Shared description
Church of St Mary, Garthorpe
The church consists of aisled nave with chancel, west tower and south porch.
The nave arcades, dating from the 13th century, are the oldest fabric remaining. Although their date would normally place them in the Early English period, they have round arches, a typical feature for this part of Leicestershire. The fact that they are not quite contemporary is shown by the fact that the south arcade has round columns, the north arcade octagonal.
The chancel has 14th century Decorated period windows although the walling may be earlier, and there is tracery of the same period in the north aisle windows. The clerestory and west tower, in Perpendicular style followed in the 15th century.
19th century restoration work did not result in major rebuilding other than the south porch, the main legacy of that period being a new roof and the exceptional carved work of the font and reredos by the Rev. Thorold of Stainsby, Lincs.
Other interesting interior features include the ornate niches in the north wall of the chancel, probably adapted for use as an Easter Sepulchre, and the piscina on the south wall with its unusual support to the bowl carved as a head. There is a Royal coat of arms from the earlier part of the reign of George III over the chancel arch.
The churchyard has some interesting chest tombs mainly of the 18th century, and some older carved grave slabs, probably of the 17th century but possibly older. There is a Grade II Listed sundial near the entrance to the churchyard based on a section of one of the tower pinnacles replaced in the Victorian period.
The church is Listed Grade I, and is now in the care of the Churches Conservation Trust.
The nave arcades, dating from the 13th century, are the oldest fabric remaining. Although their date would normally place them in the Early English period, they have round arches, a typical feature for this part of Leicestershire. The fact that they are not quite contemporary is shown by the fact that the south arcade has round columns, the north arcade octagonal.
The chancel has 14th century Decorated period windows although the walling may be earlier, and there is tracery of the same period in the north aisle windows. The clerestory and west tower, in Perpendicular style followed in the 15th century.
19th century restoration work did not result in major rebuilding other than the south porch, the main legacy of that period being a new roof and the exceptional carved work of the font and reredos by the Rev. Thorold of Stainsby, Lincs.
Other interesting interior features include the ornate niches in the north wall of the chancel, probably adapted for use as an Easter Sepulchre, and the piscina on the south wall with its unusual support to the bowl carved as a head. There is a Royal coat of arms from the earlier part of the reign of George III over the chancel arch.
The churchyard has some interesting chest tombs mainly of the 18th century, and some older carved grave slabs, probably of the 17th century but possibly older. There is a Grade II Listed sundial near the entrance to the churchyard based on a section of one of the tower pinnacles replaced in the Victorian period.
The church is Listed Grade I, and is now in the care of the Churches Conservation Trust.
Created: Thu, 17 Nov 2016, Updated: Wed, 30 Nov 2016
21 images use this description: (all images taken in 2016)
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