About four miles south of Forres, and in the middle of an extensive
forest, not far from Altyre House, stand the ruins of an ancient first
pointed church. The parish of Altyre belonged formerly to the parsonage
of Dallas, but in 1659 it was disjoined from Dallas and added to the
parish of Rufford. The ruins of the church, which stand in a dense
thicket of bushes, are in fair preservation. The building is very plain,
consisting of a simple oblong chamber (Fig. 715) about 50 feet in length
by 15 feet in width internally. There appear to have been no buttresses
originally, but one has been added at the north-east angle (Fig. 716),
and
[Illustration: FIG. 715.--Altyre Church. Plan.]
[Illustration: FIG. 716.--Altyre Church. View from North-East.]
a very massive prop has been built at the north-west angle, the ground
on the north being a bank sloping downwards from the church. There are
two doorways opposite one another near the west end, one in the north
wall and one in the south wall. In the east wall there is a two-light
window with simple branched mullion. The side windows are plain lancets,
there being two in the north wall and three in the south wall. The west
wall is blank. The walls and gables are still standing. Although the
church may be classed as first pointed, it is evidently of the latest
period of that style.