South View

South Portico

The decoration of the outer doorway of the south porch is a splendid specimen of Norman workmanship.  It was brought here from Margam Abbey in 1849 by Mrs. Charlotte Traherne, wife of the then-rector of St. Bride's-super-Ely, and a sister to C. R. M. Talbot, who then occupied Margam Abbey.

Column on West Side of Arch

A manuscript account of Margam Abbey, written in 1797 by the Rev. William Thomas of Baglan, has a marginal note in the hand of the Rev. John Montgomery Traherne, who stated that "a Romanesque arch was discovered when a stable abutting on the south side of the old building east of the almshouses was taken down in March 1840."  Presumably, the arch was part of the fabric of the building.

The inner arch of the porch has a Norman rounded arch, around which there is herringbone decoration.  Inside the porch are stone benches, and resting on the western one is a stone memorial to three men of the parish who fell in the Great War, 1914-1918.  This memorial was originally in the Chapel, since converted to a house, which is adjacent to the church.

Carvings on Arch

Carved Crosses on Arch

The inner arch is adorned by chevron or zigzag decoration above little scalloped capitals.  The chamfered outer arch, which springs from square ababi above trumpet capitals -- the western one with a hint of volute -- is surmounted by a row of chevrons ornamented at right angles to the surface of the wall.  To the west is an inscribed consecration cross, a smaller one to the east of a doorway and another let in at the head.