Listed Building: PARISH CHURCH OF CANFORD MAGNA (412437)

POOLE SZ0398 CANFORD MAGNA, Canford Magna 958-1/9/225 (East side) 14/06/54 Parish Church of Canford Magna GV I Church. Late Saxon with C13, C14, C15, C19 and C20 additions. Nave of late Saxon minster church, now chancel of aisled nave and tower added by Augustinian Canons of Bradenstoke Priory c1200. S chancel chapel and S chancel aisle remodelled C14. Nave aisles and other alterations made C15. Nave extended westward 1829 by Edward Blore, remodelled 1876-8. N chancel aisle and porches rebuilt and other alterations made by D Brandon; other C20 alterations. Coursed limestone and carstone rubble with plain-tile roofs. PLAN: chancel, N chancel aisle, N tower, S chancel chapel and aisle, aisled nave and N and S porches. EXTERIOR: 5-light E window of c1856 with Decorated-style tracery; hoodmould and uncarved labels. Small paired lancet windows to E end of N chancel aisle. Aisle, rebuilt as vestry, has catslide roof with chancel and similar pair of windows to N and chamfered Carnarvon-arched doorway near tower. S chancel chapel, built at right angle to chancel, has 3-light window to gable end with rectangular chamfered surround, straight head, trefoil-headed lights and spandrel lights. 4-stage tower to W end of N chancel aisle has lancet windows to bottom stage with deep chamfered surrounds and small 1-light window to next stage to E side with rectangular chamfered surround. 2-light bell-chamber openings with attached shafts outermost and central shaft with simple carved capitals and roll-moulded round-arched heads within single, chamfered round-headed arch, except to S side where window head has been lost. Short top stage with small 1-light window with round-arched head to each side and plain stone-coped parapet. Tower has closing angle buttresses to outer angles of bottom stage, and offsets to each stage. S chancel aisle has 3-light window with chamfered rectangular surround, straight head, cinquefoil-headed lights and cut spandrels. Nave aisles have cat-slide roofs, a similar window to N and S and small lancet windows either side of porches with cusps to heads. N door has 2 orders of shafts, those outermost of limestone with moulded mid rings and enriched capitals, chamfered imports and round-arched head, roll-moulded innermost keel-moulded outermost. C19 porch has similar doorway and trefoil windows to sides in roll-moulded circles. S door has similar porch and 2 orders of shafts with enriched capitals, imposts, keel-moulded round-arched head outermost and trefoil head innermost with cusps and chamfer. Late Saxon W end has small 1-light windows to aisles with chamfered, round-arched heads. C19 W bay has shafted lancets either side with foliage capitals and hoodmoulds, that to N side converted into C20 organ loft inside. 3-light stepped lancet W window with similar shafts and hoodmould, and wheel window to gable above with roll-moulded surround and hoodmould. Stone-coped gables with kneelers, foliated gable crosses to nave and chancel gables and sundial to apex of S chancel chapel gable. Offset angle buttresses to aisles. INTERIOR: chancel, the former nave of Saxon minster, has original round-headed archways to E end to N and S sides with imposts, formerly leading to porticus. Later round-headed archways to N and S walls either side of low doorways with similar heads, that to N with blank tympanum and imposts. Traces of small original windows, especially to S side. Chancel has C19 tiled floors, mosaic decoration to E wall by Salviati with large angels either side of window, and carved oak choir stalls with lion ends. Fine mid-late C18 wrought-iron communion rail. Chancel arch has pointed, double-chamfered head dying into piers. W tower arch has shafts with foliage capitals and nailhead ornament and stepped, pointed arch. Nave has 2 arches to aisles either side with semicircular responds with moulded bases and trumpet-scalloped capitals, roll and keel-moulded round-arched heads and roll-moulded hoodmoulds turned up at ends. NW arch has been replaced by double-chamfered pointed-arched head. Trefoiled circular openings to spandrels, C19 in present form. FITTINGS: Purbeck marble font has octagonal bowl with 2 shallow trefoil-headed panels to each face on octagonal stem and 8 subsidiary circular shafts and octagonal base. Hanoverian Royal Arms in carved and painted wood in S aisle. C19 stained-glass E window and other C19 stained-glass windows. MEMORIALS: brass inscription plate to Richard Cheke d.1502. Wall monument to Hendry Constantine of Merley "buried in this aisle with many others of the name and family" d.1613 aged 28 erected 1651 by his widow Elizabeth, daughter of Thomas Evelyn of Surrey, "in the 38th year of her widowhood"; limestone with segmental pediment and shaped apron. Wall monument to Richard Lloyd AM Rector of Winterbourn Selston d.1732; white marble draped cartouche on acanthus bracket with scull and winged cherubs' head. 3 fine wall monuments by Bacon with low relief sculpture in statuary marble on veined grey marble grounds, to Samuel Martin d.1788 with profile portrait head in medallion, to Henrietta Mary Wilkie, daughter of James and Sarah Wilkie of Fouldon Berwicks d.1790 with mourning female and draped urn with coat of arms, and to Catherin Willett d.1798 with female figure leaning her left elbow on open book on top of classical altar with the Lamb in low relief, a censer at her feet and above, a circlet of flowers in a sunburst framing the symbol of Eternity. Wall monument to Rev. Robert Henning d.1798 and Mary his wife of grey and white marble with Latin inscription and double urns signed H Rouw London. Other early C19 marble wall monuments by a variety of hands and later C19 wall monuments including one to land agent of Canford estate. A very fine and interesting church, the late Saxon work being of major importance. (RCHME: County of Dorset (South East): London: 1970-: 192-195; Buildings of England: Pevsner N & Newman J: Dorset: London: 1972-). Listing NGR: SZ0319598813

Record last edited

Mar 31 2011 3:48AM