ALL SAINTS . HAMPRESTON . DORSET

GRADE II* ❖ Norman origins on Saxon site; 1261 first Rector; C14 chancel and Tower. Victorian additions and restoration. Royal Coat of Arms of George II 1754. DHCT rates as fabulously interesting. Secluded within the New Forest. 50.7888 / -1.9231 /  SZ055988

DIALS

All Saints has two adjacent dials low down on the same stone of a small buttress at the E end. One is elaborate; the other is rustic.

DIAL 1

There are 17 lines and 7 pocks within an incomplete circle. Noon seems to be indicated by 3 pocks under a shorter line. The longer line no doubt indicates the main time of observance as None.

DIAL 2

This simple dial has 2 sets of 3 pocks. The lower set would work for mid-morning to early afternoon, presumably to emphasise the main daily Mass. The upper set can only be ‘decorative’, perhaps the work of a bored sacristan practising symmetry.

GSS Category: Scratch Dial; Mass Dial; Medieval Sundial

All photos: Keith Salvesen