St. Nicholas’ Church, Studland, NGR : SZ03643, Lat/Long:82511 -1.9498, 50.6423, Lead Author:JT
The original Saxon church building can still be seen in the exterior rubble walls on the north and south of the nave, that are a mixture of Purbeck limestone and the Heathstone taken from the London Clay visible in the southern corner of South Beach. Similar rubble in the tower has been covered by the Norman ashlar of Purbeck Burr. The roof is Purbeck stone tiles.
In the 12th century, work using Purbeck Burr ashlar improved the strength and appearance of the church, but did not enlarge it. The south porch was added during the 17th century, but by the 19th century the church was in a poor state. In the late 19th century, when excavations were undertaken in order to preserve the church, the foundations were discovered to be on uneven ground. The ground was partly soft sand and partly strong Heathstone. The work done to preserve the church is fully described by William Masters Hardy in volume 12 of the Proceedings of the Dorset Field Club, as below. This is now out of copyright, and can therefore be included as a pdf in the present website. (see below)
References
Hardy, WM, 1891: Preservation of St. Nicholas’ Church, Studland. Dorset Proceedings vol. 12, pp 164-179.
Pitfield FP, 1985: Purbeck parish churches. Dorset Publishing Co. pp 50-6
In the 12th century, work using Purbeck Burr ashlar improved the strength and appearance of the church, but did not enlarge it. The south porch was added during the 17th century, but by the 19th century the church was in a poor state. In the late 19th century, when excavations were undertaken in order to preserve the church, the foundations were discovered to be on uneven ground. The ground was partly soft sand and partly strong Heathstone. The work done to preserve the church is fully described by William Masters Hardy in volume 12 of the Proceedings of the Dorset Field Club, as below. This is now out of copyright, and can therefore be included as a pdf in the present website. (see below)
References
Hardy, WM, 1891: Preservation of St. Nicholas’ Church, Studland. Dorset Proceedings vol. 12, pp 164-179.
Pitfield FP, 1985: Purbeck parish churches. Dorset Publishing Co. pp 50-6
St. Nicholas Church from the south.
The east wall of the chancel includes Purbeck Marble slabs with the Viviparus fossils weathering noticeably, and other Purbeck limestone beds of fine-grained micrite.
The east wall of the nave includes Heathstone with the Marble and Purbeck limestone.
The Heathstone used in St. Nicholas’ has been taken from boulders of iron-cemented sand with rounded, even-sized, grains which are typical of the London Clay found from South Beach to Kingswood Farm.
Norman capitals of the west arch. William Masters Hardy recorded that the Burr “could be obtained only from rocks which appear at low tide 30 yards east of the stone quay at Swanage”. This may have been the case in the 12th century, but quarrying continued westwards in later centuries.
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Chancel of Purbeck limestone. Note the Norman window in the south wall, and the 13th century graduated triple lancet in the east.
A closer photo of the Purbeck Burr limestone in the tower.
The two Norman arches have been strengthened with steel bars, and the eastern one has a serious crack which is thought to be a result of the uneven foundations. They are both built of Purbeck Burr limestone.
The tomb is made of blue Purbeck Marble, and several flooring slabs are of Marble which has turned red due to oxidation while still in the ground.
Text and photos by JT, October, 2017
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