St Nicholas
Hinxworth, Hertfordshire
We are a friendly parish church in the beautiful small, north Hertfordshire village of Hinxworth.
The church is built of a type of hard chalk known as clunch, and can look almost pure white in certain light conditions. Clunch is softer than limestone and was often used in domestic buildings, or for interior work, but seldom for a whole church.
Though showing signs of wear that have been exacerbated by acid rain, Ashwell's thick walled tower is Hertfordshire's tallest. Its original height is marked by a row of crenellations halfway up. The top half was added in the 15th century, followed by the leadwork 'Hertfordshire spike' on top.
The soft stone may have been a catalyst for the church's most renowned detail: extraordinary medieval graffiti on the nave pillars and inside the base of the tower, where they include a detailed sketch of old St Paul's in the City of London.
One on the south side of the nave includes a grumble in Latin, presumably from a disappointed architect or clerk of works. It translates: 'The corners are not jointed properly. I spit on them'.