MONUMENTAL EFFIGIES AND BRASSES
Reverence for the dead--Cists--Stone coffins--Devices--Introduction
of effigies--Cross-legged effigies--Wooden effigies--Incised
effigies--Brasses--Essentially English--Vast number of brasses--
Palimpsests--Destruction--Costumes and fashions--Ecclesiastics--
Lawyers--Soldiers--Canopies and inscriptions--Punning inscriptions--
Contractions--Emblems--Heraldry.
The pious care which we all love to bestow on the mortal remains of our
nearest and dearest, and the respect and honour with which all men
regard the bodies of departed heroes, kings, saints, and warriors, have
produced a remarkable series of sepulchral monuments, examples of which
may be found everywhere. The cairns and tumuli of the primitive races
which inhabited our island were the results of the same feelings of
reverent regard which inspired the beautifully carved mediaeval
monuments, the memorial brass, or the cross-shaped tombstone of to-day.
I have already mentioned the cromlechs and barrows and other memorials
of the early inhabitants of Britain. We have seen the cists of Saxon
times, the coffins formed of several stones placed together in the form
of a table. The Normans introduced stone coffins for the sepulchre of
their great men, many of which may be seen in our cathedrals and old
conventual churches. On the lids of their coffins they frequently cut a
single cross. When the style of architecture changed to that of the
Early English and Decorated periods, monumental slabs were ornamented
with much greater richness and elaboration, and inscriptions were added,
and also some device which showed the trade, rank, or profession of the
departed. Thus the chalice and paten denoted a priest; a sword showed
the knight; an axe, a forester; an ink-horn, a notary; shears, a wool
merchant.
At the beginning of the thirteenth century it occurred to someone to
preserve the likeness of his departed friend as well as the symbols of
his rank and station. So effigies were introduced upon the surface of
the slabs, and were carved flat; but ere fifty years had passed away the
art of the sculptor produced magnificent monumental effigies. Knights
and nobles lie clad in armour with their ladies by their sides. Bishops
and abbots bless the spectators with their uplifted right hands. Judges
lie in their official garb, and merchants with the emblems of their
trade. At their feet lie animals, usually having some heraldic
connection with the deceased, or symbolical of his work--_e.g._ a dragon
is trodden down beneath the feet of a bishop, signifying the defeat of
sin as the result of his ministry. The heads of effigies usually rest on
cushions, which are sometimes supported by two angels.
A peculiar characteristic of the military effigies in England is that
the knights are often represented with the legs crossed. Many
speculations have been made with regard to the meaning of this fashion
of cross-legged effigy. It is a popular superstition, in which for some
years the writer shared, that such effigies represented Crusaders. We
were told in our young days that when the knight had his legs crossed at
the feet he had gone to the Crusades once; when at the knees, that he
had been to two Crusades; and when crossed at the thighs, he had been
thrice to rescue the Holy City from the hands of the infidels. All this
seemed very plausible and interesting, but it is undoubtedly a myth.
Many known Crusaders have their effigies with uncrossed legs, and many
who never went to the Crusades have cross-legged effigies. Moreover,
there are no such monuments in any foreign country which swelled the
army of Crusaders. Hence we must abandon the pleasing superstition, and
reconcile ourselves to the fact that no particular signification can be
assigned to these cross-legged effigies, and that only fashion prompted
the mediaeval sculptors to adopt this attitude for their figures. This
mode prevailed until about the year 1320.
At the close of the fifteenth century the art of making monumental
effigies degenerated together with the skill of the architects of that
period. We see the husband and wife kneeling facing each other, with a
faldstool before each figure. A company of small figures below the
effigies represent the children, the boys on one side, the girls on the
other.
Early wooden effigies were also in use. There is one much battered by
the careless hands of former generations of villagers in the rural
church of my parish of Barkham. The artists often used much colour,
gilding, and enamel in making these effigies; and often rich canopies
were erected over them, containing fine tabernacle-work and figures of
saints in niches.
Another form of effigy was commonly in use, in addition to the figures
just described. These are called incised effigies, which were cut
in outline upon flat slabs of stone, the lines being filled in with
enamelled metals. Thorton Abbey, Lincolnshire, and Brading, in the Isle
of Wight, have examples of this work. But the great expense of these
enamels, and also their frailty when exposed in the pavements of
churches, led to the use of brass; and hence arose the introduction of
memorial brasses for which our country is famous.
We owe the application of brass to memorial tablets to the artists of
Flanders, and the date of their introduction is about the middle of the
thirteenth century. The execution of almost all of our English brasses
is due to native artists. Foreign brasses are usually of great size,
and consist of a quadrangular sheet of metal, on which is engraved
the figure, usually under a canopy, the background being ornamented
with rich diaper, foliage, or scrollwork, and the incisions filled
with colouring. Several brasses in England conform to this style of
workmanship, and are evidently the production of foreign artists. The
English brasses, on the contrary, consist of separate pieces, with an
irregular outline, corresponding with that of the figure. They have no
brass background; and for delicacy of engraving and general appearance
the English brasses are by far the best.
The names of the makers of brasses have been almost entirely lost. Two
only bear marks which are supposed to be those of the engraver. No other
country can boast of so large a number of these memorials as England, in
spite of the hard usage they have received and their wanton destruction.
About four thousand remain; and constantly we find the matrices cut in
stone slabs, from which brasses have been torn; so that we may assume
that quite as many have been destroyed as those which survive. The
southern and eastern counties are most richly furnished with these
monuments, whereas the western and northern counties have but few
brasses. Norfolk, Suffolk, Essex, and Kent are the most rich in this
respect. The earliest brass of which we have any record is that of
Simon de Beauchamp, who died before 1208. This is mentioned by Leland.
The earliest brass now in existence is that of Sir John D'Aubernown at
Stoke Dabernon, Surrey, which was fashioned in 1277. In the fourteenth
century a very large number of brasses, remarkable for their beauty of
form and execution, were made. The artistic workmanship began to decline
in the fifteenth century, and in the following became utterly degenerate.
It was not an uncommon practice for subsequent generations to appropriate
the memorials of their predecessors. Such brasses are called palimpsests.
By the carelessness of churchwardens, by fraud, or spoliation, brasses
were taken from the churches, and acquired by some maker in the town.
When a new one was required, the tradesman would take from his stock,
and on the reverse engrave the figure of the individual whose memory he
was called upon to perpetuate. Hence when brasses are taken up from the
pavements, frequently the remains of a much earlier memorial are found on
the reverse side. There is an example of this curious method of procedure
at St. Lawrence's Church, Reading, where on the reverse of a brass to the
memory of Walter Barton was found the remains of the brass of Sir John
Popham, who was buried at the Charterhouse, London. This monastery was
dissolved in 1536, the monuments sold, Sir John Popham's brass among them,
which was evidently soon converted into a memorial of Walter Barton.
Sometimes the original brass was appropriated as it lay, the figure
being slightly altered to suit the style of costume prevalent at the
later date. In other cases the engraver did not even trouble himself to
alter the figure, and simply added a new inscription and shield of arms.
The wanton destruction and gross neglect of churchwardens, both before
and after the Reformation, were very great. At St. Mary's Church,
Reading, the accounts tell a sad tale of the disgraceful damage in the
year 1547:--
"Receyvid of John Saunders for iii cwt lacking ix'li of metall that was
taken upp of the graves, and of olde candlestycks at vi's the hundred
xlvj's ii'd."
Evidently a clean sweep was made of most of the memorial brasses in the
church, and few escaped destruction. The tale is too familiar. Most
churches have suffered in the same way.
The study of brasses throws much light upon the costumes and fashions of
the day when they were engraved. We see priests, who may be recognised
by the tonsure and vestments, amongst which we find the alb, amice,
stole, maniple, and chasuble. The pastoral staff, ring, mitre, sandals,
tunic, dalmatic, and gloves mark the graves of bishops and mitred
abbots.
A close skull-cap, a long robe with narrow sleeves, a hood, tippet, and
mantle buttoned on the right shoulder, compose the dress of judges and
officers of the law, as depicted on brasses. The changes in the fashion
and style of armour, which took place between the fourteenth and the
seventeenth centuries, are all accurately represented in these
memorials; and also the picturesque costumes of ladies with their
curious headgear; and the no less various fashions of the male
civilian's dress. A study of brasses is an admirable guide to the
prevailing style of dress during the periods of their construction.
The beautiful canopies over the heads of the figures are well worthy of
attention, and also the inscriptions. These usually take the form of
Latin verses; and although many were written by learned abbots and
scholars, the classical knowledge displayed is somewhat faulty. Here
are a few examples:--
Respice quid prodest precentis temporis aebum
Omne quod est, nichil est, preter amare deum.
Sometimes the author of the inscription recorded his name, as did the
learned Dame Elizabeth Hobby on a brass at Shottesbrooke, which runs--
O multum dilecte senex, pater atqz bocate,
Del quia grandaebis, bel quia probus eras.
Annos bixisti nobies decem, atqz satelles
Fidus eras regum, fidus erasqz tuis.
Iam satis functus baleas, sed tu, deus alme,
Sic mihi concedas bibere siqz mori.
Variety was added sometimes by jumbling together various languages,
Norman-French, Latin, and English being often oddly combined.
People in the Middle Ages loved punning and playing upon the sound of
words. Thus a brass to the memory of Thomas Hylle (or Hill) has some
verses beginning "_Mons_ in valle jacet." John Day, the printer, had a
very extravagant and jocular epitaph beginning--
"Here lies the Daye that darkness could not blynd."
"He set a Fox to wright how Martyrs runne
By death to lyfe"--
alluding to his publication of Foxe's _Book of Martyrs_. His widow
probably married a man named Stone. Hence we read--
"Als was the last encreaser of his store,
Who mourning long for being left alone,
Sett upp this tombe, her self turned to a Stone."
"Orate pro anima," or "of your charite pray for the soul of ----" were
usual inscriptions.
It is somewhat difficult for the unpractised eye to read inscriptions on
brasses, owing to the contractions and omissions of letters. Thus _m_
and _n_ are often omitted, and a line is placed over the adjoining
letter to indicate the omission. Thus a=ia stands for _anima_, leg=u for
_legum_. The letter _r_ is also left out. Z stands for _que_, and there
are many other contractions, such as D=ns for _Dominus_, D=s for _Deus_,
E=ps for _Episcopus_, g=ia for _gratia_, m=ia for _misericordia_, and
many others.
The study of the emblems and devices is full of interest. Of
ecclesiastical emblems we have the symbols of the Holy Trinity--God the
Father represented as an aged person, holding a crucifix on which the
dove, an emblem of the Holy Spirit, is alighting--representations of our
Lord, angels, saints,[5] evangelists, the fylfot cross, roses, and
figures of Death. Sometimes the figure on the brass holds a heart in his
hand, which indicates a response on the part of the deceased to the old
invitatory "Sursum corda."
The armorial bearings of the deceased are usually represented on
brasses, and also personal or professional devices. The founders of
churches hold representations in miniature of the churches which they
founded. Bishops and abbots have a pastoral staff; priests, a chalice,
or a book; wool merchants have woolpacks beneath their feet, and other
tradesmen have similar devices denoting their special calling.
Merchants' marks also frequently appear; and the mediaeval taste for
punning is shown by frequent rebuses formed on the names of the
deceased, _e.g._ a peacock, for one named Pecok; a fox, for a Foxley;
four tuns and a cross, for Master Croston.
England may well be proud of the brass memorials of her worthy sons and
daughters. It is, however, terribly sad to see the destruction which
fanatical and greedy folk have wrought on these beautiful monuments.
As we have already noticed, the spoliators of the Reformation period
accomplished much wanton destruction, and removed tombs "for greedinesse
of the brasse." Cromwell's soldiers and commissioners did a vast deal
more damage, violating sepulchres and monuments, and destroying brasses
everywhere. A third cause of the defacement and loss of these valuable
memorials has been the gross carelessness of churchwardens and
incumbents, who during any alterations or restoration of their churches
have allowed them to be sold, destroyed, or appropriated by the
builders. Truly we have entered upon a diminished inheritance. It
behoves us to preserve with the utmost vigilance and care the memorials
which fanaticism, greed, and carelessness have spared.
[5] The following are the principal emblems of the Apostles:--
St. Andrew, a cross saltier; St. Bartholomew, a knife; St. James the
Great, a pilgrim's staff, wallet, escallop shell; St. James the Less, a
fuller's bat, or saw; St. John, a chalice and serpent; St. Jude, a boat
in his hand, or a club; St. Matthew, a club, carpenter's square, or
money-box; St. Matthias, a hatchet, battle-axe, or sword; St. Paul, a
sword; St. Peter, keys; St. Philip, a tau cross, or a spear; St. Simon,
fishes; St. Thomas, an arrow or spear.