St Thomas's Church, Keith

The east front is based on the design of Santa Maria della Vittoria in Rome.[2] It has three bays, separated by pilasters, the central one advanced slightly. The side bays, topped with volutes and finials, have corniced central panels which have inset round-topped niches housing statues.[1][2] The pedimented entrance is in the central bay.[1] An inscription reads Columna et Firmamentum Veritatis.[1] Behind the east front, where the transepts meet the nave, is a large, octagonally faceted copper dome,[2][3] with oval windows in each face.[3] The dome is made of concrete, covered with sheets of copper,[3] and is topped with a cross finial.[1] The sides and rear of the church are much simpler than the front.[3] Made of granite rubble, each of the transepts has three round-arched windows at their gable ends, and there are lean-to side aisles with rectangular windows.[3] The western end of the building serves as a presbytery, with two storeys and bay windows.[3]

The church sits on a relatively restricted plot of land; there is no graveyard, and only a small garden,[3] in which there is a wooden gazebo.[2]

The classical Greek cross-form interior is dominated by the central dome, which is painted with a pattern of gold stars on a dark blue background.[2] Regularly spaced Corinthian pilasters and plaster-cast cornices line the walls of the nave and the sanctuary.[2][3] The nave and transepts are lined with oak pews,[5] and focused on the shallow chancel at the west end.[3] This contains the high altar, behind which, in a pedimented aedicule, is a painting of the incredulity of St Thomas by François Dubois.[2] The altar itself is of stone, and has three carved panels depicting the Madonna and Child with angels on either side, below a tabernacle.[2][3]

At the east end of the nave, close to the entrance, is a small gallery, housing a pipe organ, which is accessed via a marble-floored vestibule.[3] There is also a chapel dedicated to St John Ogilvie, who was born nearby.[5]

St Thomas's has a number of stained glass windows. The main window in the north transept gable is a war memorial, dated 1918, depicting the crucifixion. The corresponding window in the south transept, signed by J.H. Mauméjean Frères of Paris, shows Christ the Good Shepherd. Each of these main windows is flanked by two smaller windows, dating to the 1970s, by Dom Ninian Sloane of Pluscarden Abbey.[2]