On an old brass, quoted by W. Williams, _Notes and Queries_, I. vii.
577, and thought by him to belong to the Church of St. Helen's,
London[25]:--
'Here lyeth y^e bodyes of
James Pomley, y^e sonne of ould
Dominick Pomley and Jane his
wyfe: y^e said James deceased y^e 7th
day of Januarie Anno Domini 1592
he beyng of y^e age of 88 years, &
y^e sayd Jane deceased y^e -- day
of -- D --
Earth goeth upõ Earth as moulde upõ moulde;
Earth goeth upõ Earth all glittering as golde,
As though earth to y^e earth never turne sholde;
And yet shall earth to y^e earth sooner than he wolde.
On a tomb at Edmonton of unknown date (possibly sixteenth century),
mentioned by Weever (_Ancient Funerall Monuments_) in 1631, and by
Pettigrew (_Chronicles of the Tombs_, p. 67) in 1857:--
Erth goyth upon erth as mold upon mold,
Erth goyth upon erth al glisteryng in gold,
As though erth to erth ner turne shold,
And yet must erth to erth soner than he wolde.
Formerly on a headstone in St. James's Churchyard, Clerkenwell,
deciphered about 1812, but already lost in 1851, probably owing to the
dismantling of the churchyard. (Cf. _Notes and Queries_, III. i. 389):--
Earth walks on Earth like glittering gold;
Earth says to Earth 'We are but mold'.
Earth builds on Earth castles & towers;
Earth says to Earth, 'All shall be ours!'
Formerly on a tombstone at St. Martin's, Ludgate, to Florens Caldwell
esq. of London & Ann Mary Wilde, his wife (Pettigrew, p. 67)[26]:--
Earth goes to Earth, as mold to mold;
Earth treads on Earth, glittering in gold:
Earth as to Earth returne ne'er shoulde;
Earth shall to Earth goe e'er he wolde.
Earth upon Earth consyder may;
Earth goes to Earth naked away.
Earth though on Earth be stowt & gay
Earth shall from Earth passe poore away.
Be mercifull & charitable,
Relieve the poor as thou art able.
A shrowd to the grave
Is all thou shalt have.
This interesting monument has unfortunately disappeared. Doubtless there
are many other traces of the poem to be found, but it appears to have
been rarely used on tombstones after 1700,[27] and earlier monuments,
unless specially preserved, are rarely decipherable at the present day.