ST MICHAEL DE RUPE . BRENTOR . DEVON

GRADE 1 ❖ Original church mid-C12; rebuilt C13; C15 tower, alterations; restorations 1890. Perched on a volcanic tor, visible for miles around and – from its lofty position – with a view even further. PEV admired this ‘exciting sight’ in a short but enthusiastic entry, noting that ‘… the W front is not 3 feet from the precipice’. 6m N of Tavistock. 50.6033 / -4.1623 / SX470804

SUNDIAL DETAILS

The slate sundial, dated 1624, is fixed high up on the south wall of tower. The date at the top encloses the initials of Walter Batten, viz 16 WB 24. It is surmounted by a cartoonish angel, as if drawn by a child. The gnomon emerges from a rustic sun, with a hole (from an earlier dial) beneath it. IIII stands for IV. Apart from damage ULQ, the condition is remarkably good, especially given the exposed position of the church (‘Rupe’ = rock / cliff).

UPPER

LOWER

The standard resources (HE, BLB etc) reference the 12 signs of the Zodiac as forming a border. In fact there are 6 decorative designs – squiggles – on either side in approximately matching pairs, with a floral pattern in each corner below. BSS notes that the T and E of WALTER are ‘fused’; and the Ts of BATTEN are also stylized. You can see all these details clearly in the top image.

EARLIER RESEARCH – MRS CROWLEY

Between about 1950 – 1965, Mrs Jeanie Crowley undertook the massive task of recording dozens of church sundials in Cornwall and Devon. With great skill, she made detailed and accurate pencil drawings of each dial. In most cases she gave other details – measurements, unusual features, damage etc. For St Michael, this includes ‘gnomon gone’, suggesting that the present one is relatively recent. This would explain the hole below. She also suggests a ‘primitive’ Zodiac link.

Fortunately, St Michael was included in her survey, drawn in 1959. Mrs Crowley’s notes are your guide. 60 years later a powerful lens confirms them.

All photos by our friend John Renner, to whom much thanks for enabling this post.

Ref. Mrs Crowley’s Sundial Sketchbooks of Devon & Cornwall, edited by John Lester. 386pp. British Sundial Society; The Antiquarian Horological Society