Identifier: wiltshirearchaeo2518godd (find matches)
Title: The Wiltshire archaeological and natural history magazine
Year: 1890 (1890s)
Authors: Goddard, Edward Hungerford, 1854- Wiltshire Archaeological and Natural History Society Wiltshire Archaeological and Natural History Society. Proceedings
Subjects: Natural history
Publisher: (Devizes, Eng. : The Society)
Contributing Library: Allen County Public Library Genealogy Center
Digitizing Sponsor: Internet Archive

View Book Page: Book Viewer
About This Book: Catalog Entry
View All Images: All Images From Book
Click here to view book online to see this illustration in context in a browseable online version of this book.

Text Appearing Before Image:
g course. The nave was, as I remarked before, re-built in the fifteenthcentury, when the tower was erected. There are two of the navewindows of this period left—one in the north and one in the southwalls, both have had their tracery cut out. The roof of this periodremains and is of a somewhat peculiar type, and the form of thespandrels suggest the idea that the pitch has been altered; but thisis not so. The corbels supporting the principals represent a bishopand a king alternately. The tower is of unusual beauty. It was probably erected at aboutthe middle of the fifteenth century in the form to which it hasrecently been restored, and I would ask you to especially notice theproportions of the stair turret, and the pinnacle on each set-off ofthe buttresses, also the ogee arches of the windows. But the builders did not realise the real cause of the settlementsin the Norman work—or, at any rate, the proper remedy. Theydoubtless found the sand was soft near the surface, and they sought
Text Appearing After Image:
Visited by the Society in 1890. 263 to neutralise the effects of this by putting in large sandstone bouldersas a foundation instead of digging deeper. The result was thatthese were crushed down into the sand, and the tower became splitand distorted. At some period—probably when the bells were putin1— an attempt was made to arrest this damage by putting largeoak beams right through the walls from east to west and north tosouth. These were keyed on the outside and the exposed partsprotected by a kind of stone hood. Then, as if to compensate forthe additional weight imposed by the bells, the top of the towerwas taken off for about 7ft. in height, and the cornice and parapetwere re-set at a lower level. I have here two drawings, one showing the tower as it was beforethe restoration in 1885, and the other showing it as it is now (andas the evidences afforded by the stones indicated that it originallywas). You will see that the cornice is broken through to avoidinterfering with the wind

Note About Images