Assynt Parish Church

Heritage listing

Category B Date Added 19/02/1998 Last Date Amended 09/03/2018 Local Authority Highland Planning Authority Highland Parish Assynt NGR NC 24933 21998 Coordinates 224933, 921998 — Parish Church, built between 1741-1743 with substantial alterations by William C Joass, in 1900. The building is a 5-bay, plain gabled rectangular-plan church with a diminutive spire and harled rubble walls. The church has gabled, bargeboarded dormerheads to segmental-arched windows on the north (rear) and south (front) elevations. It has a shouldered wallhead with a pink stone chimney stack at the centre. The door to the church is on the outer right; it is boarded with glazed 2-pane upper section. There is evidence of a former window in the east gable. At the east end of the church is a spire which has a square base and bell-cast pyramidal slate roof and cross finial. It has timber small-pane glazing with 2-pane top-hoppers. The roof is graded grey slate with a stone ridge. The chimney stack as above. The interior was largely refurbished in 1900. It has a coomb ceiling; boarded dado and pine pews which are angled for the choir. The pulpit is octagonal with a cornice and panelled and corniced back-board and flanking doors. The pulpit may date to the early 19th century. In accordance with Section 1 (4A) of the Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) (Scotland) Act 1997 the following are excluded from the listing: scheduled monument SM8309 (see separate designation record). — The origins of the church s presence at Assynt are thought to date back to between 1436 and 1443, to a foundation by Angus MacLeod, laird of Assynt. It is thought that the Macleod Burial Vault within the current churchyard is the physical remains of this church. The vault is a scheduled monument (see separate design

From Historic Environment Scotland under OGL v3.