York Guides

The ruins of a porch cover the lower part of the west front of the church. Its west wall had a central doorway flanked by open arcades on twin columns, three bays of which were re-erected from fallen fragments in the nineteenth century. These porches were a familiar feature of early Cistercian churches, and were popular places of burial. There are two grave covers at the north end of the porch, and a group of four at the south end, all temporarily covered for protection.

Originally there were two entrances from the porch into the church; an elaborately moulded central doorway, and a plain doorway in the north aisle, later blocked.