Church Of St Mary

CHETTLE ST 9513 CHETTLE VILLAGE

8/2 Church of St Mary 14.7.55 GV II*

Parish church, early C16 west tower, remainder 1849. Banded flint and ashlar with tiled roofs having end stone copings. Plan: nave, chancel, north vestry, south organ chamber and west tower. The west tower is in the Perpendicular style and the C19 work is partly in the Decorated and partly in the Perpendicular style. West tower: 2-stages separated by weathered strings; embattled parapet; weathered buttresses, diagonal to the west and square set to the east; belfry windows of 2 lights under 4-central heads. Nave and chancel windows of one and 2 lights under square heads. East chancel window of 3 lights with Perpendicular tracery under pointed head with label having carved stops. Vestry and organ chamber windows of 2 lights with curvilinear tracery under pointed heads with labels having carved stops. West doorway with 4-centred head of 2 chamfered orders. Above is a 3-light, 3-centred window with Perpendicular tracery.

Interior: moulded, pointed tower arch; pointed chancel arch of 2 chamfered orders; C19 arch-braced scissor-truss nave roof springing from carved head corbels; chancel, vestry and organ chamber have collar-truss roofs with ashlar pieces; C19 rectangular stone pulpit with blind tracery; C19, traceried vestry screen; C19 pews with fluted ends; C19 octagonal font; C19 encaustic tiles in chancel; beamed tower ceiling with painted decoration; various C18, C19 and C20 monuments, notably to Thomas and Ann Chafin, 1705 and to George and Elizabeth Chafin 1766. (RCHM Dorset, vol.IV, p.10, no.1. Newman, J. and Pevsner, N., The Buildings of England: Dorset, 1972, p.151.)

Listing NGR: ST9515813286