All Saints Church  Buncton

To find this church take the A283 from Steyning towards Washington and turn right into a small road at Wiston that leads to the post office. Look for the church notice board on the right and park your vehicle opposite. 

Follow the path beside the sign and into the very wooded dell, cross the small bridge and up the steep slope on the other side; unfortunately it is not suitable for wheel chairs. However for slow walkers there are two commemorative bench seats for resting. At the top you will be at what is probably the most secluded,peaceful and serene churchyard in Sussex. The church itself stands isolated ahead of you, and the whole area is surrouded by hedges separating it from the rolling Downland meadows with hardly a building in sight.

Historically there was a Saxon Manor House in the area that is mentioned in the Domesday Book 1285, but no mention of the church; perhaps, it formed part of the manor complex and was a private chapel for the Lord and his workers. This might explain why it is not in the village centre.

It was in fact once a Chapel of Ease for the Hamlet of Buncton  and subservant to St. Mary's of Wiston. However over the years Wiston village has declined and Buncton grown and reversing the situation with Buncton, All Saints became the main church from 2007.

One could be forgiven for thinking the church had undergone many alterations over the years as there are so many unusual and inexplicable features. Roman tiles in the fabric for example are deemed to have come from the remains of a Roman villa rediscovered in the mid 19th century. Some of the blocked arches dating to Norman times are known not to belong to the building and are ascribed in some guides, to be oddments from a 14th century builders yard nearby. Other more recent views are that they were most likely to have come from the ruins of the old Priory of Sele. 

There is a fascinating story I found in the Times (Dec 10 2004) which is headed " Pagan Whodunnit grips village". This refers to a stonework figure that displayed it's genitals, possibly as a warning against lust. Whatever the reason someone was upset and took a chisel and chopped it to pieces.

Police were called but no culprit has been found;

 a case for Hercule Poirot perhaps?