St Georges de Boscherville . Normandy . Vertical Sundial
The beautiful C12 Abbey of St Georges de Boscherville in Normandy is very much in the Michelin ‘vaut le voyage’ category. Advantage has been taken of the extensive abbey grounds to display innovative bee-hives and an excellent display of modern sundials. The most complex will feature here in due course. Meanwhile, enjoy this attractive sundial with its cleverly effective gnomon.
St Georges de Boscherville . Normandy . Vertical Sundial
St Georges de Boscherville . Normandy . Vertical Sundial
The motto Tant ici passerent le temps passé nous passons means roughly ‘So much past time has passed here; we (also) pass’. It sounds better in the original.
DEDICATION † ST STEPHEN – C13 origin, mainly C15, C19 restoration, porch link to C20 vestry
LISTING † GRADE II*
LOCATION † In the centre of the village, a few miles SW. of Crewkerne / SE. of Chard. Contains 2 rare treasures (see notes). Close to Forde Abbey 50.8526 / 2.8898 / ST 37400637
St Stephen . Winsham . Som . Scratch dial 3
DIALS † 3 dials on or near the priest’s door, described in detail by DEH (see below for his notes on each). In evening light (hence the vaguely apocalyptic photo), a fine trio of dials to collect.
Later I discovered that (according to HE) there are 6 ‘mass dials’ in all. I need to return to find the other 3…
St Stephen . Winsham . Som . Position of 3 scratch dials
DIAL 1
129. (1) This dial is on the e. side of the window on the w. of the priest’s door. It is 6 feet 5 inches above the ground, the noonline is 6 inches in length, and the stylehole is 2 inches deep by 3/4 of an inch in diameter. The aspect is s.by10°e. Type 5b.
St Stephen . Winsham . Som . Scratch dial 2 U.K.
DIAL 2
130. (2) This dial is on the w. side of the priest’s door. It is 5 feet 2 1/2 inches above the ground, the noonline is 3 1/2 inches in length, the stylehole is 1 inch deep by 1/2 an inch in diameter, and the aspect as above. Type 3a or 5b.
St Stephen . Winsham . Som . Scratch dial 1
DIAL 3
131. (3) This dial is on the w. side of the window e. of the priest’s door. It is 6 feet 3 inches above the ground, the noon- line is 6 1/4 inches in length, and the stylehole, which is large, is filled with cement. The aspect as above. Type 4, combining 5c.
St Stephen . Winsham . Som . Scratch dial 3
The dials Nos. 1 and 3 are carefully cut on very large stones that form the quoins of the windows on either side of the priest’s door. Dom Ethelbert Horne August 19th, 1915
NOTES † The church has one of very few surviving copies of Foxe’s Book of Martyrs on display; also, one of the only two surviving pre-Reformation tympana (rood screens) of the Crucifixion in the world. And 3 scratch dials left for me to find.
St Stephen . Winsham . Som . The Priest’s Door . 3 scratch dials
DEDICATION † ST PETER – C15, later works & additions
LISTING † GRADE I
LOCATION † S. of A30 between Henstridge & Milborne Port; or reached from S. by a complex network of lanes (map suggested). A notable E-shape C15 Manor House. St Peter is a most attractive example of a typical Dorset church. 50.9569 / -2.4342 / ST696175
St Peter . Purse Caundle . Dorset – Scratch Dial
DIAL † NW. corner of Nave, conveniently by a drainpipe (as so often) for size comparison. Repositioned during building BSS. 5 distinct radials, encircled, 13 pocks including 2 doubles and a triple indicating significant hours. Location and lichen complicate inspection.
St Peter . Purse Caundle . Dorset . Dial Diagram BSS
St Peter . Purse Caundle . Dorset – Scratch Dial
St Peter . Purse Caundle . Dorset – Scratch Dial Details
NOTES † Nearby STOURTON CAUNDLE (link to come) has a C18 sundial with gnomon on the tower and (worth the visit) an excellent display of graffiti and apotropaic (‘witch’) marks in and around the porch. BISHOPS CAUNDLE has a badly eroded scratch dial, featured HERE
DEDICATION † ST NICHOLAS – late C11 or early C12 origin, mainly C13 / C14; tower added late C15
LISTING † GRADE I
LOCATION † 6 miles E. of Tewkesbury; S. of Bredon. One of a small group of appealing hamlets in the Parish of Overbury BHOLINKand beyond. Take in nearby C12 Little Washbourne with its splended hexfoil. A rewarding area for church visits and in particular scratch dials. 51.9951 / -2.0533 / SO964329
DIALS † Two dials on the S. side: one (A) on the R. jamb of the blocked doorway, one (B) on an adjacent buttress. A is clear, with varied line lengths and divisions, and the hint of an outer circle. B is badly eroded with only a partial circle clear. There is a possible ill-defined circle top left of it.
St Nicholas . Teddington . Glos . Dial ASt Nicholas . Teddington . Glos . Dial B
St Nicholas . Teddington . Glos . Scratch Dials A & B
NOTES † If you are investigating scratch dials, this area of Glos. / Worcs. is prolific for them. Advisable to check TWC ‘counties list’. It’s not infallible and some counties are slight, but it is the most comprehensive county-by-county list for general guidance. His entire short pamphlet can be found online HERE and downloaded. You can sometimes find the 1935 original online, but then you will find his 2 other (rarer) sundial pamphlets and the costs begin to mount…
DEDICATION † ALL SAINTS – C12 nave, C14 main church, C19 restoration / modern chancel
LISTING † GRADE I
LOCATION † 2 miles N. of Sherborne in a secluded valley beyond Oborne. Fine lynchet systems on the hillsides. A real feel of history here, with a magnificent manor house, tithe barn, former court house, and the church on a slope above the village. 50.9781 / -2.4996 / ST650199
NOTES † Unrecorded dial, relocated and inverted N. porch.
Poyntington Dorset . All Saints. Scratch Dial .
DIAL † No known record of a dial at this church. Checked because local & ‘early’. Approached by path from N., dial visible upper L side of N. porch. Clearly relocated and inverted in the process. 3 clean-cut radials across 2 stones, evenly spaced but differing lengths. Filled style hole. The image of the porch shows the disproportion of this uniform block of relocated stone to the rest of the porch.
DEDICATION † ST PETER & ST PAUL – c14 origins, c15 tower & additions, enlargement & ‘well done’ (OM) restoration c19
LISTING † GRADE I
LOCATION † One of 3 ‘Caundle’ churches in the area, and well worth visiting as trio linked by meandering lanes and puzzling signposts. Bishop’s is about 4 miles S.E. Sherborne on a road leading E. to Sturminster Newton. An elongated village with a typically attractive Dorset church. 50.9171 / -2.4336 / ST696131
St Peter & St Paul . Bishop’s Caundle . Dorset . Scratch Dial
DIAL † The dial, in poor condition, is on the E. jamb of the Chancel door. Filled style hole. Faint & poorly preserved (GLP). He noted 6 lines and 7 pocks, with a cross on the mass line.
St Peter & St Paul . Bishop’s Caundle . Dorset . Scratch Dial
NOTES † There’s more to this dial than meets the eye, once one gets over slight disappointment on seeing it…
St Peter & St Paul . Bishop’s Caundle . Dorset . Scratch Dial
DEDICATION † ST MARY THE VIRGIN – C12 origins, mainly C15 perpendicular, later additions & restoration
LISTING † GRADE I
LOCATION † 4 miles SW. Sherborne, 3 miles SE. Yeovil. ‘Abbot’s Broad Ford’. A significant settlement from Roman times. Associated with Saxon King Athelstan. One of the larger villages in the area, attractive and with an inviting pub close to the church. 50.9265 / -2.5884 / ST587142
FEATURE † New dial recorded (see Dial 3)
St Mary the Virgin . Bradford Abbas . Dorset . Scratch dials 1 & 2
DIALS † High on SW. buttress of porch, two scratch dials, one on top of the other. Well-documented. The top dial seems less sophisticated and more eroded, so perhaps is the oldest (AOW drew it as dial 1). Rather obtrusive vertical repairs to both. I found a 3rd dial high up on the tower, clearly relocated and inverted (see below). I have found no mention of it anywhere: a new find perhaps.
DIALS 1 & 2
St Mary the Virgin . Bradford Abbas . Dorset . Scratch dials 1 & 2
The top dial. 13 radial, 7 dots. Deeper & longer 8-line. Style hole filled. AOW notes Square outline. Transitional
Lower dial. Semicircle, 11 radials, 10 dots. Style hole filled. Morning radial notably extend beyond the circle line.
St Mary the Virgin . Bradford Abbas . Scratch Dials (Keith Salvesen)
DIAL 3
St Mary the Virgin . Bradford Abbas . Scratch Dial 3 (unrecorded)St Mary the Virgin . Bradford Abbas . Scratch Dial 3 (unrecorded)
NOTES † Dials 1 & 2 recorded and drawn by AOW, mentioned BSS / GLP , BHO; Dial 3 unrecorded
DEDICATION † ST ANDREW – C15, mid-C19 restoration; C13 font
LISTING † GRADE II*
LOCATION † 5 miles SW of Sherborne, a sprawling village set deep in farming country. Some fine old buildings dating from C16, now mixed in with modern housing. A fine village cross with C15 shaft. A friendly rural place. 50.8762 / -2.5445 / ST617086
St Andrew . Leigh . Dorset . Scratch Dial
DIAL † On W. side jamb of porch, a very small rustic dial, eroded / damaged LHS, mid to late C15. Full circle with 4 detectable radials, the (presumed) noon line being extended outside the circumference at a slight angle. Probably originally divided into eight equal segments GLP, who dates the dial to the second half of C15
Seen close to, there are hints that the adjacent area with the large bolt may once have been a dial, with the hole for a small style (originally centred) overwhelmed by its replacement and erosion. A nearby hole, slightly lower, on the inside of the jamb, looks promising as a dial but on inspection, disappoints.
St Andrew . Leigh . Dorset . Scratch Dial
NOTES † Recorded in BSS register as researched by GLP. Not mentioned elsewhere. C13 font; interesting West Door with shields in the spandrels, one bearing three hanks of cord and the other a merchant’s markBHO; also graffiti with date, initials, witch and other marks; enjoyable gargoyles. Elsewhere, a few incised crosses, presumably apotropaic in purpose.
Graffiti and marks . West Porch . St Andrew . Leigh . Dorset
DEDICATION † ST JAMES the GREAT C12 origins, C13 tower, C15 rebuilding, later additions
LISTING † GRADE I
LOCATION † 3 miles S of Sherborne, a long narrow village on the main road to Dorchester – rather a traffic bottleneck. ‘A linear village slowly descending to marshy land…’(PEV) Church slightly set back in its peaceful-seeming churchyard. Besides the excellent scratch dial, there is a fine vertical sundial high on the S. buttress of the tower (merits a separate post in due course) 50.9132 / -2.5008 / ST648127
ADDENDUM: link to subsequent post featuring a hitherto unrecorded scratch dial and the vertical dial on the tower HERE
St James . Longburton . Dorset – Scratch Dial
DIAL † Sundial: On S.E. buttress of nave—stone cut with scratch-dial and two crosses (BHO). Reached through a small stone gateway, not a location easily guessed. Dial in good condition, additional marks shown in images. 4 emphasised radials.
St James . Longburton . Dorset – Scratch Dial with crossesSt James . Longburton . Dorset – Scratch Dial location
NOTES † As mentioned, there is a fine vertical sundial with an interesting split gnomon on the tower S. buttress, to be posted soon. Also, excellent gargoyles and head stops. Below are the 2 crosses on the dial stone, one with dot decoration.
St James . Longburton . Dorset – 2 crosses adjacent to the dial
GAUDIUM SUB SOLE: Scratch Dials & Sundials Medieval to Modern 