Benholm Parish Church And Churchyard

Heritage listing

Category A Date Added 18/08/1972 Local Authority Aberdeenshire Planning Authority Aberdeenshire Parish Benholm NGR NO 80438 69251 Coordinates 380438, 769251 — 1832 incorporating 15th or 16th century sacrament house (see Notes) and 17th century mural monuments from earlier (13th century) church. Simple 4-bay, rectangular-plan, classic church with pedimented gables and belfry; little altered fine interior with important wall memorial to infant daughter of George Keith, 5th Earl Marischal. Harled with ashlar margins and quoin strips. Continuous eaves and band course, latter forming pediment. Round- and segmental-arched openings. W (ENTRANCE) ELEVATION: gabled elevation with broad, 3-part, panelled timber door and decoratively-astragalled 5-pane fanlight to centre bay, similar width wide-centre tripartite window above. E ELEVATION: mirrors the above but with gablehead surmounted by stone belfry (bell now housed within church). S ELEVATION: 4 regularly-disposed tall windows. N ELEVATION: blank elevation. Multi-pane glazing pattern in timber sash and case windows throughout, those to S decoratively-astragalled. Grey slates. Ashlar-coped skews. INTERIOR: galleried interior with pulpit and 17th century mural monuments (see below) at S wall; fine stone sacrament house (at E wall) with moulded cornice and decorative margins flanking pointed-arch moulded opening surmounted by thistle, and incorporating high relief-carved door panel in broad frame (possibly not original); wall inside carved with crossbones, hourglass and winged angel. Decorative plasterwork cornicing and circular roof ventilators(?). Boarded dadoes and fixed timber pews (originally extending full width of interior). 2-tier pulpit comprising boarded 1st tier and panelled 2nd tier giving way to panelled and corniced

From Historic Environment Scotland under OGL v3.