the church of st john baptist
the Pulpit
in St John's church
In 1572, the Churchwardens' Accounts recorded that materials and labour for "the newe churche pulpitte" amounted to £42 10s (around £15,000 at today's value).
Until the mid-Victorian restorations of St John's church, the pulpit was located at the crossing end of the chancel and spanned most of the chancel's width. It stood "upon its four curious legs" and all but obliterated the view of the chancel from the nave, and vice versa.
The plan was to
alter the
position of the
pulpit by
placing it not
in the centre of
the church, but
on a substantial
stone pedestal,
at the pier near
at the north
transept. This
is the pulpit we
see today.
gallery
This photograph
features in my
book 'The Church of St John the Baptist, Yeovil - a History and Guide'.
St John's pulpit, photographed in 2023.
