Description

HELMDON CHURCH STREET SP54SE, SP5843 (East side) 5/7 14/7 Church of St. Mary Magdalene 04/02/69 (Formerly listed as Church of St. Mary Magdelen)

GV II*

Church. C14. West tower rebuilt 1823, restored 1841, and 1876 by E.F. Law. Coursed limestone rubble, lead roofs except for chancel - slate, and porches - plain tile. Chancel, north chancel vestry and organ chamber, nave, north and south aisles and porches, west tower. 3-bay chancel has 4-light east window with intersecting tracery, 2-light north window with ogee-arched head and reticulated tracery and remains of piscina with cusped head incorporated in wall beside east door to C19 vestry, a 3-light south-east window similar to that to north, and one-light south-west low side window with ogee head and trefoil. Nave has clerestory with 4 2-light windows to north and 3 to south with 4-centred heads. North aisle has C19 east extension overlapping chancel and 2-light Decorated windows throughout. North door has simple pointed arch. North porch has hollow-chamfered doorway with 4-centred head, cut spandrels, small blocked one-light window above and rectangular windows north and south with chamfered surrounds and ironstone infill with cross ventilation slits. South aisle has 2-light Decorated south and east windows with cusped Y-tracery and 2-light arch mullion window to west. South porch similar to north with blank arch above door inscribed JHP/JH/CHWDS/AD/1841. 3-stage west tower has west door with 4-centred head and 2-light arch-mullion window above. Datestone to middle stage west side inscibed REBUILT/1823. 2-light bell openings with cusped Y-tracery. Diagonal buttresses, battlemented parapets and corner pinnacles. Church has chamfered plinth, string course, stepped to chancel, plain stone-coped parapets to aisles and clerestory, and stone-coped gables to chancel and porches. Diagonal buttresses to chancel. All windows and doors except for small side windows of porches have hood moulds, some with carved label stops. Interior: chancel has stepped string course, C19 stone reredos with painted angels and fine 3-bay sedilia and piscina with ogee cusped heads, crocketted hood moulds and pinnacles; chamfered priest's door to north with ogee head and hood mould. Double-chamfered chancel arch, inner arch on polygonal responds. Nave has 3-bay arcades with octagonal piers, capitals, and double-chamfered archs. C19 roofs throughout except for moulded ties and purlins of nave roof, possible C15. Medieval stained glass fragments in heads of aisle windows ad canopy heads in south-east chancel windows, including figure of mason in north-east aisle window. Tomb recess with Purbeck marble tomb slab with foliated cross. C17 communion table in south aisle. Complete set of C19 pitch pine furnishings, (Buildings of England: Northamptonshire, p.253; Kelly's Directory for Northants, 1928)

Listing NGR: SP5901143186

External Links

• Wikidata Q17545470

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Recommended Books

• 
  Bedfordshire, Huntingdonshire, and Peterborough (Pevsner Architectural Guides) (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  London 4: North: North v. 4 (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Farrow & Ball How to Decorate: Transform your home with paint & paper
• 
  Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990
• 
  County Durham (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England) by Elizabeth Williamson Nikolaus Pevsner(1983-03-11)
• 
  Period Property Manual (New Ed)