St James Church, Avebury 13.03.25
This exceptional church stands beside Avebury Manor, a stone's throw from the great henge and standing stones that draw thousands of visitors to the Wiltshire village of Avebury each year.
The church dates to around the year 1000 AD, and still has its tall, narrow Saxon nave, though this was later altered by the Normans, who also added aisles in the 12th century.
The most obvious survivors of the Saxon building are a pair of round-headed windows at ground level and four circular porthole windows at second-storey level. The chancel was rebuilt in the 13th century, and the chancel arch dates from this time. Separating the chancel from the nave is an original 15th-century rood loft. The rood itself was destroyed at the Reformation, and the base of the screen is Victorian, but the rest is original.
St James Church, Avebury 13.03.25
This exceptional church stands beside Avebury Manor, a stone's throw from the great henge and standing stones that draw thousands of visitors to the Wiltshire village of Avebury each year.
The church dates to around the year 1000 AD, and still has its tall, narrow Saxon nave, though this was later altered by the Normans, who also added aisles in the 12th century.
The most obvious survivors of the Saxon building are a pair of round-headed windows at ground level and four circular porthole windows at second-storey level. The chancel was rebuilt in the 13th century, and the chancel arch dates from this time. Separating the chancel from the nave is an original 15th-century rood loft. The rood itself was destroyed at the Reformation, and the base of the screen is Victorian, but the rest is original.