Stained Glass of Percy Bacon & Brothers

St Mary's Church, Tarrant Hinton, Dorset.

St Mary's, Tarrant Hinton

St Mary's lies in a peaceful valley within the Cranborne Chase area. A small church, well presented. It contains a rare and unusual Easter sepulchre, installed around the early sixteenth century by Thomas Weaver, a wealthy cleric. He was also responsible for substantial extensions to the north side of the church. The sepulchre consists of an arched blind recess in the north wall with carved angels to either side, somewhat defaced now. The church was built c14^th, with a tower and cleretorey added c15^th. Nave tower and porch are embattled, exuding an air of strength and solidity to the little church. Chancel largely rebuilt in 1874 by Banjamin Ferry.¹

Aside form the single Percy Bacon window in the church, there is a fine window by contemporary artist Thomas Denny, Contemporary window by Thomas Denny Based on Joel Ch2, V 21-27, the window explores the "gladness of the land" reflecting the chalk landscape in which the village lies.

St Mary's is well worth the detour.

Posted 14 August 2022.

St Mary's Church, Tarrant Hinton, Dorset: South Aisle 1; 1909.

St Birnius: St Mary's Church, Tarrant Hinton, Dorset: South Aisle 1; 1909.

St Edward Rex: St Mary's Church, Tarrant Hinton, Dorset: South Aisle 1; 1909.

St Aldhelm: St Mary's Church, Tarrant Hinton, Dorset: South Aisle 1; 1909.

St Edward Rex.

St Aldhelm.

St Birnius.

South Aisle 1: Ss Birnius, King Edward the Martyr, & Aldhelm.

The use of white glass and a single colour of yellow stain makes this a very unusual, and possibly unique work by Percy Bacon & Brothers. The window of three lights, installed in 1909,² depicts three standing figures of saints associated with the Kingdom of Wessex, one per light; St Birnius, St Edward Rex, and St Aldhelm. Above each respectively the arms of Winchester, Shaftsbury and Salisbury. In the tracery, simple floral motifs.

On a brass plaque below, the window is dedicated to the memory of Charles Bugg (d. 13 March 1909), churchwarden. Placed by his widow. "The Lord will be merciful to them that try to do their duty".

The church guide reads; "The stained glass window of the south aisle was the first of a projected series showing ecclesiastical history of Wessex". It is not clear where the writer has obtained this reference but the Builder article² refers to such a "series" at St Peter & Paul, Weymouth, not Tarrant Hinton, so they may have misread the article.

The window is signed bottom right; "Percy Bacon & Br^o. 11 Newman St. London W". Note the singular, "Br^o".

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1. British History Online: Tarrant Hinton.
2. Report in "The builder" 1909-10-02: Vol 97 Iss 3478 p369