ST CHAD’S . PATTINGHAM . STAFFS

GRADE II* Late C12 – C14; rebuilt mid-C17 after fire; extensive restoration late C19 (G Scott). A lovely church with plenty to admire. PEV has a small but enthusiastic entry. In addition to scratch dials, there is a very fine baluster sundial in the Churchyard, dated 1818 that will be written up separately in the relevant section. On the ground in front of S wall is the bust of an angel, formerly an adornment of the Houses of Parliament. Mid-way between Bridgnorth and Wolverhampton. 52.5898  -2.2657  SO820991

 

DIALS

St Chad’s has 2 fine dials on S wall – large, clear-cut, and easy to see. In another area of S wall, I found a small design that is plausibly a simple dial – a small circle with a hole at the centre. Nearby was a less convincing design that I discounted.

DIAL 1

Located at E end of S wall. Large, covering 3 stones. A full circle split horizontally by the mortar-line. The upper half has no radials or other marks dial-ish marks. Probably the large, deep hole URQ has nothing to do with the dial. The gnomon hole in the mortar line and the area round it is significantly damaged.

The lower half is a ‘6-to-6’ dial, below which 8 radials are clear. The deeper cut line at mid-morning may indicate the significant time of day for observance at this church.

DIAL 2

A very visible buttress dial, cut into a single stone. The style hole is (almost) at the centre, and has been enlarged over time (on purpose rather by corrosion). The position and spacing of the radials is unusual, making the dial significantly asymmetric. There are 5 lines visible LLQ, then the noon line, then five more LRQ. There are faint suggestions of other, eroded lines, but overall the dial lacks the symmetry one might expect.

DOUBTFUL