Further information on St Lawrence’s Church in Marros, recorded in the privately published booklet by D M Price, which is currently unavailable. We have been unable to identify or contact the author – if any reader can provide contact details that will be very gratefully received. In the booklet he gives a lot of information on the stained glass windows that are in the church. The rest of this page is taken from his booklet.
A mile westwards from Pendine Church, on the road to Amroth and Tenby lies Marros Church, with an unusual War Memorial nearby which symbolises the Neolithic tombs at nearby Garness. Before approaching the church note the initials of parishioners on the churchyard wall. They were originally set at intervals to apportion sections of the wall for repair and maintenance and one block shows a group of initials – contributors when the churchyard was extended.
The massive tower, some 70 feet in height, is immediately apparent as you approach through the churchyard and is typical of the 13th and 14th century additions to Welsh Churches (for defence or prestige) commissioned by the local squires. There is a regular corbel table and battlements; a close inspection suggests that the height was lower at one time.
The dedication to St. Lawrence suggests a later foundation than Pendine or Eglwys Cynin though Lawrence (or Laurence) was the most popular of the Roman Martyrs and one of the seven deacons of that nation in the third century. However, his name was not the subject of church dedications in Britain until several centuries later.
The St. Lawrence Window
The patron saint of Marros shares a window with Abraham’s wife Sarah (originally Sarai – see Genesis 12) and is seen in the right-hand light of the window on the south wall of the church. He is tonsured, dressed in red cloak and leading n a gridiron. This represents his punishment and death by roasting at the hands of Valerian in AD 258 for disobeying the Emperor’s command to bring forth the treasures of the church. He is holding Bible in his right hand and wears a halo, the initials K being repeated on the borders of the window.
Sarah was so beautiful that Abraham, for his own safety, had to tell the Egyptians that she was his sister. The caption ‘yea I will bless her’ proclaims a righteous acceptance of her virtues and the artist’s portrayal of an angelic face. The hand resting on breast is in contrast to that feeling of torture and cruelty engendered by her partner on this lovely window in memory of the local farmer’s wife named Sarah.
The Altar Window
The splendid 3-light window gracing the eastern wall of the church shows, in the centre light, a moving and strong portrayal of the crucified Christ. The initials INRI (Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews) overlook our Saviour nailed to the cross which h is securely wedged at the base and with the sad phrase ‘it is finished’ underneath. On our Lord’s right (the left light) the Blessed Virgin Mary weeps in mourning, whilst on the other side the ever faithful Saint John, in humble brown cloak, looks up for inspiration.
The Shepherd Window
The south wall of the nave houses a window dedicated to a dear mother by her children and very appropriately depicts our Lord’s love of children.
The left light shows Jesus holding one child in his arms, with two young people on his right and a mother and child on his other side., the whole surmounted by the words ‘Suffer little children to come unto me’ – from Matthew Chap 19.
The right-hand light portrays Christ as the good shepherd with a shepherd’s crook in one hand and holding a lamb in his left arm. He is dressed in red with a white jewelled cloak and two sheep look upward from the green sward. One can almost feel that the sward is that of the surrounding ‘Mawr-rhos’ which is such an extensive area stretching from the beach inland for several miles.