St Helen |
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Three views of the
exterior of St Helen's Church. There is a small sundial above the transept
gable (but you will have to visit the church to see it). The oak shingles were
added to the belfry walls as late as 1891, as part of the
improvements.
Dove's reference for the bells:
Berrick Salome, Oxon, S Helen (GF), 6, 7cwt in
B flat. SU623943 |
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Enter the church through the south door; the external oak door
is of greater antiquity than the interior door, although the latter is set in a
simple round-headed arch which is thought to be Norman, or possibly late Saxon,
in period.
Inside the door, under the
gallery is the font, also dating from the Saxon period. although its cover is
15th - 16th century.
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Looking towards the
Altar, the chancel is simply a small extension of the nave, because the
building is oblong in shape with no chancel arch. To the right of the altar is
a small piscina with shelf over.
There are mediaeval
tile fragments in the chancel.
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From the altar
steps, turn to see the south transept (with its "Bee" window dating from
approximately the 13th century), and the nave, with its west gallery.
The gallery was
constructed in 1676, and reinforced in 1950. Further repairs were carried out
in the 1970s.
Note that there is
no pulpit. It was removed in the 1950s, but what exactly was removed is not
known.
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The roof timbers
above the nave are a form of double queen post structure, and the main beam is
dated 1615 immediately abopve the chancel steps. This, together with the dated
inscription plaque over the Altar step, also dated 1615, were uncovered when
the plastered barrel vault ceiling was removed during the restoration work in
1891.
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Compare the roof
structure with the exposed timberwork in the west wall above the gallery
(left), and see the Tudor headed brick windows (right) which were a later
addition, as were those in the south transept. |
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The inscription,
picked out in gold leaf, on the front of the gallery states:
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1676
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IOHN BARRETT |
CHURCH |
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WILLIAM MOOAR
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WARDENS
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. . . and to
its right on the wall hangs a hatchment dating from the reign of George II. The
lion's face is almost human.
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Beneath the gallery
is a circular staircase set within the thickness of the west wall. There is no
access at this point into the Belfry, which in some respects is almost a
free-standing structure. The steps themselves have been renewed in
concrete. |
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Detail of the
timber guard rail at the top of the staircase within the
gallery.
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Detail of the
interior of the north gallery window.
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View through the
roof timbers over the nave and chancel. |
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View of the nave
and altar from the gallery.. |
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The
original box pews were removed in 1891 during the general alterations, and were
reduced in height and the doors were removed. However, not all traces were
removed, because the doors were reused as wall panells, and the hinge marks can
still clearly be seen, especially on the south wall just inside the main door
arch.
The pews were also numbered, and the
numbering system can be seen,somewhat rearranged, in
the detail of the door ends which were reused as
panelling along the north wall.
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A
comparison of the detail to the eaves of the gallery window and the south
porch. |
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Photographs: Edwin
Macadam © 2002 |
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ACCESS |
Map reference : SU623943 It is
approached down a long unmade track to the south west of the village. The
church was open at the time of our visit.
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Please see our
Home Page
for important copyright notice |
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SEARCH THIS SITE |
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This
site has been constructed by, and remains the copyright of,
its authors,
Edwin and Sheila Macadam,
Shelwin, 30, Eynsham Road, Botley,
Oxford OX2 9BP
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July 2001 -
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