St Peter and St Paul, Wigtoft, Lincolnshire

I Location

Site Location: Wigtoft
National Grid Reference: TF 263 362
County: traditional: Lincolnshire
now: Lincolnshire
Diocese: medieval: Lincoln
now: Lincoln
Dedication: medieval: not confirmed
now (or name of monument): St Peter and St Paul
Type of building/monument: Parish church

II General Description

: General view.

: Nave, W wall.

Church consists of a W tower, nave with a four-bay arcade, N and S aisles, clerestory, and a chancel with N chapel. S doorway and tower arch are 13thc. while the nave arcade is 14thc.; the clerestory, upper part of tower, and the chancel are late medieval. C. H. Fowler did some restoration work here in 1891. The W doorway and W window of the tower, as well as the corbel table on the S porch, are Romanesque survivals.

III Exterior Features

1. Doorways

(i) W tower, W doorway

: W tower, W doorway and window.

Round arch, one order. Plain doorway and arch. Arch comprised of nine, plain voussoirs. The sharp edge of the arch suggests that it is renewed.

Dimensions

h. of opening	1.96 m
w. of opening	0.72 m

2. Windows

(i) W tower, W window

: Exterior, window.

: Exterior, window, arch.

: Exterior, window, N side, arch and label stop.

: Exterior, window, S side, arch and label stop.

Above doorway, round-headed, two orders.

First order:

Plain jamb continuous with arch.

Second order:

Attached nook-shafts on attic bases with six keeled annulets on the N shaft; the S shaft has four keeled annulets and one roll mould annulet at the top. Capitals seem to be a merging of Corinthianesque and crocket types as the corner volutes appear to represent a large, hook-shaped leaf knob and fruit (?) furled over. Roll mould necking. N impost has fillet on face with one quirk below and two above; S impost has chamfer on the lower edge with a single quirk above it. In the arch: angle roll with point-to-point chevron; keel mould annulets on angle roll where chevron points meet. Most of the label has dogtooth on the lower chamfer, but near the N label stop this changes into nailhead – or is it unfinished dogtooth? The label stops are small, round, human heads and are in very weathered condition. The closed mouth, the nose, and some of the eye detail are still readable on the N label stop.

3. Exterior Decoration

c. Corbel Tables, Corbels

(i) S porch, exterior E wall, corbel table

: Exterior, S porch, E side, corbel table under eave.

: Exterior, corbel table, S end, corbel head.

: Exterior, corbel table, S end.

: Exterior, corbel table, S end, corbel head.

This table of eleven corbels is located under the eave of the porch roof and can easily be missed. The corbels are extremely weathered. Ten of the corbels of an arch design with a downward semicircular disc in the arch. At the S end of the table, the last corbel is much smaller in width than the others and represents a human head with a wide open mouth and is on a hollow chamfer. Dimensions given below are from S to N. E10/11 is a double corbel carved on one piece of stone.

Dimensions

h.	0.16 m
w.	0.62 m (double corbel carved on one piece of stone)

E1:
h.	0.16 m
w.	0.175 m

E2:
h.	0.16 m
w.	0.28 m

E3:
h.	0.16 m
w.	0.33 m

E4:
h.	0.16 m
w.	0.32 m

E5:
h.	0.16 m
w.	0.31 m

E6:
h.	0.16 m
w.	0.30 m

E7:
h.	0.16 m
w.	0.31 m

E8:
h.	0.16 m
w.	0.31 m

E9:
h.	0.16 m
w.	0.31 m

E10/11:
h.	0.16 m
w.	0.62 m

(ii) S porch, exterior W wall, corbel table

: Exterior, S porch, W side, corbel table under eave.

Same as on the corbel table on the E wall of the S porch (3.c.i), but this one is much better preserved. The human head corbel here (W11) has wide open mouth, bulging cheeks and eyes, and a nose with a flat bridge; on a hollow chamfer. Dimensions given below are from N to S.

Dimensions

W1:
h.	0.16 m
w.	0.31 m

W2:
h.	0.16 m
w.	0.31 m

W3:
h.	0.16 m
w.	0.30 m

W4:
h.	0.16 m
w.	0.31 m

W5:
h.	0.16 m
w.	0.30 m

W6:
h.	0.16 m
w.	0.31 m

W7:
h.	0.16 m
w.	0.295 m

W8:
h.	0.16 m
w.	0.31 m

W9:
h.	0.16 m
w.	0.31 m (cracked in two on a diagonal)

W10:
h.	0.16 m
w.	0.31 m

W11:
h.	0.17 m
w.	0.185 m

VII History

There is no mention of Wigtoft in the Domesday Survey.

VIII Comments/Opinions

As suggested by Pevsner, the W tower doorway and window have likely been re-set from their original position in the W wall of the nave where the now blocked companion side windows of the W doorway can still be seen inside.

IX Bibliography

N. Pevsner, The Buildings of England: Lincolnshire, London, 1990, 798.