams; similar roof to NE chapel. N aisle wall has a blocked Norman window. Chancel has, on N wall, a C14 sedilia with ogee arches and C12 capitals; simple Easter sepulchre on S wall. Broad 4-centre arch opening to SE chapel. Very good rood screen of 1478 with pierced and blank traceried panels, 2 either side of central arch, and a cove of open fan tracery. Early C18 stone and marble font in W aisle with baluster-shaped base and shell-like bowl. Brasses: in chancel to Sir Richard Bede, 1560; in S chapel to Richard Peacock, 1512; near S door, C.1470. Monuments: N chancel wall, good marble epitaph to Eignon Bignon and his wife, 1717, by Thomas Bull; a bust under draped baldacchino, flanked by fluted pilasters. 4 other good late C18 and early C19 smaller wall plaques in chancel. (RCHM (1910), Pevsner (1977)).

Listing NGR: TL0999411570