Whalsay Kirk, Kirk Ness, Whalsay

The Whalsay Kirk, located at Kirk Ness on Whalsay, was built in 1733 and significantly remodelled in 1867. It is a symmetrical T-plan kirk, comprising a four-bay galleried hall with a two-storey wing containing an aisle and a laird’s loft, situated centrally to the north (rear). The walls are constructed of harl-pointed rubble, with stugged and droved sandstone ashlar dressings. Projecting cills are present on the windows.

The south elevation is symmetrical and features tall principal windows with high cills flanking the central bay, and smaller windows with lower cills flanking the outer bays.

The west (entrance) gable has a round-arched doorway in the centre of the ground floor, now with a modern timber door and plate glass fanlight in the arch. A window is located in the gablehead, surmounted by a 19th-century plain polished ashlar pointed-arched bellcote.

The north (rear) elevation features an advanced gabled aisle and laird's loft at the centre. A loft stair and window are adjacent to the right re-entrant angle, with a matching window to the left, fronted by a memorial enclosure to Alexander Shand. A two-leaf, wide-boarded and studded door is set within a segmental-arched opening in the centre of the north gable of the aisle. A small window is at first floor level on the east side. A harl-pointed rubble forestair with a sandstone cope and steps leads to a vertically-boarded timber door adjacent to the re-entrant angle of the west side, with a small window to the left.

The east gable has a cement-rendered infill (dated 1968) to a central segmental-arched former doorway, and a window centred in the gablehead above, with a cill dated 1767.

The windows are predominantly timber sash and case, with 12-pane glazing, except for 18-pane glazing flanking the centre of the south elevation and 8-pane glazing on the aisle. The roof is a modern grey tile, piended to the south end of the aisle, with stugged sandstone ashlar skew-copes. A rubble gablehead stack with a stone cope is present on the aisle.

The interior retains mid-19th century timber fittings, including vertically-boarded wainscoting, horizontally-boarded pews, a loft, a gallery, and a canted and panelled pulpit with a sounding board, centred on the east wall and accessed by a stair on the north side.

The boundary walls and gatepiers consist of a harl-pointed rubble wall enclosing the kirkyard, extended to the west and north by a well-built modern wall with a semicircular concrete cope. A rubble-infilled opening is situated in the south wall, centred opposite the south elevation of the kirk. Crude cement-rendered and lined square entrance gatepiers with pyramidal caps and a wrought-iron gate with medallions are located on the west side.