124 Congress of British Archaeological Association at Devizes. 



chancel. In that comparatively early time the population was very 

 small. The number of monks who came from Caen would not 

 exceed six, or, at most, twelve ; and though they doubtless did the 

 best they could, this was then a great forest, and they could not 

 possibly have finished the Church with its long nave. 



After some farther discussion, the Members proceeded to St. 

 Mary's Church, where Dr. Burges also gave a general outline o£ 

 its principal features. " St. Mary's Church (he said) consists of a 

 chancel, nave, two side aisles, western tower, and south porch — 

 though I find Britton speaks of a north and south porch. From 

 the different styles of its architecture it has evidently been erected 

 at various and distinct periods. I find that there is a tradition that 

 it was originally built on or near the site of an ancient Church ; and 

 I am told by one of my churchwardens that some years since foun- 

 dations were discovered leading north-east across from the chancel 

 to the buildings adjoining the churchyard, which were considered to 

 be either the site of an old Church or Chapel. The chancel, which 

 is the oldest part of the Church, is in the earliest Norman style, 

 and supposed to have been built soon after the Conquest. The walls 

 are of great thickness (4J feet), faced on each side and filled with 

 rubble. The masonry is much inferior to St. John's. You will 

 observe a similar sort of arched roof to St. John's, which at least 

 points to the same era of construction. It was originally lighted, 

 as is stated, by five small semi-circular windows resting externally 

 on a plain string-course. The corbel-table remains on the north and 

 south walls, as also the original buttresses. These small windows 

 just alluded to were replaced, it is supposed somewhere about the 

 sixteenth century, by the present Perpendicular windows of three 

 lights. The vaulted roof rests on well-carved capitals. An arcade 

 originally ran round the walls, but has been cut away on the north 

 and south sides to make room for the Late Perpendicular windows. 

 There remains, however, very distinct traces of the arcade, and from 

 them the arcade on the east wall was restored, in 1852, when the Nor- 

 man east window was inserted above it. The shafts of the arcade ap- 

 pear to have been clustered or triple,and an extra chevron moulding set 

 with points jutting out from the walls was introduced into the arches. 



