We were down in Colchester at the weekend and went out for lunch at a country pub. We were told that there was an interesting church nearby that also had a view of a dragon! How could we resist? Of course it was another opportunity to add to the #ChurchProject.
St. Stephen's is near the pretty village of Bures, but is not that easy to find. You turn off the road into a farm where you follow a rough track on the other side of the yard. That brings you to a house that stands next to this unusual building.
Apparently it is not always unlocked, but we were in luck. You enter through a small office with stair leading to an upper level. There is no tower though. From what I have read they do not have services very often.
I assume this sign is usually outside. It was originally a chapel for the manor house that no longer exists. Later it was turned into cottages and a barn. One end is wood and looks like it is still a barn. As the sign says the site may have been where King Edmund was crowned. He died young when he was killed by Vikings and became a Christian martyr.
It is a small and a lot of space is taken up by three tombs with statues on them. These are Earls of Oxford who were moved there when the priory they were in was destroyed during the Reformation. I read that the tombs have been assembled from pieces of several originals. The chapel was restored in the 1930s and re-consecrated.
There were several painted sections on the walls. I did not find out how old those are.
These sort of tombs are quite common, but I am not sure how good a likeness that would be.
The figures often have their feet on animals such as lions or dogs. I expect that symbolises something.
The place is a mix of styles. This part on the side may have been from the conversion to houses.
The buttresses may have been added to keep the walls up.
From there you have a view to the dragon on the opposite hill. This is based on a local legend and was created in 2012. It is formed of a chalk outline and I assume they mow the inner part. It may look different depending on how lush the grass is.
There was a box with a visitor book and this plaque telling the story. This site says it may originate with a crocodile that Saladan gave to Richard I. It escaped from the Tower of London and might have reached Suffolk. We will never know for sure unless someone finds a skeleton.
This really was an unexpected treasure that we would never have found by chance.
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