A remote Norman church near Kempley whose chancel walls still hold some of Britain's most complete Romanesque paintings
Open to visitorsan English Heritage site — check opening times and admission before you go
Substantial ruinsruined, but plenty survives above ground
St Mary’s is a small Norman church a little apart from the village of Kempley it once served, and from outside there’s little sign of what’s inside. Hugh de Lacy, whose family held the manor of Kempley after the Norman Conquest, probably built the church around 1130.
Inside, the chancel, the area around the altar, is painted floor to ceiling with wall paintings from the early 12th century, among the most complete surviving schemes of Romanesque religious art anywhere in northern Europe. Later medieval artists added more scenes to the nave in the 14th and 15th centuries, including a wheel of life showing the stages of a human lifetime. The paintings survived because they were whitewashed over, probably around the Reformation, and stayed hidden until builders uncovered them again in 1872.
Scientists have since used tree-ring dating on the roof timbers and found they were cut in the early 12th century too, making this the oldest timber roof recorded anywhere in Britain. The church is free to visit but opens seasonally; Hellens, a historic house near Much Marcle, is a short drive northwest.
