Norfolk Heritage Explorer

Location

Full description

May 1960. Listed. Grade II.
Listing Description Excerpt:
"Former parish church. Medieval and later. Flint with stone and brick dressings. Roofless. Former west tower, aisleless nave with porch to south and chancel of same width without division. 2-light Y traceried windows Ill to south and one to north) and a 3-light Y traceried east window. North and south doors C14 with dying filletted roll mouldings and hood moulds on carved label stops. Door blocked to north and a tall shallow porch with plain chamfered arch to south. Niche above south door with cusped arch and crocketted pediment. Unbuttressed west tower collapsed and was converted into a vestry before the church became derelict."
Information from (S1).
Please consult the National Heritage List for England (S1) for the current listing details.
H. Hamilton (HES), 12 May 2023.

October 1976. Field observation.
A visual assessment was made of the building.
In ruins and roofless. Late 13th/early 14th century EE/DEC.
Medieval tomb slab discovered 1883.
Beam of 1753/4 now in St Peter Hungate Museum.
Monument of 1663 removed to Colkirk Church (NHER 7126).
Information transcribed from HER Record Card (S2).
H. Hamilton (HES), 12 May 2023.

Before 1991. Documentary Research and Field Observation.
See published monograph (S3) for detailed research on ruined churches in Norfolk.
H. Hamilton (HES), 12 May 2023.

February 1992. Architectural Condition Survey.
Carried out for Norfolk County Council.
See unpublished report (S4) for further details.
H. Hamilton (HES), 12 May 2023.

November 1993. Field Observation.
Ruined church dating to about 1300, with 14th century alterations. East wall rebuilt using original materials, possibly in 1753. Altered in 19th century, abandoned 1930. In 1993, the ruin was completely cleared of overgrowth, the walls topped off to prevent further decay and the graveyard was cleared as part of Norfolk County Council's Ruined Churches Five Year Repair Programme. Monument and coffin slab now at Colkirk church (NHER 7126). Beam in St Peter Hungate museum.
See HER Notes (S5) and photographs (S6) for further details.
See also unpublished report (S7) for later transcription.
E. Rose (NLA), 5 November 1993.

November 1994. Building Recording.
Examined as part of the Ruined Churches Five Year Repair Programme operated by Norfolk County Council's Historic Buildings Team.
Brief record with plan and transcription of Oxwick Town Book.
Notes that repairs to date have included "removing the ivy, selected rebuilding of fallen or unsatable masonry, rough racking of the wall tops, and reinstatement of the porch roof."
See unpublished report (S8) for details.
S. Heywood (HES), 4 March 2011.

1995. Published Research.
This research indicates that the chancel was entirely removed in the 17th century, not just shortened, and the present east wall is a rebuild using old materials. This is based on the assumption that there was a chancel narrower than the nave, and that the monument of 1663 would have been placed in the chancel if there was one. As the 1663 monument was placed in the nave instead, it indicates that the chancel had gone by this time. This would also explain the sedilia against the east wall, as this could have belonged to a nave altar.
It is also suggested that the west lancets indicate that a west gallery was originally proposed but never built. The original tower window, now a belfry, was in fact a door to the roof space. The headstops on the nave southeast window were re-cut and replaced in the 19th century. The porch is a 17th-century reconstruction using the chancel arch.
There is some original ironwork remaining in the windows and wooden boards in the putlog holes.
Churchwarden's accounts of 1735-7 for the sale of masonry and lead to rebuild the roof are connected with the demolition of the tower.
The church was in use until 1939 and not allowed to become derelict until 1940.
Information from published article (S9).
E. Rose (NLA), 5 January 1996.

1996. Casual find.
Found in bare patch of soil at [1] in woodland area.
2 body sherds Medieval unglazed ware.
1 small sherd likely also of the same ware.
This aera may have been outside the churchyard when last in use.
Recorded in HER Notes (S5) and transcribed in unpublished report (S7).
A. Rogerson (NLA), 14 October 1996.

August 1998. Excavation.
Revealed the foundations of the end of the chancel apparently overlying an earlier north vestry. Medieval and post medieval sherds, floor tile, one Roman sherd.
See unpublished report (S10) for details of this and subsequent excavation.
See also unpublished list of finds in HER Finds Desccriptions.
This season's work summarized in unpushed project outline for 1999 work (S11) and published journal summary (S12)
The results of this work are summarised in (S6).
E. Rose (NLA), 30 October 1998.

1999. Excavation.
Excavation continued, in particular to investigate the wall immediately to the north of the chancel, uncovered in the previous season. This wall, cut by the north-east buttress to the chancel, proved to be one side of a rectangular structure on the north side of the church.
See unpublished report (S10) for details of the 1998-2000 work.
See unpublished outline for this work (S11).
The results of this season's work are summarised in journal article (S13).
D. Holburn (HES), 21 November 2011.

2000.
Excavation continued to explore the structure immediately north of the chancel. Although it is clear that this building pre-dates the standing church, it was not possible to relate its south wall to the north wall of the chancel. The function of the building remains uncertain. The abse of a possible missing buttress was identified on the north wall of the church, and an even earleir phase was seen at the east end of the structure.
See unpublished report (S10) for details of the 1998-2000 work.
Drawings (S16) are likely also related to this work.
The results of this season's work are summarised in journal article (S14).
D. Holburn (HES), 4 November 2011.

An archive comprising material from the excavations undertaken between 1998 and 2000 has been deposited with Norwich Castle Museum (NWHCM : 2024.213).
P. Watkins (HES), 20 October 2024.

2005.
In Batcock (S3) it was suggested that the chancel was entirely removed in the 17th century, not just shortened, and that the present east wall is a rebuild using older material. The results of the excavation between 1998 and 2000 (S10 and S11) suggests that this is unlikely. They found a one bay structure dating to about 1300. This would have been only part of the chancel, with the rest of the chancel formed by part of the standing building. Batcock (S3) suggests that the church was in use until 1939.
See HER Notes (S5), re-typed as addenda to unpublished report (S7).
D. Robertson (NLA), 6 September 2005.

March 2012.
To the north-west of the church there is a graveyard boundary marker stone, triangular in section, inscribed CH-YD BOUND. See digital photos (S21).
D. Gurney (HES), 01 March 2012.

March 2012.
Section 17 agreement signed.
See Monuments Management Programme archive (S15).
D. Robertson (HES), 4 April 2012.

August-September 2012. Repair.
A programme of masonry repair work and vegetation removal was carried out on the north wall, the interior of the chancel gable, and the interior of the west gable following collapse of facework.
See unpublished report (S17), digital photographs (S18) and (S19) for further details.
Confidential correspondence (S20) also held.
H. Hamilton (HES), 15 May 2023.

Monument Types

• CHURCH (Medieval to 21st Century - 1066 AD to 2100 AD)
• BOUNDARY POST (Post Medieval - 1540 AD to 1900 AD)

Associated Finds

• POT (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
• COFFIN (Medieval - 1066 AD to 1539 AD)
• DOOR (Medieval - 1066 AD to 1539 AD)
• DOOR (Medieval - 1066 AD to 1539 AD)
• FLOOR TILE (Medieval - 1066 AD to 1539 AD)
• FONT (Medieval - 1066 AD to 1539 AD)
• POT (Medieval to 19th Century - 1066 AD to 1900 AD)
• UNIDENTIFIED OBJECT (Medieval - 1066 AD to 1539 AD)
• WINDOW (Medieval - 1066 AD to 1539 AD)

Protected Status

• Listed Building

Sources and further reading

Related records

Find out more...

• Parish Summary: Colkirk (Parish Summary)