St. Mary's Parish Church, Cratfield

Across the fields to St. Mary's from the direction of Fressingfield

Outside St. Mary's, Cratfield

St. Mary's, Cratfield is smaller and less imposing than the church at Fressingfield. The church is built of worn and knapped flint with extravagant use of mortar. It has a hammer-beamed roof and square, crenallated tower. Only the corner and side buttresses were mixed with stone.

There is a plane and ancient porch entrance to the west, but no priests' room. A single small, narrow niche over the door had been emptied of its icon of St. Mary the Virgin.

The graves closest to the door include those of Joshua Moore and Elizabeth Stoupher, who owned the Public House in the 1830's. Joshua was the brother of Elizabeth Moore who married William Barber, October 4th, 1811. William Barber was parish clerk in the early 1830's, living with Elizabeth and their children in the parish house, immediately to the west.

Nearby is an ancient table tomb, covered with dark green ivy. Huge oaks once grazed the chancel-end, but they were toppled in a 1990's storm.

The church has nine high perpendicular windows; the lower wider perpendicular windows have fine tracings at the top. The flint of the side chapel seems newer and is more warmly brown. In the older part of the building, the napped flint is darker grey.

Behind the church a path through ancient trees and covered gravestones goes to the old vicarage garden to the east.

Image	Description
	West side of the church, showing headstones
	West side porch entrance
	St. Mary's Door
	West Side
	West Side
	St. Mary's Cemetery
	North, front entrance (not used)
	East side
	Facing west to Parish House
	Walk to Vicar's garden
	Vicarage

Inside St. Mary's, Cratfield

Inside the portal entrance, on either side, from wall to wall, are stone-topped benches. The windows are mullioned and deeply-recessed. A sign in the porch reflects a change that then newly permitted anyone to sit anywhere. That is, seat-rentals and official 'family pew' seating was abolished by law.  In the chancel area, on the eastern side, is a three-slab-wide sandstone-brown priest's door.

Image	Description
	Ancient Font
	Nave and Chancel of St. Mary's

See also Suffolk Churches