GRADE I † Saxon origins; surviving work of C12 and all subsequent periods BLB. Chancel C12 / late C13, Victorian restorations. An attractive church with its squat tower and portico; secluded and approached by narrow lanes. 6m N. of Sherborne; 7m W. of Wincanton. 51.0214 / -2.537 / ST624248
DIALS
Holy Trinity has 2 dials. The first is a small unobtrusive scratch dial by the S. doorway, possibly unrecorded unless in the church archives. It was not noted by DEH during his thorough coverage of the area; and it is not in the BSS register. The second (C18?) is clearly not strictly a scratch dial but an early vertical sundial. It definitely deserves inclusion as a most intriguing dial from a later period.
DIAL 1
This simple conventional scratch dial is inside the portico on LHS of the door. There are 2 clear lines from the style hole, with a fainter 3rd somewhat offset between them. The deeper cut line possibly indicates a Mass time (Terce).
DIAL 2
On the central buttress of the chancel. A single oblong stone slab with the mortar line as the horizontal ‘6-to-6’ and the numerals framed. The top edge of the frame is cut along the stones above; clear on the left one, faint on the right. Large Roman numerals on each side; small ones along the bottom of the dial. IIII for IV. The radials – more distinct on RHS – are graduated, with the noon line termination in a cross. The present gnomon is a simple metal triangle. It is hard to tell whether there was originally a wood or iron style or not.
It is unclear what the 2 iron pegs at the bottom are for, though they appear to be designed to hold up a stone tablet – perhaps at one time a different dial or a memorial slab was placed over the original dial.
ADDITIONAL FEATURES
Holy Trinity has other features to note – graffiti including dates and initials; at least one Marian (witch) symbol; and a mystery inscription. Sutton Montis indicates a hill hamlet and is clearly marked on historical maps. However I can find no historical or cartographic reference to the ‘valley hamlet’ of Sutton Vallis. And yet…
GSS Categories: Scratch Dial; Old Dial
All photos: Keith Salvesen
GAUDIUM SUB SOLE: Scratch Dials & Sundials Medieval to Modern 
I found this entry fascinating and thank you for the information contained.
You refer to :
“Holy Trinity has other features to note – graffiti including dates and initials; at least one Marian (witch) symbol; and a mystery inscription. Sutton Montis indicates a hill hamlet and is clearly marked on historical maps. However I can find no historical or cartographic reference to the ‘valley hamlet’ of Sutton Vallis. And yet…”
Of particular interest is the reference to the ‘Marion’ symbol i.e. witch mark. Would it be possible for you to enlarge upon this for us? As a Trustee of Somerset Historic Churches Trust, this is of particular interest to me. Any information etc you are able to provide would be most helpful.
Sincerely,
Philip G Skelhorn.
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Hello Philip, thanks for getting in touch, and I am pleased you enjoyed the article. It’s quite a while since I visited. I had an enjoyable day looking at several churches in the area. Sutton Montis was one of the most interesting. I have looked back at my photos (Oct 21) to see what marks I photographed (having recently decided to expand the site to include features other than dials).
I have some good initials but I can find one with a Marian mark. Most likely it was not a clear photo, or possibly I deleted it to make room. It may be that I didn’t actually photograph it. So I am afraid I can’t help, though I will check my external HD where I store some of the large number of photos I take.
If you can shed any light on Sutton Vallis, I’d be keen to know.
Kind regards, Keith
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Keith, good morning,
Thank you for your reply and quite understand.
What does a witch mark look like and what and where should we look ? Any information would be most helpful.
Sincerely
Philip
Philip G Skelhorn
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Philip, as a start you could go the the MENU header on this site and have a look at the collection under the main heading Apotropaic; and the Hexfoil sub-heading. There are quite a few examples of various types of mark. I often call them witch marks for simplicity, but more pro names are [Ritual] Protection Marks or Apotropaic Marks / Symbols. Graffiti & Masons’ Marks have a separate heading.
Here is a link to the relevant part of an excellent website, a very good resource for buildings of all kinds http://www.medieval-graffiti.co.uk/page18.html
Keith
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