Building record 1202/1/4 - Chapel of St Mary, Arley Hall

<1> Hartwell C, Hyde M, Hubbard E & Pevsner N, 2011, The Buildings of England: Cheshire (2011 revision) (Book). SCH7059.

Large chapel built to the north of, and adjoining, Arley Hall in 1842-5 by George Latham and Salvin, with a northern aisle added by Street in 1956-7. The chapel is of red sandstone, but inside stripped down to brick. On the south side a polygonal campanile nicely set off by the link to the house with its oriel. Salvin's roof, correctly steep, stands on angel corbels, all different. Encaustic tiles to the sanctuary steps with Latin texts on the risers. Three corona chandeliers. Street followed Salvin in applying the Dec style, with a steep three-bay arcade with foliage caps. Ornate iron canopy... to hide the central heating. Eastern stained glass window by Kempe, 1885.

<2> Historic England, 2011, The National Heritage List for England (Web Site). SCH6528.

Chapel. 1845. By Anthony Salvin with north aisle of 1856-7 by George Street. Ashlar and rendered brick with slate and tile roofs. Nave with north aisle, bell turret, porch and chancel. Decorated Gothic. South front: 4 bay nave, 2-light pointed mullioned window to left with hood mould. Projecting 2-storey bay to right of this (originally forming connecting passages to house) now with rendered south wall. Plain ashlar west wall. Canted enriched oriel to east front supported on buttress with carved beasts and small lancets to either side with cusped tracery. In the angle between the projection and the body of the nave is an octagonal bell turret with one lancet to the south east wall. 8 lancet openings to bell stage with hood moulds and end-stops. Red tiled double-pitch roof above this. Nave body to right has a moulded base common to the chancel and east end. Two 2-light mullioned windows with varied tracery. Buttresses between with off-sets and gargoyles above. Angled buttress at east end of nave with niche containing statue of Virgin and Child on a column and moulded canopy and gargoyle above. Pierced parapet common to nave and chancel. Chancel: of 2 bays set back slightly from the nave with two 2-light Decorated windows. Butress between with off sets and gargoyle spout and crocketed pinnacle over. Moulded lead rain water head and down pipe. Priests door with wrought iron decoration below left-hand window. North front: of Street's building with plainer decorated tracery and with plain buttresses between. Right hand window has doorway beneath with carved stonework to spandrels and wrought iron work to door. Left hand nave window is a double Decorated design of 2 x 2 lights. Vestry to left has one triple lancet to right. East front has late Ibcorated window to vestry and window of c1890 to chancel. The west wall is now rendered to its lower part where it originally joined the house and has stone work to the gable with a traceried window. Interior: Nave south wall has string course with ball flower end stops. 2-storey moulded arch to'original entrance from house. Wooden moulded panelling to gallery front. North arcade of 3 bays with ovolo-moulded colomettes by Street with high-relief capitals of foliage. Nave roof supported on wooden angle corbels, holding shields, arch braces to tie with longitudinal beam. 3 double-corona chandeliers with candelabra and lectern by Singer of Frome, Somerset c1880. Walls originally plastered, brickwork now exposed. North aisle has stone corbels supporting lean-to roof. Pierced spandrels to roof. Iron screen by Street richly polychromatically painted as is the iron radiator cover in the style of a C13 tomb with lily finials. Front: richly carved stone bowl with 8 panels carved with foliage designs and the Agnus Dei supported on a cluster of marble columns. Chancel has piscina and triple sedilia. East window stained glass by Kempe of 1895.