Gloucestershire Scratch Dial – GAUDIUM SUB SOLE . SUNDIALS . MEDIEVAL TO MODERN

ODDINGTON . GLOS . ST NICHOLAS – 3 Scratch Dials

Published on March 7, 2025March 7, 2025 by Rolling HarbourLeave a comment

ODDINGTON . GLOS . ST NICHOLAS

Grade I ✣ C12 origin; gradual expansion to C15 (see BHO diagram); C19 restorations. Much of interest within, esp vast mid-C14 Doom wall painting on north wall of nave. Of note: stone bench seats within porch with incised lines where yeomen are reputed to have sharpened their arrows (cf Gnosall Staffs). In 1291 the rectory was valued at £14 13s. 4d. The extremely informative Evenlode Churches website is recommended – a model of its kind. 51.928 / -1.6598 / SP234255

DIALS

There are 3 dials in a cluster on W face of the porch. The first is very visible and detailed, undoubtedly the latest. The second is a semi-circle type, fanned out beneath the mortar line. The third is little more than a trace between the two, perhaps a test scratching or passing whim.

DIAL 1

DIAL 1 has a sizable gnomon hole, enlarged over tIme. The noon line is emphasised by being cut beyond the circle boundary; it also marks Sext. The emphatic horizontal incision RHS suggests that sunset (nocturns; compline) was a significant hour for observance. There are 4, possibly 5, faint lines URQ – probably rustic knife / nail scratchings rather than part of the original dial.

DIALS 2 and 3

DIAL 2 has 6 lines radiating from the mortar line. The discrepancy between the line spacing LLQ and LRQ was perhaps an attempt to correct the shadow-fall angle of the sun in the later part of the day.

DIAL 3 is as close to not being a dial as it could be. However, there is a badly cut line at approximately noon; and (anticlockwise) a line approximately at None. There’s also a hint that a gnomon might have been in the vertical mortar line above the horizontal.

GSS Category: Scratch Dial; Mass Dial; Dial Cluster; Medieval Doom Painting

CREDITS: All main photos, John Renner; header Mike Baldwin Geo cc

STANWAY . GLOS . ST PETER – Vertical Dial; Scratch Dial?

Published on January 28, 2024 by Rolling HarbourLeave a comment

ST PETER . STANWAY . GLOS

GRADE II* ✣ Parish Church. C12 origins; C13 tower; further works C15, C17, C18; restorations 1896 ff. An attractive country church beside the Manor House, close to a remarkable village cricket ground (see below). 11m E of Tewksbury, 12m NE of Cheltenham. 51.9897 / -1.9129 / SP060323

VERTICAL DIAL

The dial is immediately above a 2-light Perpendicular window, and (when I visited) partly obscured by foliage. The gnomon-less dial is dated 1797

The dial is hard to read because of its weathered condition, its high position, and the difficulty taking a square-on photo. Little detail can be seen with the naked eye. There is evidence of a double rectangular border; and there are the remains of decoration above the dial face. The dial is prominently placed and (absent trees in front) would have been visible from quite a distance.

SCRATCH DIAL?

In his Glos dials survey, Tony Wood TW lists a scratch dial at Stanway without further detail. It is not noted in TWC’s much earlier list. I can find no other reference, and I did not find a convincing dial. The best candidate was this one, with 3 radials RHS emerging from a large hole. One other line LHS runs beside the hole rather than radiating from it. The other large hole to the left suggests that the pair may have held a fixture, and there is a similar pair lower down.

Tentative conclusion: this is possibly a scratch dial, but dubious. It might be more convincing if it were on its own.

CRICKET PITCH

Straying from dial-specific content, here is a small gallery of the extraordinary cricket pitch, the gift of J M Barrie who stayed at the house. The outfield includes significant areas of ridge and furrow undulations, rather more of a problem for fielders than batsmen I imagine. The pavilion, supported by staddle stones, is an excellent example of satisfying quirkiness. I found a old ball under it to chuck around for a while and decide which end to bowl from.

GSS Category: Vertical Dial; Scratch Dial (?)

All photos: Keith Salvesen

TEDDINGTON GLOS. – ST NICHOLAS

Published on March 15, 2021March 15, 2021 by Rolling HarbourLeave a comment

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 BHO LINK and 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 A

*St 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…

WORMINGTON . GLOS – ST KATHERINE

Published on January 6, 2021November 17, 2021 by Rolling HarbourLeave a comment

DEDICATION † ST KATHERINE (also ST CATHERINE*)

LISTING † Grade ll*

LOCATION † Midway between Winchcombe & Evesham, Glos 52.0263 / -1.9447 / SP038364

*see BLB, HE

A small pretty village and an attractive simple church with a bellcote dating from C15 with earlier C12 foundations. Restoration c. 1800. Of note is a Saxon Cross / Crucifix dated to C9, originally discovered elsewhere in the village and perhaps from Winchcombe Abbey. Also, the ‘Savage Brass’, early C17. Several other churches nearby also have scratch dials; further afield also.

DIAL † Not readily visible. Located anachronistically on a corner under a modern lantern and next to a plastic drainpipe. It is quite large, with a pair of full circles and a variety of dots, some of which seem unlikely to relate to the dial.