Mass Dial Hampshire – GAUDIUM SUB SOLE . SUNDIALS . MEDIEVAL TO MODERN

KIMPTON . HANTS . ST PETER & ST PAUL – Scratch Dials

Published on March 5, 2023 by Rolling HarbourLeave a comment

ST PETER & ST PAUL . KIMPTON . HANTS

GRADE I † C13, C14, C15, C18; C19 works & restorations. Cruciform, with a south aisle to the nave, south porch, and western tower. Single cell nave and chancel of c1220. Blocked north door in the nave. Unusual C19 2-stage tower is pleasingly incongruous. 6m W of Andover, just N of the dread A303. 51.2181 / -1.5988 / SU281466

DIALS

BSS records from 2013 are based on a survey in 1995 which mentioned 2 dials quite close to each other on SE angle of S transept. For both dials BSS notes: Known only from reference. No other details. No longer extant.

ARG made the original record on his visit in July 1925, noting one dial and a doubtful one, both on the SE angle of S transept. His descriptions are as follows:

DIAL 1. On the large quoin on SE angle of S transept... late C14. He described it as an imperfect dial, with some lines LLQ, 4 of which ended in pocks; and some pocks LRQ with 2 lines extending beyond them.

DIAL 2. Noted as close-by and slightly doubtful, with a very small style hole and perhaps 3 lines on the lower half.

I found nothing to match ARG’s descriptions but I did find a plausible and a doubtful dial in the same general area.

DIAL 1

This stone doesn’t match the others in the immediate vicinity, and gives the distinct impression that it has been relocated and probably resized to fit. I think it plausible to claim this as a crude and eroded dial with traces of stubby lines in the noon area. It looked quite convincing on the day. Possibly it was relocated to a more prominent position, whether as a working dial or perhaps as a decorative quirk.

DIALS 1 & 2 – LOCATION

St Peter and St Paul. Kimpton . Hants – Two adjacent scratch dials. Possibly.

DIAL 2

This design is on a long stone close to Dial 1. Image 1 shows the stone as it is, horizontal. The 4 graduated dents caught my eye, being clearly created for a reason. There’s a slight curve to them; and a patch of cement that may (as elsewhere) fill a gnomon hole. Also – revealed in close-up – there is undeniably a deliberate thin straight line that comes directly from the hole (if it is / was one).

Rotating a photo of a dial can be useful in interpreting it (Images 2 & 3). A 90º turn here reveals a slightly more meaningful dial design. That said, to work as a dial stone, the long horizontal block would have had to be relocated from a place where it was vertical.

St Peter & St Paul . Kimpton . Hants – print (BHO)

GSS Category: Scratch Dial; Mass Dial; Medieval Sundial

All photos: Keith Salvesen

PRESTON CANDOVER OLD CHURCH . HANTS . ST MARY THE VIRGIN – 2 Scratch Dials

Published on July 26, 2022August 4, 2022 by Rolling HarbourLeave a comment

ST MARY THE VIRGIN . PRESTON CANDOVER . HANTS

GRADE II † C12 origins (c1190), mostly destroyed by a fire in 1681 and rebuilt. Dilapidation and a new Parish church built in the village centre in 1883 led to demolition of all but the Chancel. In the 1920s used as a mortuary chapel. Stones mark the outline of part of the nave. In the care of CCT. 8m S of Basingstoke. 51.1687 / -1.138 / SU603414

DIALS

Both dials are on the south wall of the Chancel, L of the blocked Priest’s door.

DIAL 1

Dial 1 is small and, remarkably, on the lowest stone of the doorway where it would have been of negligible use. It was obviously repositioned during rebuilding and in the process rotated 90º clockwise so that the deeper cut noon line is horizontal rather than vertical to the ground. Encircled but not accurately – slightly elliptical. There are a dozen lines or so radiating from the gnomon in the dial stone, with the afternoon lines emphasised (ARG in 1924 found it ‘much damaged by weather’)

St Mary . Preston Candover Old Church Dial BSS

DIAL 2

Dial 2 is eroded and in a poor state. Though larger than Dial 1, it is less visible, and ARG did not record it in his 1924 survey. It seems to have been cut on softer stone. Lichen makes it harder to read. The blocked gnomon hole is more or less in the centre of the dial stone. There are 7 definite lines leading from it, 2 angled into the upper half of the dial. It looks as if it might once have been encircled, but it is now hard to tell. BSS notes Crudely cut or made. Eroded. Trace of circle only. Partly hidden by rendering

NOTE In the churchyard is a sundial made up of a twelfth-century capital and base, both being set upside down HE

GSS Category: Scratch Dial; Mass Dial

Credits: Tina Osgood, taken during a recent visit; header image Basingstoke Gazette

BISHOPS SUTTON . HANTS . ST NICHOLAS – 4 Scratch Dials (2 inside porch)

Published on July 13, 2022 by Rolling HarbourLeave a comment

GRADE I † C12 origins (nave c1150) on Saxon site, still with Norman features. Gradual C13 / C14 development and C18 / C19 works / restoration. Wooden-shingled bell turret, as other churches locally (eg Medstead.) Of relevance here, S porch added C18. 2m E of Alresford. 51.0843 / -1.1362 / SU605320

DIALS

ARG visited in 1923 and recorded dials 1, 2, 3 but not dial 4 (high up above dial 3). Dials 1 & 2 are LHS of the original Norman doorway, within the later-added porch. ARG rightly discounted the very prominent OS benchmark below dial 3 that had elsewhere been recorded as a dial.

DIAL 1

The most striking of the dials, not least because of the graffiti that surrounds it. It is cut on the W jamb (outer) of the original Norman doorway (c1150), inside the much later S porch. There are 4 strong lines descending from the style hole in the mortar line, and a short arc LHS.

The image above also shows the much less distinct dial 2 at the same level on the inner jamb. The triangular design above both is ornamentation on the slim column. Dial 1 is remarkably undamaged / unweathered considering the long period before the porch was added. It must have predated the C17 graffiti, which is itself in very good condition.

DIAL 2

Dial 2 is also cut on the W jamb (inner) of the original Norman doorway (c1150) within the S porch. Very faint and hard to make out, even close to; easy to overlook. There are 4 discernible lines, with the hint of a double line at noon. The remains of whitewash make examination even more difficult.

DIAL 3

Very visible as one walks up the church path, on a quoin stone on the SE corner of the nave. The dial is cut inside an eroded semicircle, with the style hole in the mortar line. Unsophisticated. There are 11 lines radiating below the horizontal, at rather random angles. It looks uncomfortable, as if it may originally have extended upwards onto an earlier stone: ARG notes that it is on one of the original large quoins C1150 (which does not match nearby stones), suggesting relocation of the adjacent stones or even of the dial stone itself.

ARG suggests that there is no obvious vertical / noon line. However the 2 deeper cut lines either side of noon may be intended to emphasise a ‘noon space’ between them, as is occasionally found elsewhere. ARG also posits that Dial 3 may be an interesting example of a ‘summer-only’ dial, though I can’t tell why: it faces more or less due S.

DIAL 4

Dial 4 is high up on a quoin stone above Dial 3. It’s a very simple small dial with 4 lines leading from a style hole in the dial stone. There is a presumed Mass line (Terce), a noon line, a very faint short line, and an extended slightly curved line. BSS comments that the dial was at some time repositioned, being of little use in its present location.

St Nicholas . Bishops Sutton . Hants – Benchmark below Dial 3

St Nicholas . Bishops Sutton . Hants – Graffiti RHS doorway inc. apotropaic VV mark

GSS Category: Scratch Dial; Mass Dial; Medieval Sundial

All photos: Keith Salvesen

ROCKBOURNE . HANTS . ST ANDREW – Scratch Dial

Published on June 3, 2022 by Rolling HarbourLeave a comment

ST ANDREW . ROCKBOURNE . HANTS

GRADE I † C12 cruciform church enlarged C13 and thereafter. Small timber bell turret added C17. Victorian restoration 1893 (CE Ponting), with addition of porch. Set into an alarmingly steep hillside, with a considerable drop for the unwary. Approached by a now-rare permissive path through private property. Currently (2022) there are building works, with the W end under wraps. 10 miles S of Salisbury. 50.9642 / -1.8368 / SU115183

DIAL

St Andrew has one dial, prominently situated on the buttress of the S chapel and best seen from quite high up the slope. ARG visited in 1923, describing it as very distinct. C15.

ARG recorded 13 lines in a semicircle, each ending in a pock, with the angles (almost) equidistant. He noted that the lines are all in the lower half, but does not mention the interesting tilt of the dial, the purpose of which is unclear. Perhaps an adjustment of angle to allow for the slope (as it was in C15 when the dial was cut) and achieve greater accuracy? The large gnomon hole is blocked with a cement plug.

Looked at closely there is a 14th line also with a dot, fainter than the rest, on the upper right side, squeezed in between the clearer top two lines. There are 2 or 3 additional dots that form part of the circumference and possibly were at the end of fainter lines now eroded. Overall, a medieval dial that is less straightforward than it appears at first.

GSS Category: Scratch Dial

All photos: Keith Salvesen

KINGS SOMBORNE . HANTS . ST PETER & ST PAUL – Scratch Dials

Published on March 25, 2022 by Rolling HarbourLeave a comment

ST PETER & ST PAUL . KINGS SOMBORNE . HANTS

GRADE II* † C12 origins then C13 and C14 addition and rebuilding. Much C19 work inc. rebuilding tower & S porch. A most attractive long low church with timber belfry and spire. A rewarding church to explore: see BHO. 3m S of Stockbridge; 7m N of Romsey. 51.077 / -1.4872 / SU360309

DIALS

There are 4 dials recorded for the church, but only 3 are visible. The 4th seems now to be concealed behind a boiler. The 3 visible dials are all on the jambs of a S nave window. ARG notes that the window was inserted into an old doorway All are inverted, presumably during the 1880 restoration. Maybe this links up with the rebuilding of the S porch and relocation of stones originally there (a more obvious position). BHO notes various window alterations and the movement of stones incised with ornamental crosses and inscriptions… the stones have unfortunately been reset upside down.

DIAL 1

Dial 1 is inverted on the L jamb. LHS and below, the style hole is badly damaged. Otherwise, the 12 lines are more or less clear, with differing lengths and angles. There is a trace of a semicircle, marked by perimeter pocks. The noon line is considerably elongated and, with 1, has larger perimeter pocks. 1 also has a short extension of 4 dots, perhaps to emphasise a service significant to this church or community.

DIALS 2 & 3

Both dials are on the R jamb, inverted, on the same stone, and actually touching. Unusually (perhaps very rare) both are complete circles with 24-hour marking. Dial 2 has 24 radials; Dial 3 has 24 pocks.

Dial 2 is encircled and imaginatively decorative, with radials for a full 24 hours. The spacing is somewhat random. The style hole is quite deep, and obviously enlarged. The (upside-down) noon line is deeper cut, as are 10, & 11. So too is 1, which is also extended with 2 pocks. This corresponds with Dial 1 and seems to confirm that some importance was attached to that time of day.

*St Peter & St Paul . Kings Somborne . Hants – Scratch Dial* 2

Dial 3 is also a complete circle, with a small style hole. It is eroded, with only the (upwards) noon line and a couple of fainter lines clear. Most of the daylight hours are marked by pocks on the circumference; close examination has shown that in fact there are 24 pocks. It appears as if squeezed into the space between the upper stone and the lower edge of the stone

St Peter & St Paul . Kings Somborne . Hants – Scratch Dials 2 & 3

DIAL 4

Dial 4 is located on the SE quoin stone of the Chancel. The record indicates that it has 12 lines, mostly curved, and 2 above the horizontal. BSS notes Position is obscured by a hut containing an oil tank. So much so that I couldn’t find it at all. I intend to try again next time I’m in the area – perhaps taking a torch.

ARG in 1923 recorded that the dial consisted of a circle with 10 lines in the lower half, 5 of which end in pocks; and 2 lines in the upper half. None of the lines are straight; most are distinctly curved. Sadly, although he photographed dials 2 & 3, he did not take dial 4.

GSS Category: Scratch Dial

All photos: Keith Salvesen