immediately beneath which are the coupled arches which give entrance
to the interior, vaulted apartment. These two arches, the central and
side shafts on which they rest, as well as the tympanum between them,
are restorations.

The vault over the interior of the porch is carried on moulded
diagonal ribs. On the north, south, and west are wall ribs as well, to
carry the chalk filling between them. The insertion of two later
monuments, now much dilapidated, involved the destruction of much of
the beautiful wall arcades. These were of three complete divisions on
each wall, and have cusped heads. The upper part, below the finishing
horizontal string-course, is composed of two full and two half
quatrefoils. The work in each arcade is recessed quite seven inches
from the face of the general walling above; and the multiplied detail
in the mouldings is finely studied. Opposite the entrance is the west
doorway into the nave. The deep arch over this is seriously cracked in
several places, though it has already been much restored. It has an
outer label, which indicates that when it was built in there was then
no porch to protect it. The three orders, or main groups, of mouldings
do not run down on to the capitals, but finish by dying on to a plain
piece of stonework of circular form set immediately upon the capitals.
The Purbeck marble capitals themselves are rather large and heavily
moulded, and the shafts under them are sandstone restorations of
recent date. The west door and the woodwork about it is a poor
specimen of modern ingenuity.

The #South Side# of the church introduces many interesting
varieties of work. These may well be followed in the course of this
description from the west to the east end.