St Materiana's Church, Tintagel

The Parish Church of Saint Materiana at Tintagel is a Church of England church in Cornwall, England, UK. It stands on the cliffs between Trevena and Tintagel Castle and is listed Grade I.The first church on the site was probably in the 6th century, founded as a daughter church of Minster: these are the only churches dedicated to the saint, though she is usually identified with Madryn, Princess of Gwent.Present buildingThe existing church may have been created in the late 11th or early 12th century. Art historian Nikolaus Pevsner (writing in 1950) suggested that its Norman-era design includes some Saxon features, while the tower may be 13th or 15th century in date. The most significant change in its design was the restoration in 1870 by Piers St Aubyn which included a new roof. Later changes include moving the pipe organ (twice) and a number of new stained glass windows: many of these portray saints, including St Materiana, St George and St Piran. There are three modern copies of Old Master paintings, and a Roman milestone bearing the name of the Emperor Licinius (d. 324). The tower has a peal of six bells, ranging in date from 1735 to 1945. As of 2016 an electric organ is used instead of the pipe organ.NaveBoth north and south doorways are Norman, the north cruder and perhaps earlier than the south. The north porch is probably 14th century and the south porch a later rebuilding of a 13th-century porch. The font is Norman, rather crudely carved in elvan: each of the four faces is carved with snakes and each corner with a head. Three of the windows are Norman: the largest of the others portrays St George. The walls of the central tower space (between the transepts) were planned to support a tower but this was either never built or afterwards removed as unsafe. The stone coffin lid may commemorate a priest and is of the late 13th century.

Tags: Landmark & Historical Place