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Parish Church of:
Teath, St
The church of St. Tetha, or St. Etha, formerly collegiate, with two prebendaries, is an ancient building of stone, wholly, with the exception of the tower, in the Early Perpendicular style, consisting of chancel with north and south chapels, nave of five bays, aisles, south porch and an embattled western tower of three stages, erected in 1630, with short pinnacles and containing 5 bells, of which the third and fifth date from 1756 and the rest from 1868; the chancel is divided from the nave and lateral chapels by screens, now imperfect, but retaining some good panelling, with the linen pattern; the east window retains a fragment of ancient glass; the piscina is built up, but an aumbry remains on the north side, and in the north chapel is a newel staircase formerly leading to the rood loft, a bracket and a small piscina, the east window has two impaled shields of arms and in this chapel are benches, the ends of which are finely carved with shields of arms; below
the east window of the south chapel is the recumbent effigy of a man clad in a long garment girt with a cord and over this a cloak or mantle open at the neck, round which is a knotted cord and pendent from its quartrefoil ornament; the head, not tonsured, is supported by angels, and at the feet are two lions; in this chapel is a mural slab with effigies in relief and an inscription to Frances Bennet, ob. October , 1636; there is also a memorial here to Florence, wife of Hugh Carew, of Trevia, ob. 1656, and some of the pews are enriched with arabesque work; the tracery of the windows in the north aisle includes several shields of arms, and the bench ends here and under the western gallery exhibit the emblems of the Passion, monograms and other devices; the font is octagonal, with plain mouldings; in the church are other monuments, to John Taverner gent, ob. 1586; Margaret Dagge, ob. May, 1612; Thomas Harris, ob. December, 1670; Hester, wife of Humphry Harris, ob.
October, 1670; Humphry Harrris, ob. March, 1687 and others; there is a peculiar alms box, with pictures of the lame, halt and blind on it, and a recumbent figure of a priest; the fine reredos is painted with sculpture subjects; the pulpit dated 1630, bears the arms, crest and supporters of the Carminow family, with the motto "Cala: Rag: Whetlow" (a straw for a talebearer): in the great Scrope and Grosvenor controversy, in the reign of Richard II in which Chaucer the poet gave evidence it was alleged by one of the witnesses that the disputed coat (az, a bend, or) had long been borne by the family of Carminow; but the claim was eventually disallowed, and the claimant compelled to add, as a mark of difference, a label of three points, gules: the church was restored in 1879, at a cost of £1,200, when various fragments of Norman masonry were found, indicating the existence of an earlier church; the communion plate includes a chalice, dated 1661; there are 400 sittings.
In the churchyard, enlarged in 1869, at a cost of £150, are numerous memorials to the Male family(1765-1873), to the Martyn (1795-1864), Bake (1686-1824), Bant and Wakeham families. The register dates from the year 1558, there are also churchwarden accounts from 1768.
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