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I Location

II General Description

Five-bay aisled nave with clerestorey and S doorway under a 15thc. porch, aisleless chancel with N vestry of 1900, W tower. The earliest parts are 12thc. (the lower storey of the tower). For the rest, the elaborate S doorway is early 13thc. in its structure but 12thc. in its decorative repertoire. This is described below, but such other early 13thc. features as the tower arch and nave arcades fall outside the scope of the CRSBI. The church is of mixed flint, pebble and stone, except for the N aisle, of brick, which was restored in 1912. Other restorations took place in 1897 and 1899.

III Exterior Features

1. Doorways

(i) S nave doorway

Two orders, pointed arch.

The first order has plain chamfered jambs and arch with no capitals but beaked imposts. The second order has detached, en-delit nook-shafts on double-roll bases. The W shaft decorated with a spiral cable design with an inverted head at the top, the E with a chevron motif of wide rolls alternating with pairs of narrow ones. The W capital has big volutes at the angles and damaged trefoil leaves or palmettes on the faces. The E capital is of sheathed double scallop design. Both have roll neckings and imposts continued from the 1st order. In the arch are 25 radiating voussoirs, each carved with a motif on a roll. These are mostly human heads but all are described below, numbered from L to R. Outside this are two rows of lateral centrifugal chevron, hollow then roll. Most of the chevron is left plain, but two voussoirs have a row of beading in the hollow. Towards the intrados of this chevron order are triangular fields, some of which are left plain, some dished, others with drilled pellets, palmettes or simple geometric motifs. This broad chevron archivolt curiously appears where a label would be expected.

Second order voussoirs:

1) Cat mask with ears, projecting brows and straight nose bifurcating like a moustache.

2) Human head broadly as 1), but with triangular nose, straight moustache and foliage(?) emerging from mouth.

3) Human head. Replacement in resin(?)

4) Cat mask. Replacement in resin(?)

5) Human head with broad triangular nose, open mouth with thick lips and teeth.

6) Human head with snub nose, prominent checks and small open mouth.

7) Human head (but with cat ears) with wideopen mouth.

8) Female head with headdress and wimple.

9) Badly eroded egg-shaped head with pointed chin.

10) Difficult to resolve. There is a large loss to the inner L. Two features stand out: an eye at upper L and the fan-like tail of a bird at lower R.

11) Dog-like head with large ears.

12) Human skull.

13) Simplified human head.

14) Sheep's head with curly horns.

15) Slender, oblong human head.

16) Badly eroded, narrow, irregularly shaped human head.

17) Bird beakhead.

18) Bird beakhead.

19) Straplike motif, possibly a damaged beakhead.

20) Oblong human head with projecting tongue.

21) Worn human head with projecting cheeks and narrow mouth.

22) Cat with long legs. Replacement in resin (?).

23) Human head with prominent jowls, moustache and beard.

24) Human head. Replacement in resin(?)

25) Human head. Replacement in resin(?)

VII History

In 1086 the manor belonged to the demesne of Ely Abbey.

VIII Comments/Opinions

It is probable that the arch of the S doorway has been constructed from elements of two doorways. Certainly the heads of the second order sit very uneasily with the 13thc. structure of chamfered jambs, beaked imposts and pointed arch, both structurally and stylistically. The chevron archivolt cannot be a label but has no supports to make it an order, neither does it fit very well.

IX Bibliography