History in Structure

Pencaitland Parish Church And Burial-Ground, Easter Pencaitland

A Category A Listed Building in Pencaitland, East Lothian

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Coordinates

Latitude: 55.911 / 55°54'39"N

Longitude: -2.8922 / 2°53'31"W

OS Eastings: 344325

OS Northings: 669012

OS Grid: NT443690

Mapcode National: GBR 8072.NX

Mapcode Global: WH7V2.JPZF

Plus Code: 9C7VW465+94

Entry Name: Pencaitland Parish Church And Burial-Ground, Easter Pencaitland

Listing Name: Pencaitland Parish Church with Gatehouse Offertory Houses and Graveyard Walls and Gatepiers

Listing Date: 5 February 1971

Category: A

Source: Historic Scotland

Source ID: 353147

Historic Scotland Designation Reference: LB18933

Building Class: Cultural

ID on this website: 200353147

Location: Pencaitland

County: East Lothian

Electoral Ward: Haddington and Lammermuir

Parish: Pencaitland

Traditional County: East Lothian

Tagged with: Church building

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Description

Parish Church with complicated building history; pre-reformation

nave, probably on medieval foundations, earlier Winton Aisle to N, and bell-tower of 1631; mid 17th century Saltoun Aisle also to N. Yellow rubble, harl-pointed with variety of ashlar dressings; Winton aisle in squared and coursed yellow stone. Chamfered reveals to simpler openings. Tower: sited at W end, projecting from centre of gabled nave elevation. Square plan, 4 stages. Doorway to W with date 1631 and initials "JO" above, pointed arched window in 2nd stage; stone forestair on N return in re-entrant angle with nave, leading to doorway below 2nd stage; decorative cast-iron railings; arrow slit flight-hole to dovecot in 3rd stage and group of 3 small arched flight-holes on S return. Grey ashlar octagonal bellcote at 4th stage, broached from 3rd stage, cill course to lancet openings and bell-cast eaves to polygonal

spire; cockerel weathervane; bell dated 1656. Interior of 3rd stage lined with nesting boxes. Nave: 5-bay.Winton Aisle running parallel at E of N elevation and Saltoun Aisle at right angles to its W; E end with doorway below pointed, round-arched, Y-traceried window; ashlar cube sundial as finial, with copper gnomon. Tower at W end to centre with small round-arched nave windows at eaves level (lighting gallery); wall monument to S of tower. Round-arched window (former door) to N, to right of Saltoun Aisle. S elevation with set-off wall buttresses, ashlar coped; 2 lancet windows left of centre flanking further wall monument; one lancet to right of centre and one to outer right; round arched priest's door blocked as window to outer left bay with small pointed arch window under eaves; 2 simple sundials with gnomons incised on outer left buttress. Wall monuments of particular note each with broken pediment cradling cartouche, columned inscription panels and memento mori, S wall monument to D Pringle, post-1733; W wall monument to K Forbes, post-1639. Winton Aisle: formerly vaulted and with slab slates. 2-bay to N with gablet wall buttresses (later strengthened with set-off additions) dividing bays. Bead moulding to surrounds of hoodmoulded, pointed-arch openings; 2 to N both blocked; roll-moulded doorway (formerly in left archway)moved to right bay along with oculus above; 2-leaf doors. Set-off wallhead to N with mask-carved corbels to eaves and closed by subsidiary skewputts. W gable with traceried 3-light window, rose window at centre clasped by cusped mouchettes in pointed lights. E end barely separated from Saltoun Aisle at right angles and with pointed arch 2-light and rose window. Saltoun

Aisle: gabled projection to N with Y-traceried window with bead moulding to surround. Doorway on W return with fluted pilasters, broken segmental pediment with shield; blocked oriel window to centre of W return and further fine classical wall monument,d etailed similarly to these described above. Blank elevations on E return by Winton Aisle. Diamond-pattern leaded glazing with some intersecting traceried timber glazing patterns to W end windows. Grey-green slates. Ashlar coped skews. Decorative cast-iron eaves brackets. Interior: boarded

dado, white-wash above; cornice below coombed ceilings; Winton Aisle through wide depressed arch and with bare stone walls. Gallery to W end on polygonal timber columns, decorative brackets, Jacobean panelling to gallery front. Pulpit 17th century oak, decoratively carved with baptismal bracket, modern base,decorative cast-iron balustrade to

steps, similar 17th century panelling to pews in Saltoun Aisle. Communion table, Font and Lectern, 1909. Organ Peter Conacher and

Co, Springwood, Huddersfield, 1889,with colourfully stencilled decoration. Stained glass window to E of Winton Aisle, C E

Kempe, 1883, Faith, Hope and Charity; at the E end Guthrie and

Wells, post 1924, Motherhood and the sower; decorative border and quatrefoil in S windows flanking pulpit. Gatehouse: probably 18th century, to N gate; sandstone rubble, squared for dressings: door in E end; stack to W end; pantiles. Offertory Houses: 2 buildings to W of graveyard, that to N probably 18th century, detailed as gatehouse but smaller and built on inclining ground;o ffertory house to S probably early 19th century, in tooled rubble with chamfered details to tripartite window to one side,4 -pane glazing pattern to sash and case windows, grey slates, coped skews and beak skewputts. Graveyard

walls: rubble walls with semi-circular coping to N (roadside). 2 square ashlar gatepiers to N gate with pyramid caps and ball finials (one missing); wrought-iron gates. Selection of fine

gravestones, including ornately carved table-tombs.

Statement of Interest

Ecclesiastical building in use as such. Manse with stable court sited on falling ground to S and E. Pre-reformation church belonged to monks of Dryburgh Abbey. Panelling of pulpit and pews similar to that in Yester Parish Church, brought from earlier church. Pencaitland Parish Church is well-sited between the Eastern and Western sections of the parish, created by the course of the River Tyne.

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