Listed Building record MDO10212 - Church of the Holy Rood, Buckland Newton

A parish church consisting of nave, aisles, south porch and west tower. Part of the chancel dates to the 13th century, while the nave, aisles, porch and tower are of the 15th century. The church underwent general restoration in 1839, 1841, 1849 and 1869. A Romanesque relief above the south porch has been dated to the 1130s or 1140s. It may have originated as a minster at some tIme after 941. It had two dependent chapels.

Church of the Holy Rood. Parish Church. Part of church C13th; nave North and South aisle, South porch and West tower C15th. C19th general restoration and partial rebuilding of the church. Grade I. <1, 2, 4>
Description and discussion of the Romanesque relief of `Christ in Majesty' above the South Porch which is stylistically dated to the 1130s or 1140s. <5>

Text in NRHE record (no associated source given): In 1910, an Early Mediaeval panel depicting a figure carved in mica-schist was found in the vicarage garden. This has been set in the South aisle and over the internal South doorway of the church. The figure is crude and depicts a man with upraised arms. The right hand is open, the left holds a double cord. On either side of the left arm is an arrow or spear. The face is grotesque, and the dress is a long garment. Finally, there appear to be both sexual organs present.

The figure need not be Anglo-Saxon, but may represent the descent of St Paul over the wall of Damascus. The arrow may suggest the figure is a warrior, but it appears to pierce the left arm, and could be interpretted as a martyr. It could even be a travesty of the Crucifixion. RCHAM suggests it to be 8th century with Northern European characteristics. On the whole it may best be interpretted as a sheelagh-na-gig or a crude rendering of a religious image. The date is uncertain but appears to be 8th-11th century. (6)

Dorset Natural History and Archaeological Society, 1889, Proceedings of the Dorset Natural History and Archaeological Society 10, xxiii - xxiv (Serial). SDO21453.

Buckland Newton by the way of Dogberry, thence turning to the right over the top of Mount Silva. From this point, one of the highest in the neighbourhood on the edge of the chalk escarpment, a magnificent view was obtained over the Vale of Blackmoor lying northward* As the afternoon had become very clear and bright after the rain of the preceding night the distant points of Ham Hill, Glastonbury Tor, the Mendip Hills and Stourton Tower were plainly visible. Buckland Newton, which lies in the valley on the east side beneath Mount Silva, was reached about six o'clock, and here the party were again most kindly received by the Rev. H. E. Ravenhill, R.D., and Mrs. Ravenhill. Tea was provided in the Vicarage, after which a paper, which had been prepared by the Rev. C. H. Mayo on the old parish register of Buckland Newton, was read by the Rev. H. E. Ravenhill. This paper will be found at p. 97. The party were conducted over the parish church by the Vicar, the Rev. H. E. Ravenhill, R.D., who gave an outline of the history of the building, which is of several dates. The chancel, of great length, is the oldest part of the fabric and was built in the 13th century. The side windows are lancet and Early English with Purbeck marble shafts, capitals, and bases. Two on the north, at the west end of the chancel, remain in their original state. The other north window, at the restoration in 1869, was rebuilt partly with fragments of marble from the south windows and partly with new work. On the south side of the chancel much of the Purbeck marble was gone, and the remainder was so dilapidated that it had to be entirely removed. The work had been carried out in exact harmony with the old windows on the north side. When the Archaeological Institute visited Dorsetshire in 1865 the Early English windows were specially mentioned as an object of interest for the antiquary. They appear to be of about the same date as those of Salisbury Cathedral. The Lay Rectors in 1869 put a new flat roof to the chancel, nearly an exact copy of the old roof. The chancel arch is of Ham Hill stone, of Perpendicular style of architecture, with panelling similar in design to part of Sherborne Abbey. Some of the steps to the rood screen on the north side still remain, while on both sides of the arch are hagioscopes. That on the south side was partially closed till the restoration of the nave in 1878. The north arcade was so dilapidated that it had to be renewed when the new roof was put to the nave. It was rebuilt exactly as before. The south arcade, though out of the perpendicular, has been left untouched. The roof of the nave and north aisle were veiy decayed and had to be entirely replaced by new work. The old roof of the nave was of waggon shape and pressed too heavily on the arcades, according to the opinion of the late Diocesan Architect, T. H. Wyatt, Esq. The tower arch of Portland stone and the west widow are of different date from the rest of the building. The porch on the south side is of Tudor date, with a groined roof of Ham Hill stone. The roses in this are in harmony with the decoration of the fine old octagonal font. The oak bench ends and some of the old carved panelling in the nave have, as far as possible, been retained. At the restoration in 1878 traces were discovered of the foundations of an earlier church in the north-west part of the nave. The chancel was restored in 1869 and the nave and aisles in 1878, The exterior of the church early in this century was covered with stucco to protect the walls of chalk rubble from the driving weather to which they are exposed. [For the above particulars, which will be found to supplement those given in Hutchins, I am indebted to the Rev. H. E. Ravenhill. ED.]

Dorset Natural History and Archaeological Society, 1908, Proceedings of the Dorset Natural History and Antiquarian Field Club for 1907, lv-lvi-lvii (Serial). SDO17439.

Canon RAVENHILL gave an outline of the history of the parish church. He said that it appeared to have had two dedications. According to Bacon's Liber Regis, it was dedicated to the Holy Rood. There are still some of the steps up to the rood loft, which must have been here before the Reformation, and in Hutchins we read that Sir Nicholas Latimer, in his will dated 1504, ordered his body to be buried near the high altar in the Church of St. Mary at Buckland. The University Church of St. Mary at Oxford had two dedications, and the same occurs at Hazelbury Bryan Church. The chancel here, of great length, is the oldest part of Buckland Church, dating from about 1281. The side windows are Early English, with Purbeck marble shafts, capitals, and bases. Two on the north side at the west end of the chancel remain in their original state. The other north window, at the restoration in 1869, was rebuilt partly with fragments of marble from the south side and partly with new work. On the south side of the chancel, much of the Purbeck marble was gone, and the remainder was so dilapidated that it had to be entirely removed. The work was carried out in exact harmony with the old windows on the north side. The east window is new, but in character with the others. All have been filled with memorial gifts of stained glass. The reredos was painted by Miss Gunning on the wall especially prepared with Mr. Gambier Parry's preparation. It has been done more than 30 years, and is in good preservation. The chancel arch is of Ham Hill stone, with panelling in design similar to parts of Sherborne Abbey. Mr. Buckle, the diocesan architect of Bath and Wells, said that the arch was built in the 15th century, when the nave and aisles seem to have been entirely re-built. They are later Perpendicular. The tower arch, of Portland stone, and the west window are Early Perpendicular. The porch on the south side is of Tudor date, with a groyned roof of Ham Hill stone. The roses in this are in harmony with the decoration of the fine old octagonal font. The Elizabethan oak bench-ends and some of the old carved panelling have, as far as possible, been retained, and the new carving is in harmony with the old. About a century ago the exterior of the church was covered with stucco to protect the walls of chalk rubble from the driving weather to which they are exposed at times. During the past 38 years more than £3,000 has been spent on the church.
Canon and Mrs Ravenhill then invited the party into the Vicarage for tea, and showed them the old Communion plate and the parish register one of the most beautiful parish registers preserved in the county of Dorset.

Emden, A B, 1977, Medieval Decorated Tiles in Dorset (Monograph). SDO13180.

<1> Royal Commission on Historical Monuments (England), 1970, An Inventory of Historical Monuments in the County of Dorset, Volume III (Central) Part 1, 50 (Monograph). SDO146.

<2> Newman, J, and Pevsner, N, 1972, The Buildings of England: Dorset (Monograph). SWX1290.

<3> Ordnance Survey, 1980s, Ordnance Survey 1:2500 map, epoch six (Map). SDO13933.

Church of the Holy Road. (NAT)

<4> Department of the Environment, 1984, List of Buildings of Special Architectural or Historic Interest: District of West Dorset (Parishes of Alton Pancras, Bishops Caundle, Buckland Newton, Caundle Marsh, Folke, Hermitage, Hilfield, Holnest, Holwell, Melcombe Horsey, Minterne Magna etc) (Scheduling record). SDO16359.

<5> Alford, S, 1984, Romanesque Architectural Sculpture in Dorset: A Selective Catalogue and Commentary. Proceedings of the Dorset Natural History and Archaeological Society (Article in serial). SWX3464.

<5> Dorset Natural History and Archaeological Society, 1985, Proceedings of the Dorset Natural History and Archaeological Society for 1984, 17, 21 (Serial). SDO84.

<6> Bellamy, P, 1999, The Church of the Holy Rood, Buckland Newton, Dorset: architectural observations of the North Aisle and West Tower (Unpublished document). SDO16974.

<7> Bellamy, P, 2003, Church of the Holy Rood, Buckland Newton, Dorset. Archaeological Watching Brief, July 2003 (Unpublished document). SDO12259.

<8> National Record of the Historic Environment, 887257 (Digital archive). SDO14739.

Record last edited

Aug 26 2025 12:32PM