Description

CRAMLINGTON A 1171
NZ 27 SE
(North side, off)
7/55 Church of St. John
the Baptist,
Annitsford
II
Roman Catholic Church, 1906 by Parxour. Snecked stone with flush ashlar bands
and dressings; Welsh slate roof with red tile cresting. 6-bay aisled nave with
south-west porch and north-west baptistery; 3-bay aisled chancel with canted
apse within ambulatory. French Gothic style. Chamfered plinth, buttresses
with stepped coping. Shouldered doorways to south porch, in projection to east
and at east of ambulatory. Aisle and baptistery windows mostly of 2 shoulder-
arched lights. Lofty west end shows 2 tall lancets with buttress between and
vesica over; large moulded finial cross. Clerestorey of quatrefoiled circles,
with cinquefoiled circle on east above ambulatory, flanked by pointed lights
with cusped vesicas above. Nave/chancel division marked by octagonal pinnacles
springing from aisles and clerestorey walls. Baptistery has steep pyramidal
roof with wrought-iron finial cross; similar finial to apse. Bellcote with
finial cross above east door of ambulatory.

Interior: Arcade arches narrow and steeply pointed, expecially in chancel.
High arch-braced timber roof on corbelled shafts; chancel arch is simply a more
elaborate stone truss on triple shafts. Panelled sanctuary. Carved screens in
chancel arcade. Tall carved reredos with 6 painted panels of saints and central
figure of Christ in niche under pinnacle. Similar but smaller carved reredos
in north Lady Chapel. Carved pulpit with figures of saints in pinnacled niches.
Good wrought-iron baptistery rail.

The church is said to be modelled on Ostend Cathedral, which the architect and
Father Chapman visited; it was built on a concrete raft to counteract mining
subsidence. Both wood and craftsmen were brought over from Belgium.

Listing NGR: NZ2700674890

External Links

• Historic England Listing
• Wikidata Q26293276

External links are from the relevant listing authority and, where applicable, Wikidata. Wikidata IDs may be related buildings as well as this specific building. If you want to add or update a link, you will need to do so by editing the Wikidata entry.

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