Jesmond Towers, chapel

Late Gothic Revival style chapel, with remnants of some Arts and Crafts interior encaustic floor tiling. Designed by Dunn Hansom & Fenwicke (who designed the Catholic cathedral in Newcastle) 1938 for the Filles de la Sagesse. The chapel steps down from the dominant convent building (HER 14787). Extremely attractive stone buttressed building, with a hexagonal projection to the southernmost elevation. Leaded windows. The balcony organ is of interest. It shares a principle wrought iron staircase with the adjoining convent. The ground floor of the chapel is double height with a first floor gallery. An entrance hall leads to a stairway. Highly decorative plasterwork, ceilings, and floor tiles. Recorded 2013 by Archaeological Services Durham University. The chapel altar had a recessed front with wooden arcade of three pointed cusped arches, carried on pink and white marble colonettes with metal capitals and bases. Behind the arcade was a grid of stained oak, filled with square pressed metal panels embossed with floral motifs. There was a large gilt central roundel with an HIS monogram. At either end there were pink marble columns with metal capitals and bases. All of the metalwork was coloured gold and the woodwork is oak. Near the front of the top of the table, the altar stone lay loose in a recess. It was a dark stone marked with the traditional five Greek crosses.