Open Saturdays & Sundays, 10.00 am - 4.00 pm
1st April - 31st October.
​
Groups and visits at other times by arrangement with the Custodian. Please use the Contact form
The Norman Font
​
The original font was removed from old All Saints' Church and installed at North Skelton Church. The present font, pictured here, was originally installed in the little Old Church at Upleatham. When the church was demolished, leaving only the tower as we see it now, the font stood in the churchyard for decades. It was moved to its present locaction in old All Saints' Church as part of the restoration scheme in the 1980s
​
It dates from Norman times, probably around the 12th or 13th century. The four faces are intricately carved with different designs. In his History & Antiquities of Cleveland John Walker Ord describes the font thus: 'It exhibits the most elaborate workmanship . . . the squares curiously chiselled in the form of chequers, constituting a most valuable relic of antiquity'.
​
The four short seats in the corners of the pew are hinged to allow extra space for the families to stand in comfort around the font.
The Font Cover
​
The dark oak font cover with it's imposing wrought iron straps and decoration is a 20th century addition.
Effigy of a Knight
​
This 14th century memorial or grave cover shows the effigy of a Knight, with his hands clasped in prayer across his chest. His shield, decorated with three birds is on his left as is his sword which hangs from the belt around his waist. Chain mail armour protects his neck, arms and legs.
It is thought to be a member of the De Thweng family, or of Sir Robert Capon, who died in 1346. The De Thwengs had been loyal supporters of William the Conqueror who gave them over 180 estates and manors across the north of England in recognition of their support.
​
At some time in the past, the head has been severed from the body, perhaps during the puritanical times of the Reformation of the Church. According to John Walker Ord in his History & Antiquities of Cleveland, 'the effigy [lay] much mutilated on the floor beneath the stalls' in the old church at Upleatham.
The stone coffins
​
What was described at the time as a 'vast number' of stone coffins were discovered, buried at a depth of about three feet (0.9m) in the churchyard to the north-west of the church in 1846. They are of Danish or Norse origin and date from before the first stone church was built in 1325.
​
They may be of the same age as similar stone coffins found at Kirkleatham which have been dated to the 8th or 9th centuries.
​
This pair originally lay close together and may have been the final resting places for a mother and child. The lid from the child's coffin has a cross carved in relief. The lid from the larger coffin was not retrieved when it was discovered. Both have a drain hole to allow the decomposing viscera to escape from the coffin.