St Athernase Parish Church, Schoolhill, Leuchars

The Church of St Athernase in Leuchars is an ecclesiastical building of probable Romanesque origin, with a first phase of construction dating back to around 1183-7, and consecrated in 1244. The core of the building consists of a Romanesque chancel, roughly square in plan measuring approximately 19 feet 9 inches by 18 feet internally, and an apse measuring 12 feet by 12 feet 6 inches. The structure is built of ashlar and features two external orders of arcades, with the lower order of the chancel heavily restored in 1858 by John Milne of St Andrews. A sculpted corbel table is present at the wall head. The choir is wood-roofed, and the apse is vaulted. The roof was renewed shortly before 1638, and a domed bell turret was added to the apse, likely later in the 17th century.

The nave is a rectangular aisleless form, substantially altered in 1812-14 by Robert Balfour of St Andrews, when a north gallery stair was added. It was rebuilt in 1858 by John Milne, incorporating some original masonry on the north side. The architecture of this phase is Victorian Romanesque and features a symmetrical south front with a central gable arch porch. The chancel was re-opened into the nave, and further repairs and renovations were undertaken in 1914 by Reginald Fairlie, who also designed a font in 1922.

Monuments within the church commemorate the Carnegie of Kinnaird family (1565), Sir William (1584) and Lady Agnes (1635) Bruce of Earlshall, whose memorial slabs are now within the church.

The church is of special group value due to the immediate surroundings of the Romanesque elements. Previous features, numbers 454, 457-60, 463, have since been demolished or reconstructed.

Records indicate that a report was obtained from David Bryce in 1853-6, though its contents are unrecorded; John Milne was subsequently engaged. Later, in 1914, Reginald Fairlie designed a full scheme for the nave and a west tower based on foundations discovered in 1913, though this design was not executed.