Church Of St Mary Magdalene

TM 36 SE STERNFIELD CHURCH HILL (east side)

2/120 Church of St. Mary 7.12.66 Magdalene (formerly listed as Church of St. Mary)

GV II*

Parish church. Nave, chancel, west tower, south porch, north vestry. Mainly random flint with stone dressings, some brickwork to nave; roofs of nave, chancel and porch of plaintiles with crest tiles. Early C15 tower: square, unbuttressed, crenellated parapet; 2 string courses to bell-chamber stage, the one immediately below the parapet with some carved heads; 2-light semi-circular headed bell-chamber openings; west face with one 2-light window (fragments of medieval glass) and one single-light window with square hood mould; below lower window is a carved stone shield bearing the de la Pole arms. Nave probably C14: south wall with one late C19 3-light window in Perpendicular style, north wall with 2 2-light C15 windows with square hood moulds (one window largely original), blocked doorway. C14 porch: moulded entrance arch on semi-circular responds, empty trefoil-headed niche above; 2-light side openings with circular shafts and shouldered lintols; nave doorway with plank door and holy water stoup to right hand side. Chancel rebuilt in 1764, considerably restored 1877: new windows, re-fashioned Priest's doorway, vestry added to north on site of C14 chapel; good C14 piscina with ballflower ornament set in north chancel external wall. Nave with 4-bay single hammerbeam roof, probably largely C19, the hammerbeams with pointed ends and pendant bosses; chancel roof of 1877, 3 bays, arch-braced construction; also of 1877 are the chancel arch, pulpit, organ chamber, nave benches, tiles and much glass. North chancel wall retains trefoil-headed 2-light window of the former chapel; north nave wall with blocked entrance to rood loft stairs; blocked sanctus bell window above tower arch. C14 octagonal font with quatrefoil to each face; some benches in chancel with re-used C15 traceried ends with carved arm rests; reredos painting by Benjamin West entitled 'The Blind Restored to Sight'; 2 plain marble tablets on south chancel wall to Rev. Montagu North (d.1779) and Elizabeth North his wife (d.1774). Graded II* for surviving medieval work, notably porch and tower.

Listing NGR: TM3909561594