Description

POOLE

SZ0391 PARR STREET, Parkstone
958-1/14/246 (West side)
14/06/54 Church of St Peter

GV II*

Church. Late C19, with early C20 additions. Chancel, crossing
and transepts 1876-77 by Frederick Rogers of London. Vestries,
organ chamber and other alterations made 1881 by John
Loughborough Pearson. Nave 1891-2 by JL Pearson, completed by
his son Frank Loughborough Pearson 1900-01. S porch 1933 by FL
Pearson.
MATERIALS: coursed, squared Purbeck stone, with Bath stone
dressings and plain tile roofs with tile ridges, timber-framed
temporary tower with hipped slate roof and attached porch with
roof of wood shingles; Bath stone ashlar inside.
PLAN: chancel with ambulatory, vestries and organ chamber to N
side, chapel to S, N & S transepts, temporary N tower, aisled
nave and N & S porches. Early Gothic style.
EXTERIOR: high 3-bay chancel has triple-stepped lancet E
window under single pointed hoodmould stepped down and
continued as string course. Lancet window to gable flanked by
blank panels with twin-arched heads. Paired lancet windows to
clerestorey. Triforium passage with ridged stone roof between
buttresses. Ambulatory below with hipped roof interrupted by
stone slopes of internal flying buttresses with gablets over
outer piers. S chapel in angle between ambulatory and transept
with hipped roof. Small lancet windows to chapel and
ambulatory.
Vestry to N side of chancel has double-chamfered E door with
hoodmould and paired lancet windows. Tall organ chamber beside
N transept with small lancet window to N and hipped roof.
Transepts have group of 4 stepped lancets to gable ends and
paired lancets to top of gable.
5-bay nave has 2-light clerestorey windows with plate tracery
and hoodmould continued as string course between prominent
gabled buttresses. Aisles have lancet windows with hoodmoulds
continued as string course between offset buttresses with
stone gablets.
Temporary tower in angle between N aisle and transept covers
first stage only, with weatherboarded sides, hipped slate
roof, and attached timber-framed porch to N with openwork
tracery to front and cusped barge-boards meeting in ogee arch.
N porch has doorway with 3 orders of shafts quatrefoil frieze
at eaves level and 3 small stepped lancet windows to gable
within stepped arcade with blank roundels to spandrels; lancet
windows to sides, quadripartite stone vault inside with
nailhead ornament and shafted S door with keel-moulded and
hollow-chamfered head and hoodmould.
Large S porch has 3 orders of shafts to doorway, many-moulded
head and hoodmould. Arcade above with 6 seated statues of
saints and wheel window to gable with 7 lobes round central
circle and moulded surround. Lancet windows to sides framed by
arcades. Quadripartite stone vault within and shafted S door
with many-moulded head, hoodmould and double-leaf doors with
ornamental hinges.
W end has pair of tall 3-light windows to nave with plate
tracery and hoodmoulds either side of central offset buttress
with niche between windows for statue of St Peter. Pairs of
lancets to gable which is flanked by octagonal pinnacles to
offset angle buttresses. 4-light windows to ends of aisles
with Geometrical tracery.
Nave and chancel have continuous roof. Chamfered plinth,
moulded cill bands and string courses, corbel tables and
stone-coped gables with kneelers and foliated stone gable
crosses.
INTERIOR: aisles and ambulatory have stone quadripartite
vaulting, the scale and articulation making a spatially
impressive interior characteristic of Pearson's work. Timber
quadripartite vault over nave and chancel with ridge rib and
stone springers on vaulting shafts. Ribbed timber tunnel
vaults to transepts. Chancel triforium has square piers with
shafts to angles and roll-moulded arches. It is doubled behind
with alternating arcade ie shafts occur at centre of front
arches. Blind arcaded triforium to nave. Clustered piers to
arcades with attached shafts, mid rings and richly carved
foliage capitals.
Tiled floors, black and white marble floor to chancel
approached by 3 semicircular steps in crossing. 3 further
steps up to the sanctuary and 5 more up to the High Altar.
FITTINGS: marble High Altar of 1883-4 on carved and gilded
timber-frame with Twelve Apostles in niches to front either
side of the Lamb, by Zwincke of Oberammergau. Wrought-iron
chancel screens designed by JL Pearson. Lavish Bath stone
pulpit of 1909 with Purbeck marble shafts by FL Pearson with
oak canopy. Font of alabaster and marble with tall carved oak
cover; 1907 by FL Pearson. Carved and gilded timber reredos to
altar of Holy Name Chapel by Zwincke of Oberammergau.
STAINED GLASS: stained-glass windows to chancel and S transept
and stained glass in Holy Name Chapel 1904 by Kempe.
First church built 1833-34 by Tullock has been entirely
replaced by the present building. The projected N tower and
212 foot spire remains unbuilt.
(Buildings of England: Pevsner N & Newman J: Dorset: London:
1972-: 333; Church Guide: Bournemouth: 1976-; Clarke, Canon B:
Mss notes: 1957-1959).

Listing NGR: SZ0340491675

External Links

• Historic England Listing
• Church of St Peter at Wikipedia
• Wikidata Q17533652

External links are from the relevant listing authority and, where applicable, Wikidata. Wikidata IDs may be related buildings as well as this specific building. If you want to add or update a link, you will need to do so by editing the Wikidata entry.

Recommended Books

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  Northumberland (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Pevsner's Architectural Glossary (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Introductions)
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  Hertfordshire (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
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  Bedfordshire, Huntingdonshire, and Peterborough (Pevsner Architectural Guides): Written by Charles O'Brien, 2014 Edition, Publisher: Yale University Press [Hardcover]
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  Central Leinster: Kildare, Laois and Offaly (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of Ireland)
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  Old House Care and Repair