Description
- Exterior
The exterior of the church is of a nonconformist chapel with gable end facade in Romanesque style. Red and beige roughly dressed sandstone with cream ashlar is used to define very decoratively the architectural features; artificial slate roof with ashlar coping. Centre three bays are framed by pilasters and the bracketed antae which continue diagonally to apex surmounted by the short bellcote with embattled cornice.
- Interior
Two upper-storey pilasters rising from the doorway cornice separate the 3 windows; these are of equal length, long, round-headed with long nook shafts, simple fluted capitals and an impost band; above the central window is the datestone, a shield under a round-arched hood.
The central entrance breaks forward slightly and has a wide moulded round-arched doorway with voussoirs above and impost band; recessed boarded double doors. Set back to each side are small round-headed windows linking with the continuous impost band. To each side are bays with similar though smaller entrance doorways with similar round-headed windows above and end pilasters completing the vertical composition.
The windows have some decorative glazing incorporating glass in cool colours—predominantly blue, green, mauve. Rendered 5-bay side elevation has round arched windows with chamfered surround separated by pilasters with offset; renewed glazing. Attached rear wing, former Sunday School, retains Welsh slate roof and ventilators.
Interior partly converted to Coptic Orthodox liturgical use. Unusual aisled roof structure, wooden trusses rising from posts set on the very tall slender marbled columns with Corinthian derived capitals, which also support the high round arches of a wooden arcade; painted boarded ceiling. Wide moulded reredos arch and gallery. Rear raked gallery with curved and panelled front; pews on both floors retained. Vestibule has glazed panels to partition and swing doors with quarry glazing incorporating Art Nouveau motifs.
Read more about this topic: St Mary And St Mercurius Coptic Orthodox Church
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