_Sparkford_, a village 7 m. N. from Yeovil, with a station on the
G.W.R. line to Weymouth. This is the nearest station for Cadbury Camp.
The church, with the exception of the tower, was rebuilt in 1824, in
the sham Gothic of the day. It is of interest only to the bell-hunter.
It possesses a pre-Reformation bell with an inscription, _Caterina, ora
pro nobisi_. _Sparkford Hall_ stands in a park bordering the Ilchester
road.
_Spaxton_, a village 5 m. W. of Bridgwater. Its church possesses
several features of interest. Though mainly Perp., it retains two Dec.
windows in the N. wall, and the E. window has plate tracery, though
this may not be original. Some of the pillars of the arcade exhibit the
Devonshire foliage. Note (1) in the chancel, the fine 14th-cent. tomb,
supporting two effigies in exceptionally good preservation--possibly
one of the Hulles (or Hills), who possessed the manor in the 14th and
15th cents.; (2) carved seat ends, one representing a fuller at his
work (cloth was formerly much made in the W.), and others bearing the
dates 1536 and 1561; (3) ancient alms-box, with its three locks; (4) in
the churchyard, a fine cross, with the rood carved on two sides of the
head (very rare), and a figure on each of the others. Near the church
are some ancient buildings (now a farm).
_Standerwick_. See _Beckington_.
_Stanton Drew_, a village 1-1/2 m. W. from Pensford Station. In summer
a conveyance meets some of the trains to carry visitors to the site of
the Somerset Stonehenge, for which the village is famous. There is a
more direct footpath across the fields. _En route_ should be observed,
on a spur of the hill to the R., a large tumulus, _Maes Knoll_. One of
the curiosities of the place is _Hautville's Quoit_, which, to save
time, should also be looked for on approaching the village. (Enter iron
gate on L. a few hundred yards before reaching tollhouse, and search
backwards along the hedge bordering road.) It is a large stone, which
legend says was hurled by Sir J. Hautville (whose effigy is in Chew
Magna Church) from the top of Maes Knoll. The famous "druidical remains"
will be found near the church. About 50 yards from the entrance to
the churchyard take a lane to the L. leading to an orchard: the stones
will be observed in the field beyond (admission free, but field closed
on Sundays). The "remains" consist of three contiguous circles. The
first is of considerable area, and is marked out by twelve large
stones, only three of which remain upright; a smaller circle of eight
stones lies just beyond; and a third circle of eight will be found
farther away in an orchard on the R. The two larger circles have each a
few scattered stones thrown off as a kind of avenue. Standing apart
from the circles is a curious group of three stones huddled together in
a garden abutting on the churchyard, from which they can be easily seen
by looking over the W. boundary wall. These mystic rings probably had
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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