St Nicholas's Church, Otham
Encyclopedia
St Nicholas's is a parish church in Otham
, Kent
begun in the 12th century with additions in the next two centuries. It is a Grade I listed building.
and the lower chancel
, all of which were constructed with uncoursed stone and tufa
rubble walls. The chapels on the north side were added in the 14th century. The steeply pitched roof is covered with clay tiles.
The square tower is attached to the south side of the church at the junction between the nave and the chancel. It is buttressed on both faces of the external corners and has been extended vertically with a 16th century timber weatherboarded
belfry
topped by a timber hipped roof
and an octagonal timber spire
. On the east side of the tower is a partly projecting stair tower and a blocked-in doorway. Small rectangular and lancet window
s pierce the tower at each level; those on the stair tower dating from the 13th or 14th centuries.
The short nave features a rubble walled windowless porch attached to the south side in the 19th century and a gable
d west end rebuilt in the same century with a window of four lights in the 13th century style. A two-lighted window on the north side is 13th century and the two-lighted windows on the right and left sides of the porch are 14th and 19th century respectively. On the north side of the nave, a blocked-in doorway with a pointed arch surrounded by a carved rectangular architrave is 14th century.
The three windows on the south side of the chancel, the lancet window on its north side and the three-lighted window in the east end are all 19th century, but in a 13th century style. Attached centrally to the north side of the nave and chancel as a pitched-roofed extension, the chapels include three two-lighted windows, the one in the nave chapel being quatrefoil
ed. The roof to the nave is supported on three crown posts on unbraced tie beams. The roof to the chancel is 19th century and boarded.
Internally, a 14th century font
is set on a chamfer
ed base with a face, two calves' heads and a leaf. Monuments in the chancel are to Thomas Hendley (d. 1590), Levinus Buffkin (d. 1622), John Hendley (d. 1676), Thomas Fludd (d. 1688) and William and Dorothea Henley (d. 1762 and 1785). In the Chancel chapel are monuments to Elizabeth Hendley (d. 1697) and Bowyer Hendley (d. 1742). The churchyard contains two Grade II listed monuments.
Otham
Otham is a village near the town of Maidstone in Kent, England.The 12th century parish church of St Nicholas is a Grade I listed building. The vicar is Revd Andrew Sewell. Otham also has a number of mediaeval houses which are listed including Otham Manor , Synyards and Stoneacre...
, Kent
Kent
Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
begun in the 12th century with additions in the next two centuries. It is a Grade I listed building.
Building
Construction of the church began in the late 12th century. From this period date the tower, the north and south walls of the naveNave
In Romanesque and Gothic Christian abbey, cathedral basilica and church architecture, the nave is the central approach to the high altar, the main body of the church. "Nave" was probably suggested by the keel shape of its vaulting...
and the lower chancel
Chancel
In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar in the sanctuary at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building...
, all of which were constructed with uncoursed stone and tufa
Tufa
Tufa is a variety of limestone, formed by the precipitation of carbonate minerals from ambient temperature water bodies. Geothermally heated hot-springs sometimes produce similar carbonate deposits known as travertine...
rubble walls. The chapels on the north side were added in the 14th century. The steeply pitched roof is covered with clay tiles.
The square tower is attached to the south side of the church at the junction between the nave and the chancel. It is buttressed on both faces of the external corners and has been extended vertically with a 16th century timber weatherboarded
Weatherboarding
Weatherboarding is the cladding or ‘siding’ of a house consisting of long thin timber boards that overlap one another, either vertically or horizontally on the outside of the wall. They are usually of rectangular section with parallel sides...
belfry
Belfry
The term belfry has a variety of uses:*Bell tower, an architectural term*Belfry, a type of medieval siege tower*Belfry, Montana, a town in the United States*The Belfry, an English golf club...
topped by a timber hipped roof
Hip roof
A hip roof, or hipped roof, is a type of roof where all sides slope downwards to the walls, usually with a fairly gentle slope. Thus it is a house with no gables or other vertical sides to the roof. A square hip roof is shaped like a pyramid. Hip roofs on the houses could have two triangular side...
and an octagonal timber spire
Spire
A spire is a tapering conical or pyramidal structure on the top of a building, particularly a church tower. Etymologically, the word is derived from the Old English word spir, meaning a sprout, shoot, or stalk of grass....
. On the east side of the tower is a partly projecting stair tower and a blocked-in doorway. Small rectangular and lancet window
Lancet window
A lancet window is a tall narrow window with a pointed arch at its top. It acquired the "lancet" name from its resemblance to a lance. Instances of this architectural motif are most often found in Gothic and ecclesiastical structures, where they are often placed singly or in pairs.The motif first...
s pierce the tower at each level; those on the stair tower dating from the 13th or 14th centuries.
The short nave features a rubble walled windowless porch attached to the south side in the 19th century and a gable
Gable
A gable is the generally triangular portion of a wall between the edges of a sloping roof. The shape of the gable and how it is detailed depends on the structural system being used and aesthetic concerns. Thus the type of roof enclosing the volume dictates the shape of the gable...
d west end rebuilt in the same century with a window of four lights in the 13th century style. A two-lighted window on the north side is 13th century and the two-lighted windows on the right and left sides of the porch are 14th and 19th century respectively. On the north side of the nave, a blocked-in doorway with a pointed arch surrounded by a carved rectangular architrave is 14th century.
The three windows on the south side of the chancel, the lancet window on its north side and the three-lighted window in the east end are all 19th century, but in a 13th century style. Attached centrally to the north side of the nave and chancel as a pitched-roofed extension, the chapels include three two-lighted windows, the one in the nave chapel being quatrefoil
Quatrefoil
The word quatrefoil etymologically means "four leaves", and applies to general four-lobed shapes in various contexts.-In heraldry:In heraldic terminology, a quatrefoil is a representation of a flower with four petals, or a leaf with four leaflets . It is sometimes shown "slipped", i.e. with an...
ed. The roof to the nave is supported on three crown posts on unbraced tie beams. The roof to the chancel is 19th century and boarded.
Internally, a 14th century font
Baptismal font
A baptismal font is an article of church furniture or a fixture used for the baptism of children and adults.-Aspersion and affusion fonts:...
is set on a chamfer
Chamfer
A chamfer is a beveled edge connecting two surfaces. If the surfaces are at right angles, the chamfer will typically be symmetrical at 45 degrees. A fillet is the rounding off of an interior corner. A rounding of an exterior corner is called a "round" or a "radius"."Chamfer" is a term commonly...
ed base with a face, two calves' heads and a leaf. Monuments in the chancel are to Thomas Hendley (d. 1590), Levinus Buffkin (d. 1622), John Hendley (d. 1676), Thomas Fludd (d. 1688) and William and Dorothea Henley (d. 1762 and 1785). In the Chancel chapel are monuments to Elizabeth Hendley (d. 1697) and Bowyer Hendley (d. 1742). The churchyard contains two Grade II listed monuments.