Bell Tower - St Laurence - Shotteswell, Warwickshire - Bell Towers on Waymarking.com

Bell tower of St Laurence's church, Shotteswell, with a ring of 6 bells.

Shotteswell, Warwickshire S Lawrence
Bells
Bell	Weight	Nominal	Note	Diameter	Dated	Founder	Canons	Turning
1	4-3-8	1325.0	E	27.38"	1995	John Taylor Bellfounders Ltd	F	N
2	4-1-24	1182.0	D	28.63"	1808	John Briant	R	8
3	4-3-14	1052.0	C	29.63"	1674	Henry I Bagley	Y	8
4	4-3-22	993.0	B	30.63"	1627†	(unidentified)	Y	4
5	6-3-20	888.0	A	33.50"	1995	John Taylor Bellfounders Ltd	F	N
6	9-1-0	788.0	G	38.00"	1625	Hugh II Watts	Y	8
Sanctus	½cwt		E	14.00"	1634	Henry I Bagley	Y	N

Frames
Frame	Bells	Year	Material	Maker	Truss	Layout
1	1,2,3,5,6	1995	Steel & cast iron	Loughborough Bellfoundry	8.3.C.e	5.1
2	4	1995	Steel & cast iron	Loughborough Bellfoundry	8.3.A.h
9	Sanctus		Timber	unidentified	2

SOURCE - (Visit Link)

"The parish church of ST. LAWRENCE consists of a chancel, nave, north aisle with a small sacristy east of it, and a north porch, south aisle, and west tower with a spire.

Presumably an early small church existed before the addition of a north aisle with the existing arcade of mid-12th-century date. The chancel arch is an early13th-century feature and its narrow span—about 6 ft.—suggests that the original small chancel may have been retained. A south aisle with the existing arcade was added late in the 13th century and the west tower at about the same time.

The west tower (9½ ft. square) is of two stages divided by a plain chamfered string-course and has a plinth with a projecting splayed top course. The walls are of yellow ashlar: at the west angles are square buttresses projecting north and south up to the dividing string-course. The parapet is plain and has the stumps of former pinnacles. At the south-east is a projecting square stair-turret rising to 4 or 5 ft. below the parapet, where it has a leaded roof. The interior of the tower is faced with rubble-work: the vice is entered by a pointed doorway in the south wall and is lighted by south loops.

The archway from the nave is two-centred and of two chamfered orders, the outer dying on the singlechamfered responds and the inner carried on tapering corbels. The northern is plain and at the point has a corbel with the head of a priest with roll-curled sidehair. The southern, less pointed, has a moulded top edge and a head—possibly feminine—in a cowl or hood, probably of the late 13th century. In the west wall is a modern pointed doorway and above it a lancet window with a hood-mould with mask-stops: the splayed reveals and segmental rear-arch are of rough ashlar. The east, north, and west faces of the bellchamber have windows of two lancet lights set below an arched hood-mould. The tympanum of the west window has a blank circular panel in place of tracery; the others have plain tympana.

Above the tower is an octagonal stone spire of c. 1400, open to the bell-chamber and lighted in the four cardinal faces by trefoiled lancets beneath gables, and there is an ogee-headed doorway, beneath a gable, behind the parapet in the east face. The apex has been restored."

SOURCE - (Visit Link)

"Five bells hung in the belfry:  
The tenor - 1625,  
No2 -1674, 
No3 – 1774} 
No4 – 1888}  Both recast in 1888 
The treble – 1808 
The “Sacrine bell” hung in the east window of the tower. (a small hand bell rung at the elevation in mass)

During 1995 a generous donation initiated the refurbishment of the bells, which had not been rung full circle in over 50 years, due to the decay of the wheels and timber bell frame. This coupled with some grants and donations enabled the installation of a new steel bell frame.

At this point  a further bell was installed from the redundant church at Atherstone on Stour. The bells were rededicated, on the 26th November 1995 and is commemorated by a plaque on the south wall of the tower arch. The plaque is charmingly mounted on timber from the old bell frame.

Whilst the bells were restored the old third and fourth bells were recast. Regrettably the original third bell had a crack and was beyond repair and the fourth was unresponsive to tuning due to its poor casting.

This link will take you to a [YouTube] recording of the bells rung at St Laurence."

SOURCE - (Visit Link)

Address of Tower: St Laurence Church Lane Shotteswell, Warwickshire England OX17 1JD Still Operational: yes Number of bells in tower?: 6 Relevant website?: [Web Link] Rate tower: Not listed Tours or visits allowed in tower?: Not listed

Visit Instructions:
Please post an original picture of the tower taken while you were there. Please also record how you came to be at this tower and any other interesting information you learned about it while there.

Recent Visits/Logs:

There are no logs for this waymark yet.