Presbytery And Cloisters, Saint Matthew's Roman Catholic Church, 36 Carnethie Street, Rosewell, Lasswade, Midlothian

Description

Archibald Macpherson, 1925; cloisters by Reginald Fairlie, 1935. Single storey, symmetrical 5-bay galleried Byzantine style church with prominent corbelled gable, centre advanced and canted. Transept to NE and presbytery attached to SW transept. Brick with ashlar and patterned brick dressings. Base course; dentilled eaves course; raised, stepped brick eaves course to gable angles; clasping buttresses to angles.

SE (PRINCIPAL) ELEVATION: 5-bay church elevation to right with 4 bay presbytery elevation and linking transept, set back to left. CHURCH FRONT: full-height canted bay to centre: bipartite, round-headed window at ground with circular light above; round-arched windows flanking. Tall round-arched window above corbelling to gablehead with crucifix indented above; round-arched windows flanking. Round-arched doorpiece at ground in bays flanking with raised ogival hood-mould above; 2-leaf boarded door (louvered to left); round-arched window above. Round-arched window to flanking aisle bays to outer left and right. PRESBYTERY ELEVATION: advanced 2-bay block to centre: segmental-arched doorway with deep-set part-glazed door and glazing surround and window to right flanking at ground in bay to right of centre; bipartite window at 1st floor above. Window at ground in bay to left of centre; window at 1st floor above. Window to each floor in bay set back to outer left. Linking transept bay to outer right: window at ground; bipartite window above.

NW (REAR) ELEVATION: irregular 7-bay, divided 4 (church rear to left)

3 (presbytery rear to right). CHURCH REAR: Chancel bay to centre: advanced, buttressed full-height gabled belfry tower to centre; window at 1st stage; pointed-arched window at 2nd stage; twin, louvered, point-arched openings with vescia opening above to 3rd stage; twin flanking wallhead stacks breaking eaves of dormer set back behind with stepped links above. Gabled bay (vestry) to right of centre: window to each side of gable eaves; hexagonal light to gablehead above. Blank mono-pitch bay set back to left of centre. Wide bay set back further to outer left: round-arched window with circular light above with small light to left. PRESBYTERY REAR: irregular 3-bay with gabled bay to centre, bay set back to left and canted bay to right: advanced, full- height canted stair bay to right of centre. Lean-to 4-centred arched shelter in angle to left; various level stair lights above; pitched dormer windows to returns. Lean-to shelter in re-entrant angle in centre bay; window above; bipartite window at 1st floor above; gablbehead stack above. Pitched, 2-stage bay, set back to left of centre: twin windows at 1st stage; mono-pitch roof to 2nd stage; bipartite window above.

NE (TRANSEPT) ELEVATION: 8-bay, regular aisle elevation, grouped

2-2-2-2, with 5-bay, asymmetrical transept elevation advanced to outer right. Window to each bay. 2-bay group to outer left advanced. Half buttresses between remaining 2-bay groups. Transept elevation: window at ground in bay to centre; window to gablehead with hexagonal light above. Windows at each level flanking. Windows at ground in bays to outer left and right. Gablet wallhead stack truncating eaves to outer right. Pitched bay breaking eaves and invading re-entrant angle to left return; window at ground; bipartite window above. Segmental arched doorpiece with 2-leaf boarded door to right.

SW ELEVATION INCLUDING SIDE ELEVATION OF PRESBYTERY: 13-bay, divided

5 (presbytery side to left) 8 (aisle elevation to right). PRESBYTERY SIDE: tripartite window at ground in bay to centre; tripartite window at 1st floor above. Window at ground in bay to right of centre; window at 1st floor above. Advanced, 2-bay gabled bay to outer right: full-height, raised stack, breaking gablehead to centre; windows flanking to each floor; window to each floor in left return. Single storey bay with attic to outer left: window at ground; dormer window above. AISLE ELEVATION: regular 8-bay, grouped 2-2-2-2. Window to each bay; 2-bay group to outer right advanced. Half buttresses between remaining 2-bay groups.

INTERIOR: brick. Baptistery located in full-height narthex to SE; rectangular-plan vestibule with gallery above separated from nave by triple round-arched colonnade with glazed infill. Exposed, timber framed roof with short hammer beams. Nave flanked by 5-bay round-arched arcades; carved wooden Stations of the Cross over the piers. Organ set behind 4th arch in aisle to NE. Axial arches to transepts with median arch spanning crossing area; square-plan chancel behind; pointed chancel arch with sacristy recessed into bell tower behind and spanned by 3 further arches; point-arched niches and saints flanking timber altar with blind fretwork to centre of chancel. Square-plan galleried transept to NE with vestry below. Transept to SW giving access to presbytery. Stone, multi-columned communion rail; arcaded brick pulpit to NE of crossing; timber pews.

Plate glass round arched windows; fixed rectangular windows and 2 pane tilt windows to presbytery; red tiled roof with ridge; piended red pantile roof to presbytery; red tiles and ridge to cloisters; pitched, tiled and coped brick stacks; cast-iron rainwater goods.

BOUNDARY WALL, GATEWAY AND CLOISTERS: brick, double-sided round-arched gateway with swept skews and pitched link between. Brick boundary wall to SE with pitched and tiled cope, plain to road, blind, round-arched colonnade to inward face. Continuous cloisters to remaining boundary with tiled, pitched canopy and square-plan corner pavilions with pyramidal roofs; archway to centre of NW colonnade.

Statement of Interest

According to Thomas, the church was built using local volunteer labour. The impressive interior is achieved through the almost sculptural use of brick and careful manipulation of light. The cloisters were designed by Reginald Fairlie in 1935 and, according to the church warden, were built in order to keep the local brickworks open with continuous demand. McWilliam comments on the church's "odd profile like the bow of a ship". According to a plaque, the organ was made by D & I Hamilton in 1864, enlarged in 1890 and moved from St James', Leith in 1980.

External Links

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