Church of St Peter and St Paul, Shepton Mallet

The Church of St Peter and St Paul stands in the Somerset town of Shepton Mallet. It began as a church before the Norman Conquest and has stood on this spot for centuries. The oldest part still visible is the font, which may date from before 1066. The present building mostly comes from the 15th century, though much was rebuilt in the 1830s. Nikolaus Pevsner called its oak wagon-roof the finest of its kind in England. The stone pulpit, carved around 1550, has six panels. The tower rises in four stages and was built about 1423. It has four pinnacles, a lozenge parapet, triple windows and a stair turret. Plans for a spire were never carried out. The Millennium Window was made in 2000 by local artist John Yeo. The chancel arch walls are the only other remains from the earliest church. Inside, the roof shows 350 panels and 36 carved angels along its sides. The pulpit stands near the nave with its six carved panels. The tower’s stair turret leads up through its stages. The Millennium Window fills one window with modern stained glass. The church remains a Grade I listed building in the centre of Shepton Mallet.