Great Bradley Church,
St Mary the Virgin Tower

 

Gargoyle on west side of tower

Gargoyle on south side of the tower

The crowning glory of the exterior of Great Bradley Church is certainly the handsome western tower, which merits detailed examination. Its walls are strengthened by set-back angle buttresses at the corners. The set-offs (or sloping ridges) of these buttresses have lions and shields carved on them. These can be seen on the southern and western sides of the tower. Around the base of the tower and its buttresses is a simple frieze of chequered flushwork in flint and stone. 

Flintwork on the butresses
(picture from taken in early 20th C. Click picture for more info)

The fine Perpendicular west doorway has a square hood mould, which rests upon corbel heads and has roses and foliage in the spandrels. Above it is the three-light west window, which is also in the Perpendicular style. Click here for more detail on the window. The ringing chamber is lit by small rectangular apertures on the north, south and west sides. 

St Mary's tower from the west,  lit up at night

West window, which is in the tower

The staircase turret, near the south-east corner of the tower, extends a few feet above the parapet. This adds great dignity to the tower and it occurs in several churches in this south western corner of Suffolk (eg Withersfield and Hundon). All four faces of the tower and the stair turret are crowned with embattled parapets, beneath which are fine gargoyles to drain the rainwater from the roof of the tower. 

In the north wall of the tower is a fireplace. The outlet for the smoke can be seen in the exterior wall, some 16 feet up and covered with a stone baffle.  The church guide suggests that it might once have been used for baking the bread used at the Mass, although there could be  other reasons why you might have a fireplace beneath a tower, especially if it had been used as a vestry during the 17th and 18th centuries. However, it does appear to be part of the original fabric of the tower.

    
Internal fireplace and external chimney outlet in the north wall of the church tower

In the tower hang three bells. The largest is over 700 year old. Click here for more information.

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