St Mary's Church, Bibury

The Cotswolds is home to some fine churches, and Bibury is no exception. The first church in Bibury was established in 899 and the Grade I listed Anglo-Saxon church which stands today was built in the middle to late 11th century with further work in subsequent centuries.

Bibury is best known for Arlington Row and the Bibury Trout Farm, but make sure you wander down the river, past the almshouses, and make your way to the oldest part where you will find the Church.

This lovely church, away from the honeypot of Arlington Row, can feel like an oasis of calm where you can take in Norman doorway arches, a 13th century font, Saxon chancel columns, capitals and gravestones, 17th-century table tombs a 15th-century roof and 18th-century wall monuments.

Table of contents

Architecture

St Mary's is a limestone building with a stone slate roof. The church consists of a nave with north and south aisles and a clerestory, chancel and a south porch.

The tower arises from the north west corner of the church, supported by buttresses. It contains a 15th-century belfry.

The north doorway of the Church was constructed around 1180.

Inside St Mary's Church

The interior furnishings include a 13th-century font and memorials from several centuries. The font is square (an unusual shape for a font), with the sides carved with arches.

Stained glass window at St Mary's Bibury

Stained glass windows

St Mary's has a fine colleciton of stained glass windows, including the one pictured here.

The oldest of the stained glass is from the 13th century with more recent work by Thomas Willement, William Wailes and Karl Parsons.

Stained glass window designed by Karl Parsons

The north Chancel wall of the Church is home to a stained glass window which was designed in 1927 by Karl Parsons (1884-1934) and was featured in the 1992 Christmas stamp set issued by the Royal Mail.

Photos of St Mary's Church in Bibury

View of the exterior of St Mary's Church

St. Mary's Church address

St Mary's Church is located on Church Road, Bibury, Cirencester, Gloucestershire, GL7 5NR

On road parking is available near the entrance to St Mary's, but if you have parked in the Village then the church is also within walking distance of Arlington Row

Denomination

Church of England