St Mary Pryton

This was the third of the churched I visited on my pre Christmas tour around and one which I finally found open lucky also that St Mary has it's own wikipedia page so I'll let you read the history on that

The entrance to the churchyard is through this very nice lych gate

that is lined either side with the roll of honour for the village

On going through you are greeted by a nice view of the church itself

The three bells are hung in their own
support at the west end

The Northside

back to the South










 

The three bells

Porch on the south side

The porch has a gate taking you in there which are a memorial to one of the former rectors

Inside I found the church quite dark even with the lights on. The photos have been edited to show more of the inside

The chancel arch

Above the altar and chancel window
with left the altar

advent candles beside the altar

The pulpit which looks old is dated 1636
 










And a view of the nave from it

Christmas tree in one of the window sills

Memorial to Alfred St George Hamerley KC. JP. he seemed a well travelled person and served in the Great war

Couple of memorials to men wo died in the First World War

Couple more memorials

One to the Morris family

Couple of bishops chairs with  acarved panel behind

and a mural thanking the lord

Christmas trees seemed to be the theme in the church as decoration with Christmas coming up. The one above has three wise men. Right a bell dated 1593

Last look from the doorway and we are in the South churchyard

Looking East

Going around the west end you pass this tomb

Over in an overgrown part of the churchyard

Looking East on the North side of the church

You can find this off looking sculpture there

Some of yery very over grown graves in the churchyard

I did not venture out much in the churchyard as it was very wet and cold

Heading back to the gate

Past this lone headstone under a fir-tree

I will leave you with this shot of a Nativity scene when you could see when you walked in the church

Till Next time may I wish you a wonderful week

St Andrew Wheatfield

St Andrews church I noticed on my maps when working out which churches to visit over Christmas
I thought it looked a little out of the way at first and consulted the Oxfordshire Churches website to see what the church looked like. It was not far from the previous one I showed last week.
On getting there I was surprised to see the church in the middle of a field and only a manor house nearby. Some history form Wikipedia

"Wheatfield had a church with a rector by 1202, although a document from 1240 or 1241 still refers to it as a chapel. The oldest features of the Church of England parish church of Saint Andrew are the chancel arch and a doorway on the south side of the nave, both of which are 14th century. There is a blocked Perpendicular Gothic window on the north side of the chancel. The king post roof is probably 17th century.
John Rudge had St. Andrew's remodelled early in the 18th century, and this Georgian work obscures most Medieval features except those above. The church retains its Georgian features and fittings, including a Venetian east window and 18th century box pews. The wooden communion table is a high-quality carved piece from about 1745, that Sherwood and Pevsner considered similar to the work of John Vardy.
St. Andrew's contains several 17th and 18th century monuments to members of the successive manorial families, including one to John Rudge made in 1739 by the Flemish sculptor Peter Scheemakers. The chancel includes 14th century stained glass showing the arms of the Whitfield family and the west window of the nave has 18th century glass showing the arms of the Rudge,Letten and other families. The Venetian east window of the chancel has late Victorian stained glass by Morris & Co.
St. Andrew's has no tower; only a bell-turret. It has one bell, which was cast in 1636 by Ellis I Knight of Reading, Berkshire. The church has no running water or electricity; its only lighting is from candles mounted on 18th century brackets. the church is a Grade I listed building.
In 1729 John Rudge presented a set of church plate to St. Andrew's. In Lord Charles Spencer's time the set was kept in Wheatfield Park for security, but this led to its being destroyed in the 1814 fire. The present church plate is a replacement set that Lord Charles Spencer presented in 1814.
Past rectors include Henry Taylor, who was incumbent 1737–46. St. Andrew's is now part of an extensive benefice with nine other parishes including those of Thame and Lewknor."

To get to the church you need to walk across a field where the churchyard is fenced off from the sheep

I walked around the fence taking photos of the church  starting at the east end

the around the north side

back to the west

Above the porch and entrance to the church. This was where I found the churchyard was locked off so people could not get in. Right the churchyard along the north side

the far end of the south side

and the churchyard on the east end

After walking back to the car I saw some estate workers and asked if the church was opened any time and why it was all locked off. Turned out some thieving lowlife scum had broken in and stolen the bishops chairs and altar table. The church was kept locked for that reason and would not be open to March. I felt very sad for the people who went to and  looked  after the church. If you would like to see the inside then have a look at Oxfordshire Churches and the photos John Ward took. I will try and return for internal photos when I find out when the chuch is open again.

Have a Peaceful Week