Page:VCH Northamptonshire 1.djvu/495

 MONUMENTAL EFFIGIES the tomb is the following inscription: ?^ic jacet 3o)ie Creaag milea t'nus isti btlU quonbam capitani tst Egcicui ©rfatf ct ^ontltutquE in i^ormaliia ac cociliati tint regis in Jtancia qui obiit apuli 2EobE in ILairina iiii° tiit marcii anno fini m" cccc iliiii cui aixie ppicietut teuB, amen. It is uncertain whether a portrait has been produced in the effigy ; circumstances were certainly against accuracy, but no doubt it was attempted, and that the memorial some- what resembles one of the most notable of the ancient worthies of the county. The eyes however are treated in the narrow slit fashion of sculptors of the day. The neck is shaved high up into the hair, which is cropped to a hard line round the head, far above the ears, and according to the ugly custom then pre- vailing. It is also doubtful whether the body of the captain of Lisieux, Orbef and Pont I'Eveque lies within the panelled alabaster altar-tomb, with its lines of angels holding shields of arms, alternating with ' weepers ' ; but if he is indeed enshrined within this grace- ful grave, it may well be said that 'after life's fitful fever he sleeps well.' John Dycson. Died 1445. Yelvertoft. Under a canopy in the north wall of the chancel lies the alabaster effigy of John Dyc- son, who was presented to the church in 1439. He is represented wearing the usual sacerdotal vestments, consisting of alb, stole, chasuble, maniple and amice, with the very unusual addition for a priest of a dalmatic worn under the chasuble. The head of the figure rests upon a pillow supported by mutilated angels, and the feet upon a kneeling lamb. The whole of the surface of the alabaster on one side has been disintegrated, apparently by the dropping of water from the roof. The wall outside the chancel at the back of the tomb is beautifully panelled and decorated with quatre- foils. Archdeacon Sponne. Died 1448. Tow- cester. This liberal-minded ecclesiastic was buried before the altar of the Virgin in the parish church of St. Laurence. The effigy lies upon an open altar-tomb consisting of eight but- tressed shafts, with open four-centred and cusped arches, with foliage in their spandrels. The upper slab is richly moulded, and orna- mented with the Sponne arms and roses, and forms a canopy over ' the lively picture of death ' which lies beneath it. This lower stone effigy represents a corpse stretched upon a winding-sheet, and shows considerable power of sculpture and knowledge of anatomy. When the church was repewed in 1835, it was thought necessary to lower the actual tomb of the archdeacon, and it was then dis- covered that the oblong sepulchre which con- tained the body was formed of rough slabs of limestone, strongly cemented together, with an opening loosely closed on the south side. The skeleton of the deceased was found in a perfect state of preservation, lying on a bed of fine white sand, and with no trace of any vestments or coffin. The archdeacon is represented in a long cassock, or toga talaris coccinea, reaching below the feet, and with sleeves closely buttoned at the wrists ; a ' surples wythe slevys ' ; and an almutium, or aumasse, a furred tippet and hood covering the breast and shoulders. These are not the usual eucharistic vestments, but those of a canon of a cathedral or a member of some collegiate or conventual foundation as attired in the choir habit. Sculptured effi- gies in this costume are extremely rare, but the feoffees of the Sponne charity, in their laudable zeal to preserve this fine monument, did not retain the original colours of the vest- ments. Up to the year 1883 they were all painted black. The entire tomb is of clunch except the head and hands of the archdeacon's effigy, which were of oak. The tonsure is not shown on the head of the upper effigy or on that of the skeleton figure. It would have been satisfactory if it could now have been recorded that the active his- tory of this interesting memorial to the town's great benefactor ceased before the lamentable restoration of the church in 1 883. But at that time the effigy of the archdeacon was ' denu- dated ' or stripped by a tool of all its coats of paint, including that which gave the original colours of the vestments ; the figure was de- capitated, and a new and gross stone head with wild Medusa-like locks put in the place of the wooden one, and bearing of course no kind of resemblance to it or to work of the period of the effigy. In the old head it is probable that there was some likeness of the man. It had been treated with gesso for painting after the usual medieval manner, and was in perfect harmony with the figure ; in the modern one it is certain that there is none. The only authority for this absolutely needless and mischievous work was that of the legal guardians of the memorial — the vicar and churchwardens ! To crown all, at the present day, the original head is ' lost ' ! This particular case — which it is difficult to allude to with any kind of moderation — is mentioned as a very glaring instance of the ignorant and barbarous manner in which local history is dislocated or written backwards, and II