NHER 1044 (Building record) - St Mary's Church, Gayton Thorpe

August 1960. Listed, Grade I.
Listing Description excerpt:
Parish church, early 12th century, mainly of flint with stone dressings, green slate roof. Gable parapet to nave, chancel and porch. Round west tower, nave, chancel…Gabled south porch with plain continuous chamfered arch…Vestry of 1900 across opposing north doorway… roof repaired 1900…18th-century panelling to east wall..”
Information from (S1).
Please consult the National Heritage List for England (S1) for the current listing details.
P. Watkins (HES), 9 January 2022.

1975. Stray Find.
Found in molehill, 10m west of tower:
Fragment of stained glass (no stained glass in church).
Reported in HER Notes (S2).
A. Rogerson (NAU), 1975.

1978. Stray Find.
Found on edge of path, west of tower:
Medieval unglazed sherd.
Reported in HER Notes (S2).
A. Rogerson (NAU), 20 August 1978.

2 July 1981. Field Observation.
The church was visually inspected by E. Rose.
The round tower is of Saxon and Norman origin.
The remainder of the church likely dates to about 1300, including the bottom portion of the sourh porch (the top was rebuilt at a later priod). Other 14th-centruy features include the Nave south doorway, the chancel southeast window (Y-tracery), the east window, and the chancel arch.
15th century Perpendicular alterations include the southwest chancel window and the grand north and south windows in the name. The nave roof was originally Perpendicular but was altered.
The brick dentilled cornice in the nave and chancel dates to about 1800 and the north vesrty dates to the 19th century.
See HER Notes (S2) for a more detailed summary of architectural features.
E. Rose (NAU), 2 July 1981. Amended H. Hamilton (HES) 01 December 2022.

Neil Batcock reports a triangular headed doorway from the tower into the the name above the tower arch, visibleo nly from inside the tower, with remains of original wooden boards used to shape it.
Recorded in HER Notes (S2).

February 2001. Air photo interpretation.
Church visible on NLA air photography taken on 22 July 1993.
M. Brennand (NLA), 8 February 2001.

The tower includes 'silver carr' stone, as used at Castle Rising, Brancaster, Reedham etc, and quarried in the Castle Rising area. See NHER 56217.
D. Gurney (HES), 31 October 2011.

August 2012. Watching Brief.
Monitoring of groundworks associated with installation of new surface-water drainage system.
These works demonstrated the presence of particularly deep subsoil deposits in several parts of the churchyard, with natural chalk deposits only exposed in the base of two of the three deep soakaway pits excavated (at depths of 1.6m and 1.25m). The connecting pipe trenches were much shallower and therefore only disturbed the uppermost portion of this deposits. No archaeologically-significant features or deposits were identified. Finds were limited to 64 fragments of disarticulated human bone, all of which were stored on site for later reburial.
See report (S3) for further details.
P. Watkins (HES), 9 January 2022.

June 2015. Visit with Diocesan Advisory Committee.
Round western tower with large blocks of quartzite (silver Carr in previous entry) possibly re-used from nearby Roman villa (HER 3743) see (S4) for stone. Three carstone ashlar quoins define the original width of nave widened to the north. Tower is an addition to an existing west wall. Fine tower arch with chamfered imposts partly covered by masonry of tower suggesting that, although not exactly contemporary, provision for it was made from the first. Ashlar dressings to jambs, rubble arch. At first floor triangular-headed opening which led into the roof space of the original lower nave. Very large double-splayed window with ashlar frame. Gable of original nave visible. Present bell stage with double openings within chevron-decorated containing arches. This is probably an addition when nave walls heightened.
Early bell with inscription kept in vestry.
S. Heywood (HES), 12 June 2015.