As you enter the North Porch, to the left is a most unusual feature, the Volka Chapel. Described by Pevsner as “surprising and fanciful”, it dates from the end of the main building’s construction. The tracery (ornamental stonework on the upper part of a window) bears the same stonemason’s marks as can be seen in the middle of the belfry. Originally, no glass would have been in the windows, leaving it open to all the elements.
To the right of this tiny space is a stone coffin that was opened in 1826. Inside were found the remains of a woman and infant, which has led to speculation as to their identities. Both were buried in the churchyard.
Some suggest that the Volka could be an anchorite’s or anchoress’s cell. These religious hermits would willingly withdraw from secular society to spend the rest of their lives in prayer and meditation, refusing all contact with the outside world bar the provision of food and water.
As appealing as this suggestion may be to some, the positioning of the Volka on the outside with no external glass in the windows and no view of the altar, makes this an unlikely reason.
There is a theory that it could be a chantry chapel, dedicated to Margaret Mortimer as she had overseen the completion of the building of St Michael’s and All Angel’s. The rector (Margaret’s own son-in-law, Walter) would have reserved this space entirely for praying for Margaret’s soul after her death.
Intrigued? Come and visit the Volka and let us know your own theory!
