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The Saxon Odda's Chapel is joined onto the C17th Abbot's Court.

ODDA'S CHAPEL
From records, the chapel's existence was known, however until 1885 its location wasn't. In that year the Reverend George Butterworth (1822-1909) took the opportunity to investigate this thick-walled stone building when work was being carried out on Abbot's Court into which it had been incorporated. Looking inside he noticed a faint semi-circle under the plaster covering the front wall. Removing some of this plaster exposed the remains of a round-headed doorway. With the help of the builder Thomas Collins they gradually exposed the whole of the Saxon chapel.
Remarkably, the chapel can be dated precisely to 1056 as a dedication stone (to the then unidentified chapel) was discovered nearby in 1675. The inscription was in Latin, and when translated reads:
"Earl Odda ordered this royal chapel to be built and dedicated in honour of the Holy Trinity for the good of the soul of his brother Aelfric who died in this place. Bishop Ealdred dedicated it on April 12th in the fourteenth year of the reign of Edward, King of the English."
The King Edward referred to is now known as Edward the Confessor (reigned 1042-1066). This plaque (a replica of which can be found on the eastern wall of the chapel) can now be found in the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford Link )
It is of course Grade I listed by English Heritage - see Link which gives more information, as does
the Victoria County Histories Link (after the extensive description of the even older St. Mary's Church)
The chapel is now owned and maintained by English Heritage, and can be visited free-of-charge. See Link
More on the chapel's history and discovery here Link

ABBOT'S COURT
Adjoined at right-angles to Odda's Chapel and until 1885 subsuming it, is the early C17th Abbot's Court. This fine half-timbered building is not open to the public. It is separately listed by EH as Grade II, see Link

Created: Wed, 27 Jun 2018, Updated: Wed, 27 Jun 2018