Watts Cemetery Chapel

A really outstanding example of Arts and Crafts style, and it’s free to visit! My friend and I stopped in for a bit while we were walking the Wanborough to Godalming walk from Time Out Book of Country Walks and really enjoyed having a break for some quiet contemplation in this chapel.
Well worth a visit if you’re in the area.

We were given wrong information at the Watts Gallery that the chapel closes at 5pm. We drove past about 5.30 and it was still open. It is set back within the site of a well tended cemetery, so you may not see much of it from the road. We parked up and walked in. The cemetery is worth a walk round in its own right. However, the Chapel is lovely indeed-​a perfect reproduction of a Renaissance chapel. The exterior is covered with wonderful carvings (see photos) and the interior is a riot of thickly painted murals which cover the walls and celing. Inside it is cool and a wonderful place for quiet reflection. If you are going to the Watts Gallery I recommend seeing this at the same time.

After the Romanesque delights of the parish church, the
Cemetery Chapel provides a rich contrast. It was donated by the Arts and Crafts luminary George
Frederic Watts and his wife Mary. She assembled the designs for the chapel, but
much of the decorative scheme of deeply coloured glazed tiles and hand-​painted
gesso, were made by the villagers under her instruction. It was completed in
1904. The exterior is rich enough, with elaborate terracotta
friezes depicting Hope, Truth, Love and Light, and a round-​headed doorway with
three orders of Celtic style decoration.
But the interior takes the breath away.
Once your eyes become accustomed to the
gloom, the richness of the decoration reveals itself: Celtic and religious
symbolism, in flowing Art Nouveau style, with deep reds, blues and greens
highlighted in gold. Every square inch of the interior is heavily moulded and painted a true labour of love and dedication. The sanctuary painting by George Frederic Watts (1904) is
entitled The All Pervading. The chapel is used only for funeral services, but is open
daily for visitors.