Architectural historians regard the molded-brick doorways at Christ Church as perhaps the finest produced in colonial America. While other colonial churches used rubbed and gauged brickwork and stone detailing in their door surrounds, none achieved the level of design or craftsmanship as those in Christ Church.

The west doorway is the main entrance to Christ Church. The frontispiece is more elaborate and stands taller than the north and south doorways. Its rubbed and gauged bricks, with their fine mortar joints, set the doorway off against the brickwork in the church walls.

In contrast to the triangular pediments atop the north and south doorways, the west door has a segmental (arch) pediment. It also has pedestals that support the Roman Doric pilasters, while the north and south doorways have the pilasters only. The brickwork in the entablature below the arch matches that in the wood entablature between the walls and roof. A compass-head opening of gauged bricks with stone imposts and a keystone frames the wood door at the top. The stone elements are Aquia sandstone, quarried in Stafford County and popular with Virginia builders in the colonial and early national periods.

The west doors themselves are pine and appear to date from the late nineteenth century. Only the semi-circular paneled transom (lunette) atop the doors is original. The panel moldings are similar to the north and south doors but lack the joinery typical of colonial practice. The small oak case lock with iron casing on the south leaf is from the first half of the nineteenth century.

On the interior, the doors hang on an original pair of heavy H & L hinges. The interior faces have been stained to match the walnut of the transom and north and south doors. All three sets of doors underwent a comprehensive preservation campaign in the fall of 2000.

Home|History|Architecture|Preservation|Archaeology|Research|School Programs|Publications
About FHCC|Support HCC|Volunteer|Plan A Trip|Calendar|Kids' Page|Links|Email Us