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St Matthew, Salford Priors, Warwickshire

Location
(52°9′26″N, 1°53′19″W)
Salford Priors
SP 077 510
pre-1974 traditional (England and Wales) Warwickshire
now Warwickshire
  • Harry Bodenham

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Description

An originally 12thc. church consisting of chancel, narrow nave, W tower with clasping buttresses and nave S aisle. The S aisle was added in the late 12thc., the arcades formed by cutting through the S wall leaving rectangular piers. The S wall of the aisle has since been rebuilt. Surviving 12thc. features are the N doorway, three bays of the nave S arcade, and the lower part of the W wall of the tower which incorporates two round-headed windows, one of which is decorated.

History

There was a priest at Salford Priors in 1086. The church was granted with the manor to the canons of Kenilworth by Henry I and confirmed by Simon, Bishop of Worcester.

Features

Exterior Features

Doorways

Windows

Interior Features

Arcades

Nave
Comments/Opinions

The church is built largely of light grey lias limestone, a locally available stone. It is a friable material and cannot be carved. It is significant therefore that 12thc. elements such as the N doorway, the arcade piers and capitals are in a shelly toffee-coloured limestone reminiscent of the liassic ironstone of Edge Hill or Hornton, several miles to the east. It is possible that the stone for this early work was transported from some distance.

Bibliography
VCH 3:161-165
Pevsner