Tomb of Matthews in Arnos Vale Cemetery is a Grade II* listed building in the Bristol, City of local planning authority area, England. First listed on 30 January 2003. A Victorian Tomb.
Tomb of Matthews in Arnos Vale Cemetery
- WRENN ID
- shifting-turret-alder
- Grade
- II*
- Local Planning Authority
- Bristol, City of
- Constituency
- Bristol East MP: Kerry McCarthy (Lab)
- Country
- England
- Date first listed
- 30 January 2003
- Type
- Tomb
- Period
- Victorian
- Address
- Tomb of Matthews in Arnos Vale Cemetery, Bath Road
- OS grid reference
- ST 607 714
- Coordinates
- 51.44078, -2.56654
- Source
- Historic England listing
Description
The Tomb of Thomas Gadd Matthews, who died in 1860, is located in Arnos Vale Cemetery. It was created by Tyley of Bristol, monumental masons, and is made of marble on a base of Pennant stone. This large, two-stage monument is enclosed by a plot surrounded by ten marble posts connected with tubular rails. Each post features segmental pediments adorned with floral decorations.
The monument is set on a stepped base, with the upper section having concave sides. The lower section is a chest tomb, featuring scrolled consoles enriched with acanthus, positioned at angles to the corners. Each face of the chest tomb includes an inset inscription panel bordered with foliage. The upper stage consists of a sarcophagus resting on claw feet, with reliefs of 'tabula ansata' on each side, flanked by foliate decorations at the corners. The gadrooned cover supports a moulded, two-stage lid topped with a finial that includes consoles and an anthemion motif.
Matthews is noted as a merchant, and his monument is considered one of the finest in the cemetery. It stands out for its ambitious design and draws inspiration from 18th century Georgian churchyard memorials.
Local climate
Tomb of Matthews in Arnos Vale Cemetery receives an average of 860 mm of rain a year. This makes it wetter than 61% of listed buildings in the UK. Its exposure to wind-driven rain is greater than that of 68% of listed buildings.
It experiences an average of 33 freeze-thaw cycles a year, fewer than 55% of listed buildings. Of these, 14 follow at least 1 mm of rain in the preceding 48 hours. Average temperatures at this location have risen by 0.3°C per decade since 1991.
Averages for 1991–2020; temperature trend 1991–2025. Figures describe the wider area (a grid cell of roughly 10 km), not the individual site. Contains modified Copernicus Climate Change Service information 2026.
More on this building
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- No EPC on record for this property
- No sale records on file
- No related consent applications matched
- Detailed attributes — period, style, materials, features
- Flood risk assessment
- Radon risk assessment
- Weather exposure and heating demand — rain and frost month by month and year by year, wind direction, solar and humidity
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Similar buildings
The closest matches to this building from all 493,000 UK listed buildings, by architecture, period and materials.
- 1 Monument with Railing Surround to Thomas Gadd Matthews
- 2 Matthews Tomb in St Mary's Churchyard
- 3 Matthews Monument About 20 Yards South of the East End of the South Aisle of the Church of St George
- 4 Tomb of Reynolds in Arnos Vale Cemetery
- 5 Six Matthews Etc Chest Tombs in South Corner of Churchyard, Church of St Mary
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Nearby listed buildings
- Tomb of Benn in Arnos Vale Cemetery
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- Monument to Heber Denty, Arnos Vale Cemetery
- Tomb of Whiting in Arnos Vale Cemetery
- Obelisk Memorial, Arnos Vale Cemetery
- Tomb of Weston in Arnos Vale Cemetery
- Tomb of Breillat in Arnos Vale Cemetery
- Monument to Joseph Goodale Lansdowne