St Senara's Church, in Zennor Churchtown, Cornwall, England, UK, is the

parish church A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the Church (building), church which acts as the religious centre of a parish. In many parts of the world, especially in rural areas, the parish church may play a significant role in com ...

of the parish of

Zennor Zennor (; (village) or (parish)) is a village and civil parish in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. The parish includes the villages of Zennor, Boswednack and Porthmeor and the hamlet of Treen. Zennor lies on the north coast, about no ...

.St Senara, Zennor
at A Church near you, from the

C of E C, or c, is the third letter of the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''cee'' (pronounced ), plural ''cees''. History "C ...

, retrieved 14/03/2012 It is in the

Deanery A deanery (or decanate) is an ecclesiastical entity in the Catholic Church, the Eastern Orthodox Church, the Anglican Communion, the Evangelical Church in Germany, and the Church of Norway. A deanery is either the jurisdiction or residence of ...

Penwith Penwith (; ) is an area of Cornwall, England, located on the peninsula of the same name. It is also the name of a former Non-metropolitan district, local government district, whose council was based in Penzance. The area is named after one ...

Archdeaconry of Cornwall The Archdeacon of Cornwall is a senior cleric in the Church of England Diocese of Truro and one of two archdeacons in the diocese. History and composition The archdeaconry of Cornwall was created in the Diocese of Exeter in the late 11th centu ...

, and

Diocese of Truro The Diocese of Truro (established 1876) is a Church of England diocese in the Province of Canterbury which covers Cornwall, the Isles of Scilly and a small part of Devon. The bishop's seat is at Truro Cathedral. Geography and history The d ...

. It is dedicated to the local saint,

Saint Senara Saint Senara, also known as Asenora, Sinara, or Sennara, is a legendary Cornish saint with links to the village of Zennor on the north coast of Cornwall, UK. The Church of Saint Senara, Zennor is dedicated to her, and according to legend her na ...

, and is at least 1400 years old, though it was rebuilt in the 12th century. It is a

Grade I listed In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Hi ...

building.

History

A church dedicated to

has stood on the current site overlooking the sea since at least the 6th century AD, but the current building is partly

Norman Norman or Normans may refer to: Ethnic and cultural identity * The Normans, a people partly descended from Norse Vikings who settled in the territory of Normandy in France in the 9th and 10th centuries ** People or things connected with the Norma ...

and partly of the 13th and 15th centuries (the north aisle 15th century). There is a west tower and the octagonal

font In metal typesetting, a font is a particular size, weight and style of a ''typeface'', defined as the set of fonts that share an overall design. For instance, the typeface Bauer Bodoni (shown in the figure) includes fonts " Roman" (or "regul ...

may be from the 13th century. It was reputedly founded by Saint Senara on her return from

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

with her son, who was by then a bishop, when they founded the village of Zennor. One of only two remaining bench-ends in the church portrays the

Mermaid of Zennor The ''Mermaid of Zennor'' () is a Cornish folk tale which originates in the village of Zennor. The legend tells the story of a mysterious woman who occasionally attended the parish church of Zennor; a young man followed her home one day, and n ...

, depicted admiring herself in a mirror. This is on the so-called "Mermaid Chair" which also has carvings of fish on the seat, and which is believed to be at least 600 years old. On the church's outside wall, next to the west porch, is a memorial to John Davy, 1891, the last person to speak Cornish fluently. The church is surrounded by a small circular

graveyard A cemetery, burial ground, gravesite, graveyard, or a green space called a memorial park or memorial garden, is a place where the remains of many death, dead people are burial, buried or otherwise entombed. The word ''cemetery'' (from Greek ...

, the boundaries of which have existed since the

Bronze Age The Bronze Age () was a historical period characterised principally by the use of bronze tools and the development of complex urban societies, as well as the adoption of writing in some areas. The Bronze Age is the middle principal period of ...

and in which parishioners have been buried for centuries. The churchyard holds the graves of the artists Bryan Wynter and

Patrick Heron Patrick Heron (30 January 1920 – 20 March 1999) was a British abstract and figurative artist, critic, writer, and polemicist, who lived in Zennor, Cornwall. Heron was recognised as one of the leading painters of his generation. Influenced ...

, who both lived in Zennor and drew inspiration from the surrounding landscape for their art. Both this church and the church of the nearby village of

Morvah Morvah () is a civil parish and village on the Penwith peninsula in west Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. The parish has a population of 49. Geography The village is centred approximately west-southwest of St Ives and north-west of Penza ...

lay claim to the local legend of a cow eating the bell-rope, at a time when such items were fashioned from straw. The tower contains six bells in the key of G, four of which were cast by

Gillett & Johnston Gillett & Johnston was a clockmaker and bell foundry based in Croydon, England from 1844 until 1957. Between 1844 and 1950, over 14,000 tower clocks were made at the works. The company's most successful and prominent period of activity as a be ...

in 1926 to accompany the two medieval bells already there. They are currently unringable due to corrosion of the bell-frame. In 2019, a full restoration of the bells was started by

John Taylor & Co John Taylor Bell Foundry (Loughborough) Limited, trading as John Taylor & Co and commonly known as Taylor's Bell Foundry, Taylor's of Loughborough, or simply Taylor's, is the world's largest working bell (instrument), bell foundry. It is locat ...

, which will once again allow them to be used for change-ringing.

Today

Saint Senara's is the parish church for Zennor, and mainly serves the village of Zennor, more properly called "Zennor Churchtown", after the church, to distinguish it from Zennor parish. The church remains in regular use for Sunday services, as well as hosting special events such as weddings and funerals. The priest-in-charge is Revd. Elizabeth Foot.

Gallery

File:Mermaid Chair.jpg, Mermaid chair and altar File:Mermaid Chair 2013-09-11 - 1.jpg, Mermaid chair File:Interior of Zennor Church - geograph.org.uk - 2200004.jpg, Interior File:Zennor Church font.jpg, Baptismal font File:Zennor Church2.JPG, Zennor churchyard File:Window in Zennor Church - geograph.org.uk - 2200026.jpg, Stained-glass window depicting Saint Senara and Saint Ia

References

*Mattingly, Joanna. (2016) ''St. Senara’s Church, Zennor: A Church History and Guide''

External links

Diary of James Stevens of Zennor & Sancreed
(about the restoration of the church; additional information from: Mattingly, Joanna. (2016) ''St. Senara’s Church, Zennor: A Church History and Guide''.) {{DEFAULTSORT:Zennor Church of England church buildings in Cornwall English Gothic architecture in Cornwall Grade I listed churches in Cornwall St Senara's Church