St Mary's Church, Hendon

The church may date to Anglo-Saxon England. A spurious charter of "959" records the rectory as being owned by Westminster Abbey, and a priest is mentioned in 1086 in the Domesday Book, strongly implying the existence of a church, which was separately documented six years earlier. Associated archaeology has found near-certain Anglo-Saxon burials. The first definite date is the church built around 1080, and a Norman font (pictured below right) is still in use. The building has a thirteenth-century nave, chapel, north aisle and south arcade, together with traces of painting on the walls. The fifteenth and sixteenth centuries saw further rebuilding – the tower and south arcade reflect this…