For this church:

Introduction

Location

History

Archaeology

Fittings

Glass

Organ

Bells

Clock

Stonework

Monuments

War Memorial

Churchyard

References

Pictures

Plans

Listing Description

List of Incumbents

Parish page

Clifton St Mary

Official Listing Description

The folowing are listed:

The Church
The walls and gateways

Church

Parish church. Mainly C14. North arcade c1190, south arcade c1290. Clerestory added and tower raised, late C14, chancel enlarged, north transept and porch added, late C15. Restored 1846 by Cottingham, 1873 by Hodgson Fowler, 1884 by Bodley, 1965-75 by GG Pace, and 1975-83 by R Sims. Coursed squared stone and ashlar, with ashlar dressings and lead and slate roofs. Buttresses, coped parapets and gables. Decorated and Perpendicular styles. PLAN: chancel and vestry, transepts, crossing tower, nave with clerestory, aisles, north porch. Adjoining parish room to south, late C20. EXTERIOR: chancel, 2 bays, has a pointed arched east window, 5 lights, with panel tracery. On each side, two 3-light flat-headed windows, traceried, on a sill band. North side has a moulded pointed arched door. Vestry, 2 bays, to south east. Transepts have angle buttresses and 3-light pointed arched windows, the north with transom. South window partly blocked by additions. Each has two 3-light windows to east, the north flat-headed, the south pointed arched. Crossing tower, square, unbuttressed, 3 stages, has chamfered string courses and crenellated parapet. Middle stage has a pointed arched opening, 2-lights, on each side, and clocks to north and west. Over the east opening, a blocked ogee headed opening, 2-lights. Bell stage has 2 pointed arched openings, 2-lights, to east and west, and pointed arched 3-light openings to north and south. Nave clerestory has on each side 3 traceried windows, 2 lights. West end has a pointed arched 2-light window with Y tracery, flanked by similar smaller aisle windows. North aisle, 3 bays, has a central porch with low pitched gable and pointed arched doorway. To east, a flat-headed window, 3 lights. To west, a smaller 2-light window. South aisle, 2 bays, has pointed arched windows, 2-lights. At the east end, a projection in the return angle with 3 lancets in the gable. INTERIOR mainly rendered, chancel scraped. Chancel has chamfered arch with octagonal responds, and painted flat roof with bosses. East end has stained glass window, 1852, and reredos by Bodley, 1884. North side has segment-arched door. South side has piscina, triple sedilia and Tudor arched doorway dated 1632. Crossing has double chamfered arches and flat ceiling with bosses. Late C20 traceried glazed screen to east. North transept has late C20 pitched roof, and contains Clifton family monuments. South transept has a similar roof, and 2 doors to south under the window, all late C20. Nave has low pitched roof with arch braces on corbels. North arcade, 3 bays, Transitional style, with round piers and responds, and arches with keeled roll moulding and nailhead band. South arcade has octagonal piers with foliage capitals, and double chamfered arches. West window blocked by organ case. Aisles have lean-to roofs and double chamfered eastern arches. Fittings mainly late C19 and late C20. Octagonal font and C17 parish chest. Memorials include several to the Clifton family, in the north transept, notably late C14 knight, and chest tomb with female figure, late C14, alabaster. Chest tomb with 3 figures, c1587, to Sir Gervase Clifton and wives, by Gabriel Royley of Burton on Trent, alabaster. Outstanding wall monument with table tomb, crest, obelisks, and casket of bones, 1631, to 3 wives of Sir Gervase Clifton. Wall tablet 1666, to Sir Gervase Clifton, with bust in oval niche, painted marble. 2 ashlar tablets, late C17 and C18, with memento mori. (The Buildings of England: Pevsner N: Nottinghamshire: London: 1979-: 269; Introduction to the Church of St Mary: Rev. A Heaton: Nottingham: 1985-).

Walls and Gateways

Churchyard walls and gateways. Late C18 and C19, restored late C20. Ashlar and brick. To north-east, a formal gateway, late C18, in Gothick style, with round-arched opening under a shaped gable, flanked by clustered columns. Wrought-iron gate. On each side, screen walls with ramped coping and rusticated square end piers. On north and west sides of the churchyard, brick walls with shaped and flat stone copings. Similar wall to south-west, abutting adjoining buildings. At the south-east corner, a pair of square brick gate piers, mid C19, with pyramidal caps, and a pair of wrought-iron gates. Adjoining them, to north, a pair of square ashlar gate piers with stepped caps and wrought-iron gate, to Clifton Hall (qv). To south, a brick wall, rendered, with stepped moulded brick coping. (The Buildings of England: Pevsner N: Nottinghamshire: London: 1979-: 268-270).