Deerhurst

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Deerhurst. St Mary's priory church at Deerhurst near the Severn in Gloucestershire has a history extending back to the early Anglo-Saxon period, some of its masonry dating from c.700. A monastery existed there before 804 when Æthelric granted land to Deerhurst, making it the chief monastery of the kingdom of the Hwicce. In addition to a fine Saxon tower, there is a tub-font, used for centuries as a farm trough, a remarkable double-headed window from the 9th cent., and several impressive sculptures. Odda's chapel nearby dates from 1056 and was the kitchen of a farmhouse until the late 19th cent.

Sandra M. Dunkin

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