Visited by the Society in 1890. 



257 



The feature to which I desire to call particular attention is the 

 mof— this is vaulted in stone on the inside, with the central and inter- 

 secting ribs usual at that period. The subjects of the carved bosses 

 are (commencing at the easternmost one) : — S. Michael and the 

 dragon, a pelican feeding her young, a mermaid, two serpents. In- 

 stead of the tiled roof which we now see, it is evident that it was 

 originally constructed entirely of stone like the porch, the form of 

 construction being arched ribs supporting a covering of stone slabs. 

 The lower stones of this roof remain in situ, and also the cap stones 

 of the ribs, each of the latter terminated by a fleur-de-lis, but the 

 covering has been replaced by tiles. The scheme was a bold one 

 for so wide a span, and it appears not to have been entirely satisfac- 

 tory from a structural point of view, though exceedingly picturesque. 

 The parapet is of a curious double-stage arrangement with quatre- 

 foil openings through which the water ran off (instead of being 

 collected in gutters and discharged through gargoyles) and a string 

 course above these. 



Inside the chancel there is a coeval piscina with ogee arch and a 

 bowl of quatrefoil form, partly cut away. In the windows north 

 and south of the sanctuary there are remains of old glass, apparently 

 coeval with the structure, with figures of angels. 



The south aisle is a beautiful example of fully developed Late 

 Decorated work of a flowing type. The window coming between 

 the porch and transept is an exquisite one with a carved stem-and- 

 leaf ornament carried round in the hollow of the arch and jamb. 

 The other window in this wall is a square-headed one, but the head 

 was removed when the present parapet was added to the aisle; the 

 west window of two lights is coeval, but plainer. The diagonal 

 buttress with octagonal stem at the south-west angle has evidently 

 been added, as its connexion with the cornice shows, and its terminal 

 is quite a modern one. 



The porch is an addition of early Perpendicular work, and it 

 partially conceals the flowing window above referred to ; but for 

 this and for the angle buttresses the flat shape of the buttresses on 

 each side would lead one to assign it to an earlier period. In this 

 porch the chancel mode of construction has been followed, and the 



