Church of St Mary Harkstead, England

Text courtesy of Historic England. © Crown Copyright, reprinted under the Open Government License.

TM 13 NE HARKSTEAD FISH POND HILL

2/16 Church of St Mary 2/22/55

• II*

Parish church. C12 origin: North wall of nave, C14 south arcade and west tower, C15 chancel and south porch. C19 restorations and north chapel. Random flint, rubble and septaria, red brick crenellations to tower, stone dressings, stone and flint flushwork to buttresses, carved stone panels to plinth of tower. Stone coping and band to south aisle parapet, stone parapet verge with cross at apex to chancel. Red plain tiled roofs. Chancel: Buttressed at eastern angles and to centre of south wall. Eastern window of three 2-centre arched lights, sexfoils in roundels over, moulded 2-centred head, label over, band below window, small blank plaque to apex. West wall, window of 2 trefoiled lights, quatrefoil over, moulded 2-centred head and label, to west of this window is a 2-centre arched doorway. North wall window similar to south wall. C19 north chapel: Gabled to north, trefoiled plate window of 3 lights with transom and cusped roundel over to north wall. Nave: North wall, buttress to eastern angle. Eastern window of 2- cinquefoiled lights, segmental head and label. Two small Norman round-headed windows, one central the other to west. To east of this latter window is a blocked Norman round-headed doorway. South Aisle: Buttressed to east and west angles and to west of eastern window. East wall window of 3-cinquefoiled lights, tracery over, segmental head. West wall window of 2-cinquefoiled lights, 4-centred head and label. South wall, eastern window of 3-cinquefoiled lights, vertical tracery over, pointed segmental head and label, central and western windows similar to west wall window. To west of these windows is the south porch: Low gable, parapet to returns, band continues through, cross to apex. Return walls, each with a 2-centre arched window, Y-tracery. Outer archway, moulded 2-centred arch, label with King and queen stops. West tower of 3 stages. Red brick crenellations, carved stone panels to plinth, angled stair turret to second stage, south east end of south wall, angle buttresses to bell chamber window height, bands below bell chamber and second stage. Each face of bell chamber with a window of 2-cinquefoiled lights, quatrefoil over 4- centred head and label. Second stage, north, west and south faces each with a trefoiled window under a square head. Tall west window of 3 lights with transom and tracery over, the lower lights, cinquefoiled segmental heads, upper lights cinquefoiled ogee heads. Tracery: Decreasing, 6 and 5 cinquefoiled lights, 4 and 3 quatrefoils over, moulded 2-centred head and label with stops. Trefoiled light to stair turret. There are S-tie plates to bell chamber and buttresses. Interior: Chancel: Roof of 3 bays, single hammer-beam type, moulded arched braces supported by stone corbels to hammer-beams, arched braces above with tracery of trefoils and quatrefoils. C19 coloured tiled floor. Altar rail, cast and wrought-iron posts, moulded wooden top rail. Reredos circa 1875 by Powell's, blue, white and gold mosaic, corn, lillies and Evangelist symbols; carved panels below mosaic. North wall, stone shelf with moulded brackets. C14 Easter Sepulchre with buttresses, crocketed gable and finial. C19 north chapel doorway, moulded 2-centred arch, shafts with moulded capitals and bases, moulded label, vertically-boarded door with strap hinges. South wall piscina, moulded 2-centred arch, cinquefoil drain. Sedilia, double crocketed gables, trefoiled arches, marble central shaft with moulded capitals and bases. C19 stained glass to east window. No chancel arch. C19 stone rood wall surmounted by ornate wrought-iron low screen and double gates. Green marble columns to north and south walls; moulded capitals, bases and stem rings. C19 choir stalls. Painted pipes to organ. Nave: Roof of 4 bays, double side purlins, arched braces to purlins and collars. C19 red tiled floor. C19 semi- octagonal pulpit with coloured marbl