Christ Church, Ore was built in 1858 to the design of Alexander Gough. It has a small attached octagonal tower described by Nicolas Pevsner in ‘Buildings of Sussex’ as a ‘very naughty SW turret’. A distinctive feature of the church is that the main axis is North/South as opposed to the more conventional East/West.
The church consists of a nave, south aisle and transept chancel, a small vestry, and organ loft with porches to the north and west faces. The church is constructed in Kentish ragstone with Bath Stone dressings the roof slopes are covered in cement fibre slates.
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Besides the east and west windows, there are aisle and nave windows to the south and north facades. Most of the windows have four principle lights with tracery above in an early English style in the majority of cases the two central lights contain stained glass.
The three east windows are dedicated to St Michael & St George, Hope & Faith and Jesus and the children. One of the south windows is in a circular form with the stone tracery in the form of a Star of David, it is infilled with diamond pattern leaded lights. One of the west windows has a stained glass portrayal of the Holman Hunt painting ‘The Light of the World’.
The chancel arch and the ‘east’ wall (due to the unusual lie of the church this is in actual fact the north wall) are both decorated. The latter was repainted recently and incorporates multi gilt work.
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There is a fine pulpit in oak with a carved font and sitting on eight circular pillars with an octagonal base. There is a fine brass handrail. The communion rail is in oak with simple moulding on wrought iron supports with gold leaf ornamentation. There are a series of internal tablets and memorials distributed around the church.
Photographs by Rachel Pangbourne