The Church
St Bartholomew's church is composed of a 13th century chancel and nave, with the addition of a small 14th century chapel and a very imposing central tower, added in the 15th century. The most notable aspect of St Bartholomews are the number of superb monuments.
The best of these monuments is the quite extraordinary painted effigy of Walter de Helyon in the north aisle of the nave. De Helyon was a minor nobleman whose family became owners of an estate in Much Marcle. The name 'Helyon' eventually evolved into 'Hellens', the name of the manor in the village. Walter de Helyon died around 1350, and is portrayed lying on his back, with his feet resting on a small dog. What really makes the effigy worthy of note is the wonderful vernacular costume. De Helyon is dressed smartly in a jerkin, with a sword by his side and a belt and wallet alongside.
Unlike most surviving tombs, this one is not made of stone, but rather of solid oak painted with gesso. The colours are so vibrant they look as though they had been painted yesterday. It would be nice to think they had survived unaltered in this condition, but actually the gesso was renewed in 1971 to repair damage caused by mold and damp. The finished product is as close as we can guess to what it would have looked like at the time of its creation.
In the chancel is a canopied tomb worth noticing, that of Blanche Mortimer, Lady Grandison, who died in 1347. She was the daughter of the powerful Roger Mortimer, first Earl of March. The carving is superb, with the folds of her gown crisp and clean. Lady Grandison holds a rosary in her hands, and a wimple is upon her head. In his book 'England's Thousand Best Churches', Simon Jenkins calls Lady Grandison's effigy "an image as lovely as any bequeathed us by a medieval church ... a work of supreme craftsmanship".
I've mostly described the interior treasures of St Bartholomews, Much Marcle, but there is one more treasure here. It is to be found outside the south door of the church. A huge old yew tree stands here, its trunk so large and worn that a bench has been constructed within it.
The Cache
To find the cache, go into the porch and find the sign which tells you about the yew tree:
Q1: What measurement was the girth in 1953? AB feet and C inch
Q2: How many tons of dead timber were removed? D
Q3: How old do the Dowsers claim the tree is? 1E0F
The cache can be found at:
N51 59.E(F-D)(D-A) W002 30.B(C+F)(D-E-C)
*** Congratulations FTF The Coachman's Pair ***
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For full information on how you can expand the Church Micro series by sadexploration please read the Place your own Church Micro page before you contact him at churchmicro.co.uk
See also the Church Micro Statistics and Home pages for further information about the series.
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