The Church and Nave
The priory church was a large and elaborate building.
Work on the church began in 1107 and the presbytery was probably complete by 1114. The nave, however, was probably not finished for another 60 years.
The church was designed on a cross-shaped plan, with a nave, two transepts and a presbytery. The proportions and detailing of the church are similar to those of Castle Acre Priory (Norfolk), another Cluniac monastery founded in the same period in Norfolk.
Cluniac houses were celebrated for the richness of their furnishings and architecture. From the fragmentary surviving evidence, it is clear that the arcades of the nave had unusually complex detailing and that the interior was lavish.
The nave was the most public area of the church and accessible to all. It was divided from the transepts and presbytery by a screen extending across the whole interior. In the centre of the screen stood a nave altar, the base of which survives. Above this hung the rood, a large crucifix set to either side with figures of St John and the Virgin.
The principal entrance to the nave was through a façade set with two towers. Fragments of the rich architectural detailing of the facade can be seen in the foundations.
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