All Saints Church (Mapperton)

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View from the southwest; the semicircular brickwork traces the stairwell to the former tower.
Depiction of a coat of arms, 16th century

The All Saints Church is a church building in the rural parish of Mapperton in Dorset , England . As a listed building of the highest category I , it is a listed building .

The construction of the church goes back to the 12th century, it was first mentioned in 1291 as a chapel belonging to Netherbury. Ham Stone , a Jurassic limestone that is only quarried on Ham Hill west of Yeovil in Somerset, was used as building material . In the 15th century a short tower was added on the west side, and in 1704 the nave was rebuilt. As part of an extensive renovation in 1846, the southern entrance received a small porch. In the first half of the 20th century the tower was completely rebuilt: the 1770 added with pinnacles provided parapetwas removed and the rest removed so that the roof of the church could be extended uniformly. From the outside, the former tower is no longer recognizable; the altar is now located in its interior.

In the six windows of the nave, round and square images of people and coats of arms are set; they date from the 16th and 17th centuries. The choir , which encompasses the easternmost third of the church building, is directly adjacent to the Mapperton House and has direct access to it. Its masonry from the 12th century is the oldest surviving part of the entire complex, the baptismal font also dates from this period.

The church was a parish church until 1971, when the parish of Mapperton was merged with that of Melplash. In 1977 it was sold to the owner of the manor house, who uses it as a private chapel. Public services are held in summer and at special events, and it can also be rented for wedding ceremonies. The church is also open to the public during the opening times of the adjacent gardens.

literature

  • Her Majesty's Stationery Office: An Inventory of the Historical Monuments in Dorset, Volume 1, West, London 1952, pp. 153-156. Digitized on the British History Online website. (English)

Web links

Commons : All Saints church, Mapperton  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Ham & Doulting Stone : Ham Stone ( Memento of March 3, 2010 in the Internet Archive ) ( English )

Coordinates: 50 ° 47 ′ 39.6 "  N , 2 ° 42 ′ 21.4"  W.