Church Of St Mary

The Church of St Mary is a church with elements dating from the 12th, 13th, 14th, and 15th centuries. It is constructed of coursed rubblestone and ashlar, with Welsh slate and lead roofs. The church comprises a west tower, an aisled nave with a clerestory and a south porch, and a chancel.

The west tower is from the 12th century, with three stages. It has a later pointed-arched west window of three cusped lights with a hood-mould under a band; and to each aisle, a two-light Y-tracery pointed-arch window. A one-light arched window is located on the south side of the second stage. The third stage features a triple arcade on each side, with cushion capitals to the columns, blind outer arches, and a louvred two-light belfry opening to the central arches. It includes a corbel table and a plain chamfered parapet.

The nave features two bays with three-bay aisles. The gabled south porch has a pointed-arched doorway under a hood-mould, an inner pointed-arched board door, and stone coping with a finial to the gable. To the right of the porch is a two-light Y-tracery pointed-arch window, along with a plain parapet. The aisle’s east window is pointed-arched with three cusped lights. The 15th-century clerestory has two flat-arched windows of two cusped lights. It has a chamfered, plain parapet. The north aisle features a board door set in a chamfered surround, with a two-light arched cusped overlight to the left and a larger two-light cusped window further to the left.

The chancel is divided into three bays separated by offset buttresses with diagonal buttresses at the east end. A board priest’s door is set into the left buttress. It contains Y-tracery, two-light arched windows, and a plain parapet. The east window from 15th century is of four lights with rectilinear tracery and a hood-mould.

The interior includes a three-bay north arcade from the 13th century, featuring round piers with stiff leaf capitals carrying round arches with one roll and one chamfer each. A three-bay south arcade from the 14th century has one capital with an oak leaf motif. A 13th-century piscina is also present, as is a medallion in the south wall of the nave depicting an animal. A 17th-century font cover is heavily moulded and topped with an acorn finial. The benches are predominantly Jacobean, with small decorative panels. Three stalls in the chancel, dating from 1519, have carved bench ends, poppy heads, small beasts supported by detached shafts, and are dated 'MD 19'. A communion rail incorporates tracery from the former rood screen. A brass dating from around 1530 depicts John Watson and his wife.