Church Of The Holy Rood

The Church of the Holy Rood is a church situated on Sparsholt Street in Sparsholt. It largely dates from the late 12th century, with significant additions and alterations in the late 13th, early 14th, and late 18th centuries. Constructed of coursed sarsen and chalk rubble, with some areas rendered in roughcast, the roof is a mix of stone slate, tiles, and wood shingles, with the tower retaining wood shingles. Originally cruciform in plan with a west tower, the north transept was removed around 1785. The church exhibits Norman, Decorated, and Perpendicular architectural styles.

The east window is a late 19th-century design with a reticulated style. The south wall of the chancel incorporates three 2-light windows from the early 14th century, while the north wall features a late 15th-century vestry with a 2-light window and a pointed door. The south transept has a 4-light early 14th-century window, along with two 2-light windows on each side wall; the west wall contains two 2-light early 14th-century windows and a single late 15th-century 3-light window. A late 18th-century porch is positioned over a late 12th-century doorway, which retains a round arch and engaged columns with water-leaf and stiff-leaf capitals. The original double doors are fitted with original crescent hinges. The nave’s south wall has two 2-light early 14th-century windows and a 3-light late 15th-century window, situated above a blocked early 13th-century doorway also with a round arch and engaged columns with stiff-leaf capitals.

The interior features a fine Decorated piscina and sedilia, adorned with ogee cusped heads and ballflower ornament. Adjacent to the piscina is a reclining early 14th-century effigy in an ogee-headed and cusped tomb recess, with a similar recess on the opposite wall. Several 15th-century brasses are set into the chancel floor. Later 19th-century benches and desks are present, with some restored to include 15th-century carved bench ends and a desk end. The roof is a 17th-century collar truss design, supported by original carved corbels. A late 19th-century screen separates the chancel from the nave via the 13th-century chancel arch. A 13th-century arch connects to the south transept, which contains a similarly dated screen with cinquefoiled arches and restored shaft rings. Five 14th-century oak effigies, initially located elsewhere, are housed within tomb recesses; a chalk aedicule commemorates John Pleydell (1591) and his wife, incorporating an oval tablet flanked by Ionic columns and strapwork carving. A 2-bay roof with tie beams and crossed braces is likely from the late 18th century. The nave contains a late 19th-century pulpit, lectern, and benches, along with ledger stones set into the floor. Stained glass from the 14th century, including some grisaille glass, can be found in the middle windows of the south and north walls. The nave’s roof is a 5-bay late 15th-century structure with arch bracing to carved corbels. The carved oak effigies depict Sir Robert Archard (died 1353) and his wives, Joan (died 1336) and Agnes (died 1356), and it is believed that Sir Robert oversaw the construction of the chancel and transepts in the early 14th century.