St Bartholomew's Church, Colne

St Bartholomew’s Church stands in the Lancashire town of Colne, its stone walls rising above the market square. A place of worship since at least the 12th century, the present building mostly comes from the early 16th century with traces of the late 12th or early 13th century still visible in the north arcade. The church carries Grade I listing for its exceptional interest and international importance. Lawrence Towneley gave the octagonal font in 1590, and later restorations by Thomas Taylor, E. G. Paley, and Paley, Austin and Paley shaped the building we see today. The church’s Perpendicular and Late Perpendicular architecture shows wrought stone walls, a west tower, and a south porch with a niche and sundial. The five-light east window has cinquefoil heads and rectilinear tracery, while the tower rises 19 metres with square buttresses and crenellated parapets. Inside, the nave’s arcades use round and octagonal piers, and the chancel holds octagonal piers and pointed arches. Two oak screens divide the Banastre and Barnside chapels from the aisles. The churchyard south of the building contains the oldest dated gravestone from 1606 and a medieval stone cross with Grade II listing. The tower’s ring of eight bells includes six cast in 1814 by Thomas Mears and two given in 1900 by Thomas Hyde. Visitors find a quiet space of stone and light, where centuries of craftsmanship meet the everyday life of Colne.