ON RECENTLY DISCOVERED MURAL PAINTINGS IN OUR ENGLISH CHURCHES.

By C. E. KEYSER, M.A., F.S.A.

In February and May, 1896, I read a paper before this Society on the subject of the recent discoveries of mural paintings in our churches and other ancient buildings which had been brought to light, or to my notice, since the publication of the South Kensington List in 1883.' I now propose to continue the report up to the present time, as although only a short time has elapsed since the publication of my last paper, a certain number of interesting finds have been noted, which may well be collected, so as to form a short but comprehensive treatise of our subject up to date. I only wish I could produce some illustrations, but my attempts to have some of the series photographed have not turned out very successful, and I have not thought it worth while to `make any further effort in this direction.

Starting from the eastern counties, I must first mention. some paintings recently discovered at Norwich Cathedral, chiefly in the south aisle, which have been duly described by Mr. W. H. St. John Hope, and an account of them published in the Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries, XVII. 308. At Ranworth Church, Norfolk, which is now undergoing restoration, is a decorative border, and traces of paintings are discernible beneath the whitewash on the nave walls, which will, I hope, be explored, when the new roof has been placed in position. At Carleton Rode, in the same county, visited in 1897, are numerous consecration crosses, which have been repainted. The chancel screen, simply referred to as "painted" in the List, has figures of St. Paul and the eleven Apostles, omitting St. Matthew, all well and boldly depicted on the panels.

At Tacolneston close by is, on the north wall of the

1 See Archæological Journal, LIII. (2nd Series III.) 108, 160-191, 192.

chancel, a very beautiful consecration cross, with a white rim, a sort of olive green ground, and chocolate-coloured lines forming the arms. The lower portion of the screen, now standing against the chancel wall, has been preserved. Only two of the panels have been painted, but the colouring is so fresh and brilliant that it suggests the idea that the work must have been stopped by the advent of the Reformation. The mouldings of the panels have been painted ivory white, with flowers and foliage in red and green, quite equal in their execution to the magnificent examples at Ranworth and Attleborough. The panels have been decorated with gilding and gesso work, and there has been a subject on each which has been intentionally injured. On the one panel is an outdoor scene with trees, half a cell, a kneeling figure of a monk in black with hand on a book, while a richly vested female holding a box stands over him. On the next panel adjoining the former doors is a scarlet bed, two windows, etc. a kneeling figure in black, another figure richly robed standing over, and perhaps an animal, possibly lion, at his or her feet. The painting is very good, but the faces have been wilfully scratched over. is rare to find subjects like these painted on the panels of the Norfolk screens, and it is uncertain to what these refer, though it has been suggested that they are intended to represent the temptation and death of St. Anthony.

It

In this same year (1897) I was asked by the Council of the Society of Antiquaries to go down to Dovercourt, in Essex, and see whether any discoveries of importance had been made there. Accordingly I paid a visit to the church in October, and found the work of restoration still going on. The walls were in a very bad condition, but traces of texts, etc. were everywhere apparent. At the east end of the nave on the north side is the Lord's Praver twice in red and black letter with rich crimson border, perhaps of the periods of Edward VI. and Queen Elizabeth. There are traces of vermilion colouring belonging to an earlier series. Between the window and north doorway are the Commandments of Elizabethan date, and part of an earlier subject, apparently our Lord with cruciform nimbus, holding some object with

yellow waved lines in his left hand. On the south wall are traces of texts, and a nice decorative border in crimson is carried along above the wallplate and round the head of the window. Above the doorway is an ermine cap and feathers; on the plaster above it were the letters "Henri y IV." I believe that similar caps were afterwards found on other parts of the walls.

At St. Alban's Cathedral, on the east wall of the chapel enclosing the shrine of St. Alban, a small portraiture of an archbishop, corresponding with that of St. William of York on the same wall, has recently been brought to light. In July of last year my attention was drawn to some discoveries at Abbots Langley, in Hertfordshire, and accordingly, accompanied by my friend Mr. P. H. Newman, who is an expert in these matters, I paid an early visit to the church. The paintings are on the walls of the beautiful decorated chapel on the south side of the chancel. On the east wall, on the north side of the east window, was a large figure of a bishop, and a corresponding one on the south side was afterwards uncovered by Mr. Newman. On the south and west walls were a series of small subjects within square divisions separated by a bright vermilion border, which are thought to represent scenes in the earthly life of Christ. The date seems to be of the early part of the fourteenth century.

In 1897 I received information as to the finding of some paintings at Rampton and Kingston, in Cambridgeshire, and accordingly in September I was able to run down and inspect them. At Rampton on the north wall of the nave near the east end was a very large portraiture of St. Christopher. The whitewash had been very carelessly removed, and only the head and upper part of the saint, with the Infant Christ seated on his shoulder, could be clearly deciphered. Above is a pretty foliaged pattern with bunches of berries. In the lower part of the painting, the St. Christopher, which probably dates from the fifteenth century, has been scraped away, and the operator has uncovered an earlier pattern of double lines enclosing trefoils in red, with a very bold scroll border of the thirteenth century. Traces of decoration occur on other parts of the walls,

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round the chancel arch; etc. Round the head and down the jambs of the north doorway is a pattern of dentils in red. An account of the paintings is to be found in the East Anglian, VII. (new series), 253-5.

At Kingston, visited on the same day, the church had been recently restored and several very interesting paintings brought to light, but all in a somewhat mutilated condition. Over the chancel arch on a red ground were traces of a large subject, probably the Doom. On the north wall of the north aisle between the two east windows is the familiar portraiture of St. Christopher, most of the upper part having been destroyed. In the next space westward, and partly over the west doorway, is a large representation of St. George and the Dragon. St. George is riding on a white horse, and his spear has pierced the neck of the prostrate dragon, which has the head and jaws of a crocodile. On the same north wall are traces of two other subjects not yet divested of the whitewash. On the west wall, partly concealed by the present lean-to roof, is a large and interesting example of the wheel of the seven deadly sins. In the upper part is a large wheel with yellow rim and spokes having an edging of red. There is a medallion in the centre, and traces of the representations of the sins between the spokes. On the upper side left are parts of a figure, probably a demon. Below, the subject is somewhat confused, but is, I think, intended for the jaws of Hell. A large demon on the left with horns, bat's wings, and tail is blowing a horn, and there seem to be at least four figures in the mouth of Hell, some apparently having been hauled in. The idea seems to be that the wheel is revolving, and that the sins, as they arrive at the bottom, are seized and hurled down into the depths of Hell.' These paintings are apparently of the fifteenth century.

In 1898 the restoration of Barby Church, Northamptonshire, near Rugby, was commenced, and I was asked by the rector to pay him a visit and give him some advice on the discoveries he had made. Accordingly, in June, when the restoration was still in progress, I went

For list of the various examples of this subject, see Archaological Journal, XLIX. 343.

down in the hope that, as in the case of many of the other Northamptonshire churches, interesting specimens of mural paintings might be brought to light. In this I was somewhat disappointed. The church had been previously thoroughly churchwardenised, and the walls were in a rotten condition. The chancel arch has been coloured in red, and the voussoirs of the soffit have been painted alternately red and white with blotches of a deep red. There are texts of various dates on east wall of nave and in north aisle. On east wall of north aisle is a pattern of lilies, and the same design appears on two niches in the north wall. There are traces all along the north wall, and by the north door a gigantic foot, part of a bare leg, and several fish in the water, demonstrating the former existence of a large picture of St. Christopher. To the west of the doorway, and on south. wall of south aisle, were further traces of colour, but nothing of interest has, it is believed, been since discovered. In 1898 I was asked by the Society of Antiquaries to report upon some paintings which had been found at Stowell, in Gloucestershire, and accordingly in October of that year and in the following spring I visited the church, and collected the materials for a short paper, which was read before the Society and appears in Vol. XVII. p. 382, of their Proceedings. The little church was mainly built during the last quarter of the twelfth century, and the paintings chiefly belong to this date. The principal remains are on the north wall of the nave, opposite to the main entrance, but there is some evidence that the subject was continued along the west and south walls of the nave and the walls of the south transept, though here we have portions of later subjects mixed up with the earlier series. The main picture provides us with a very early representation of the Doom. In the centre, under a semi-circular headed arch, is a figure of our Lord seated and with both hands upraised. On either side have been three similar arches, within each of which are seated two of the Apostles. St. Peter occupies the position on the right, and St. Paul on the left of our Lord. There are traces of angels above, at the side, and below, and several nude figures, some collected in a sheet, no doubt portray the risen souls receiving the