Chipping Norton - St Mary the Virgin Church

About

A wool church and Grade I listed building, St Mary the Virgin is tucked away near the bottom of the hill on which the town sits. The setting seems incongruous, however it is here in the shadow of the church and what was once the castle, that the settlement was originally concentrated. In the early 13th century a new town centre and market place were established further up the hill, leaving the church behind.

Particularly noteworthy features include: the 15th century clerestory - the window-lit upper storey of the nave - which has an unusually high ratio of glass to wall making the nave seem light and airy; the great Decorated window at the east end of the south aisle, which legend has it was brought her from Bruern Abbey at the Dissolution; the unusual hexagonal porch with carved faces - including a green man with leafy tendrils sprouting from his nose and a lion sticking his tongue out at all who pass by; the fine Perpendicular nave; two 16th century chest tombs, one to Richard Croft (d 1502) and his wife (d 1509), the other, scored with old graffiti, to Thomas Rickardes (d 1570).