Church of St Mary Magdalene, Winterbourne Monkton

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The Church of St Mary Magdalene

The Church of St Mary Magdalene is the Anglican church in the village of Winterbourne Monkton, Wiltshire, England. It is a 19th-century rebuilding of a structure dating from the 14th century.

Its history dates from the 12th century, with the vicarage being consecrated before 1229. It was attached to Cirencester Abbey and then Avebury.[1][2] The endowment of the church was considered too small many times during the Middle Ages.[3]

An unusual feature inside the church is two huge tree trunks near the west end which originally supported the bells in the free-standing bell tower.[4] That tower was joined to the chancel by the addition of the nave in the 14th century.[1] The tower contains three bells dating from the 17th century.[3] The church was rebuilt in 1877–9 by William Butterfield and is Grade II listed.[4]

The circular font is from the 12th century,[1] while the pulpit is from the 17th.[4] The font is decorated in a zigzag style with foliage supported by trumpet scallops. On the northern side is a figure with splayed legs. There is some evidence that the font was originally painted.[5] It has been speculated that the figure, which has three horns or a crown, could be an example of a Sheela na gig although several of its features contradict this suggestion.[6]

Parish[]

The vicarage was united with Avebury until 1865, when it was instead united with Berwick Bassett;[7] in 1929 the benefice was again united with Avebury, although the parishes remained separate.[8] In 1970 Berwick Bassett was added to the union,[9] and in 1975 a team ministry was established for the wider area.[10] Today the parish of Winterbourne Monkton with Berwick Bassett[11] is part of the Upper Kennet benefice within the Diocese of Salisbury, alongside alongside seven other parishes around Avebury.[12]

References[]

  1. ^ Jump up to: a b c "Church of St. Mary Magdalene, Winterbourne Monkton". Wiltshire Community History. Wiltshire Council. Retrieved 20 February 2021.
  2. ^ "Winterborne Monkton: St Mary Magdalen, Winterborne Monkton". A Church Near You. Church of England. Retrieved 3 September 2016.
  3. ^ Jump up to: a b "Parishes: Winterbourne Monkton In: A History of the County of Wiltshire: Volume 12, Ramsbury and Selkley Hundreds; the Borough of Marlborough". British History Online. Victoria County History. Retrieved 3 September 2016.
  4. ^ Jump up to: a b c Historic England. "Church of St Mary Magdalen, Winterbourne Monkton (1033812)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 27 July 2015.
  5. ^ "St Mary Magdalene, Winterbourne Monkton, Wiltshire". The Corpus of Romanesque Sculpture in Britain and Ireland. King's College London. Retrieved 20 February 2021.
  6. ^ "Winterbourne Monkton". The Sheela Na Gig Project. Retrieved 20 February 2021.
  7. ^ Baggs, A. P.; Freeman, Jane; Stevenson, Janet H. (1983). "Parishes: Winterbourne Monkton". In Crowley, D. A. (ed.). A History of the County of Wiltshire, Volume 12. University of London. pp. 192–198. Retrieved 20 February 2021 – via British History Online.
  8. ^ "No. 33493". The London Gazette. 10 May 1929. pp. 3114–3117.
  9. ^ "No. 45217". The London Gazette. 22 October 1970. p. 11580.
  10. ^ "No. 46524". The London Gazette. 21 March 1975. p. 3845.
  11. ^ "St Mary Magdalen, Winterborne Monkton". A Church Near You. Church of England. Retrieved 3 September 2016.
  12. ^ "St Mary Magdalene Winterbourne Monkton". Upper Kennet Benefice. Retrieved 20 February 2021.

Media related to St. Mary Magdalene, Winterbourne Monkton at Wikimedia Commons

Coordinates: 51°26′48″N 1°51′39″W / 51.4466°N 1.8608°W / 51.4466; -1.8608

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