St Mary’s Church, Stottesdon

The earliest and most incredible part of this church is the remarkable Saxon lintel and tympanum above the west doorway inside the tower. The tower was added in the late 11th or early 12th century, so that the west doorway is now inside the tower.

The Saxon tympanum is the only visible remains of the pre-Conquest Saxon church. It is set above the west doorway which was once the most important entrance to the church. The intriguing carved, triangular stone tympanum is crowned by a bearded face, perhaps representing God above the scene below. The broad stone lintel of the old west door is carved with animals, and the scene has been interpreted as representing a hunt or chase.

The splendid richly carved Norman font dates from the early 12th century. It is regarded as being one of the finest examples of late Norman workmanship in the country, created by the legendary Hereford School of Romanesque Sculpture. Beneath the interlaced pattern around the rim are depictions of stylised plants together with animal and human forms described as griffins, cockatrices and centaurs.

The north aisle was built in the late 12th century, circa 1180. The south porch has a 12th-century entrance arch, and the chancel was rebuilt in the 14th century, circa 1330.

The church has some wonderful stained glass, specifically the small south window which has fragments of medieval glass. More recently, the splendidly carved wooden pulpit was added in the 17th century by the Jacobeans.

Another great medieval feature of this church are some 13th-century medieval floor tiles in the chancel that were probably from the original floor that were covered when the chancel floor was raised.