The chancel of St John the Baptist church is of 13th century date and the remaining parts are 15th century, including the screen, although this has been much added to from screens elsewhere. In the 19th and early 20th century the building underwent a number of restorations.
The fabric of the church is granite with volcanic stone and granite detail; the piers are granite. Given the hard nature of the stone it is not surprising that graffiti is only found on the woodwork of the screens and benches.
Items include Marian-type marks (W) and other lettering, including probable initials. There are a number of examples of notches cut into the edges of bench bookrests and also some on a screen. It is possible these are just the result of idle whittling, but there are many examples of such graduated lines and notches in the stonework of churches too, and it seems likely that at least some had a serious, perhaps spiritual, meaning or function.