A centuries-old Bristol church has been defaced with graffiti in a "mindless" and "deeply saddening" act of vandalism.
Illegible squiggles of neon spray paint have been scrawled on the archway at St John on the Wall, which has stood in Broad Street since the 14th century.
The iconic church was built into the old city's medieval walls, and has Grade I listed status.
Bristol Heritage Forum shared images of the graffiti on social media yesterday (September 30), showing bright green and orange tags sprayed on the stone.
It tweeted : "This reckless, mindless vandalism to one of [Bristol's] most valued historic buildings is just awful.
"Run by volunteers, cared for by a charity, [it] does not have the funds needed to painstakingly remove it."
The Churches Conservation Trust, which looks after the church, said the graffiti was spotted over the weekend.
In a Facebook post yesterday (September 30), the charity's team wrote: "St John's is part of the very fabric of Bristol - it was built into the city walls in the fourteenth century as a place for travellers to offer prayers before a journey.
"In the twelfth century there were five churches built into Bristol's city walls, acting both as part of the city's defences, and as places for travellers to offer prayers before a journey.
"St John's is the only one that remains and it is said that this is the very gateway that Queen Elizabeth I walked under to enter the city during a visit."
The charity described the church as a "wonderful piece of Bristol's heritage" and said it is "deeply saddening" to see it treated in such a way.
Its post added: "If anyone spots suspicious activity taking place at a church, please contact the police and ask to report a heritage crime in progress."
A Churches Conservation Trust spokesperson confirmed with Bristol Live that the incident has been reported to Avon and Somerset Police as a heritage crime.
According to Historic England, a heritage crime is "any offence which harms the value of heritage assets and their settings".
These include listed buildings and conservation areas.
Heritage crime has become so prevalent that Historic England set up the Heritage Crime Programme to research and tackle the issue, working with the National Police Chiefs' Council and the Crown Prosecution Service.
About 20 per cent of listed buildings are harmed by crime every year, according to the organisation, and that figure is near double for listed places of worship.
