This tiny church is tucked away behind a farmyard at Pixley Court, hidden from view and invisible to anyone not specifically looking for it. Please respect the residents of the Court, and do not, under any circumstances, visit after dark. It is possible to park in front the church. The co-ordinates listed are for the first two questions. The cache is not in the grounds of the church.
The Church
The name Pixley translates roughly as 'Peoht’s glade in the forest', but the forest is long gone. In the medieval period, Pixley Court was a moated manor, and the moat probably encircled both the manor and the church. The Court has since been considerably reduced in size, but it retains a 16th century cross-wing.
As for St Andrew's, it dates to the late 13th century and consists of just a chancel and nave, with a simple Victorian bell turret at the west end of the nave. The first recorded mention of a minister at Pixley comes from 1278, when the church is mentioned as a chapel of ease for Ledbury. There is a small south porch, and recent tree-ring analysis shows that the timbers used in its construction were felled in the winter of 1467. Intriguingly, large stones used in the north east corner of the chancel suggest that it was once part of an earlier building, but if so, no other trace of that structure remains. Make sure you take a look at the door; the iron hinges have been dated to the 13th century.
The big attraction at Pixley is the medieval timber work which is everywhere you look. The most interesting is the screen between chancel and nave. There seems to some debate over the age of the screen; the official historical records suggest a 14th century date, but Nikolaus Pevsner suggested that it was much later, perhaps post-Reformation. There are floor tiles attributed to Arts and Crafts pioneer William Morris, and a wooden parish chest, undated, which appears to be 17th century. The octagonal font is in Early English style and stands on a plain stem.
It won't take long to explore St Andrew's, but its one of those wonderful little county churches where time seems to have stood still for centuries.
The Cache
To locate the cache, find the answers to the following questions:
Q1: Metal trig set in the wall of the church - first number? = A
Q2: Metal trig set in the wall of the church - last number? = B
Q3: Bench - Sadly, it seems that the bench has been removed so C=4
Q4: Grave - How many times does the name Thomas appear? = D
The cache, a small clip lock box, can be found at:
N 52° 02.(A-D)(B-C)(C+1) W 2° 29.(B-D)(A-B)(C+D)
Checksum - A+B+C+D=23
It is on a public footpath. Follow the path out the back of the church, through the hedge. Turn left then right and follow the trees.
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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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