Description

SY 39 SE CATHERSTON LEWESTON

5/8 Parish Church
(St Mary)

G.V. II*

Parish Church. 1857-8 by J L Pearson. Commissioned by R L Hildyard,
lord of Catherston Manor. Nave and Chancel; north Vestry; entry by West
door. Knapped chert walls, the cherts fitting closely to make a surface.
Stone for plinths, buttresses, strings, gable copings, cornices, window
tracery. Plain tile roof with copings at west gable, nave/chancel divide
and east end. Copings have gableted kneelers. Stone sanctus bell-cote
over west gable with sunk trefoil and stone cross over. Cross-in-wheel
over middle coping. Small cross with trefoil terminals over east coping.
West elevation: good west doorway with 3 orders of responds, naturalistic
foliage capitals, keeled roll mouldings to pointed arch. Label with
naturalistic foliage stops. West window of 4 lights with geometric
tracery. North elevation: 4 bays. Mullion windows, with geometric
tracery heads. East end has frieze of sunk quatrefoils all round. East
window, 3 light with respond-jambs and sexfoil geometrical tracery over.
Memorial Tablet to R C Hildyard, d 1857 and R H Hildyard, d 1876.

Interior: nave roof of arch-braced construction with high collars. 2 sets
of wind-braces, the lower as ashlaring. Longitudinal ridge-bracing. 5 bays
to roof carried on stone corbels with carved angel-musicians. Chancel-roof,
similar, of 3 bays. Chancel-arch, single responds, naturalistic foliage
capitals, high pointed arch. Chancel East wall: diaper pattern of carved
paterae behind altar and on reredos. Integral reredos of 3 trefoil-
cusped arches on marbled colonettes. Running foliage string-course over.
Credence shelf below north window. Sedilia below south window. Fittings:
Font, Beerstone, with octagonal bowl: scenes from Christ's Ministry.
Latin inscription round bowl and dated 1858. Pulpit, stone, octagonal with
pointed arches in a square panel, carried on marble colonettes. Stained
glass, good in Decorated style, 1858, by Clayton & Bell, East window with
Christ's Passion in 3 scenes. West window: scenes from the life of the
Virgin. Altar-rail with twisted-iron shafts and running foliage spandrels.
Choir-stalls, oak, with 13th century style details. Iron work candelabrum
to priest's desk. "F P Pitfield, Dorset Parish Churches A - D", p 152.

Listing NGR: SY3696594391

External Links

• Historic England Listing
• Parish Church (St Mary) at Wikipedia
• Wikidata Q17542888

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.

Recommended Books

• 
  Central Leinster: Kildare, Laois and Offaly (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of Ireland)
• 
  Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990
• 
  Oxfordshire (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Hampshire: Winchester and the North (The Buildings of England) (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Kent: West and the Weald: The Buildings of England (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Devon (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)