 |
| From Churches |
OS: SO301141
Abergavenny, St Mary
St Mary's Priory Church is on the North side of the A40 near the centre of Abergavenny (Y Fenni). There is a large car park nearby at the Abergavenny Bus Station. Access to the ringing room starts from the outside of the tower with a small door tucked away in the Northeast corner which opens on to a wooden spiral staircase (32 steps) that is not in the best of condition. At the top of the spiral staircase there is a short crosswalk that leads to a steep 14 step staircase and then into a large square ringing room with a high ceiling of heavy timbers.
2008-05-17 [ expand ]
I visited for the first time on Saturday 17th May 2008 as part of the WDCRA Mini-Outing. I counted 16 ringers and once we started there was no time wasted as we changed ringers.
When I first arrived there were not many there and we rang a plain course of Plain Bob Doubles on the front 6 bells with me ringing bell #3. This was in deference to my limited ability and I did not let them down. After this the remaining ringing was on all 10 bells. First there was Grandsire Caters. Then I rang bell #5 for a few rounds of Plain Hunt on 9 which was trickier than I thought it would be, but I put it down to strange bells and lack of familiarity with ringing so many bells. My more expert companions then went on to ring Stedman Caters, Bob Royal, Bristol Major on the back 8 bells. While sitting listening I could feel the tower moving. Only once before have I rung on 10 bells so this was good experience though somewhat tricky.
2012-07-07 [ expand ]
My next visit was on Saturday 7th July 2012 as the second tower [1st, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th (lockout), 7th] of the 2012 Annual Tour of the Four Shires Guild.
On this occasion I rang the back bells, I rang up bell #7 followed by Rounds & Call Changes on bells #7; #8; #9. I rang the Tenor for Stedman Caters and finished by ringing down bell #8. On this visit I was much more able to appreciate how nice the bells are to ring.
The Bells
Today, the tower has a ring of 10 bells cast by John Taylor & Co. of Loughborough with a tenor weighing 25-0-18. Dove's Guide includes details of the bells at St Mary's Priory Church. For some reason Dove's Guide does not include information on bell inscriptions so they are shown in the following table. It also noted in the tower that the bells are fitted with Hastings type stays.
Ringing Room ceiling
| Bell | Note | Diameter | Weight | Inscription |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Dove's Guide to the bells. |
HAROLD AND FLORENCE HORSINGTON GIVEN 1947 |
||
| 2 | HAROLD AND FLORENCE HORSINGTON GIVEN 1947 |
|||
| 3 | VICTORIA JUBILEE 1887. CANON CAPEL, VICAR. ILTYD GARDNER, LEWIS MORGAN, CHURCHWARDENS.
RECAST 1947 JOHN TAYLOR & CO. |
|||
| 4 | VICTORIA JUBILEE 1887. CANON CAPEL, VICAR. ILTYD GARDNER, LEWIS MORGAN, CHURCHWARDENS.
RECAST 1947 JOHN TAYLOR & CO. |
|||
| 5 | VICTORIA JUBILEE 1887. CANON CAPEL, VICAR. ILTYD GARDNER, LEWIS MORGAN, CHURCHWARDENS.
RECAST 1947 JOHN TAYLOR & CO. |
|||
| 6 | WM. HUMPHRIES, GENT, & MR. JOHN MEASE, CHURCH WARDENS 1947
RECAST 1947 JOHN TAYLOR & CO. |
|||
| 7 | WM. HUMPHRIES, GENT, & MR. JOHN MEASE, CHURCH WARDENS 1947
RECAST 1947 JOHN TAYLOR & CO. |
|||
| 8 | RESONET MULTOS ANNOS CANON M. E. DAVIES, VICAR. H. SIMPSON, W. E. JONES, CHURCHWARDENS 1947
RECAST 1947 JOHN TAYLOR & CO. |
|||
| 9 | RICHARD SCOTT & DANI PRICE, CHURCHWARDENS 1666
RECAST 1947 JOHN TAYLOR & CO. |
|||
| Tenor | A BEL I AM BOTH SURE AND SOUND, I CAL TO BURY THE DEAD IN THE GROUND RECAST 1893
JOHN PRITCHARD, EDWIN MARTIN, CHURCHWARDENS RECAST 1947 JOHN TAYLOR & CO. |
|||
The Llandaff & Monmouth DACBR also have information on St Mary's Priory Church.
