St Martin's Church, Fivehead

The Anglican Church of St Martin in Fivehead, Somerset, England dates from the 13th century and has been designated as a Grade I listed building.[1][2]

Church of St Martin
Stone building with square tower, separated from the road in the foreground by a stone wall.
LocationFivehead, Somerset, England
Coordinates51°00′06″N 2°55′22″W / 51.00167°N 2.92278°W / 51.00167; -2.92278
Built13th century (700+ years ago)
Listed Building – Grade I
Designated17 April 1959[1]
Reference no.431724
St Martin's Church, Fivehead is located in Somerset
St Martin's Church, Fivehead
Location of Church of St Martin in Somerset

The church built of Hamstone includes a three-bay nave, chancel, south aisle and porch, and a west tower.[2]

The three-stage tower dates from around 1505.[3] It is supported by diagonal buttresses and embellished with corner pinnacles and gargoyles.[2] There are six bells the oldest of which was cast around 1500.[4]

Within the church is a palimpsest depicting Jane Seymour.[4] There was a gallery at the back of the nave, however this was removed along with the box pews during Victorian restoration.[4] The Norman font has a cylindrical stem and bowl, which has an intricately decorated rim.[5]

Outside the church next to the village green is the War Memorial[6]

The parish is within the benefice of Curry Rivel with Fivehead and Swell which is part of the Diocese of Bath and Wells.[7]

See also

edit

References

edit
  1. ^ a b "Church of St. Martin". historicengland.org.uk. English Heritage. Retrieved 6 June 2009.
  2. ^ a b c "Church of St. Martin". National Heritage List for England. Historic England. Retrieved 19 September 2016.
  3. ^ Poyntz Wright, Peter (1981). The Parish Church Towers of Somerset, Their construction, craftsmanship and chronology 1350 - 1550. Avebury Publishing Company. ISBN 0-86127-502-0.
  4. ^ a b c "St. Martin's". Fivehead. Retrieved 19 September 2016.
  5. ^ "St Martin, Fivehead, Somerset". The Corpus of Romanesque Sculpture in Britain and Ireland. Retrieved 19 September 2016.
  6. ^ "War memorial". National Heritage List for England. Historic England. Retrieved 19 September 2016.
  7. ^ "St Martin, Fivehead". A Church Near You. Church of England. Retrieved 19 September 2016.