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blunder the annotator made another much more serious, and so it has continued to our own times.

In Ormerod's "Cheshire," (vol. i. p. 391,) under Owlarton, we have a summary of the difficulties connected with this entry; but the learned author's

solution is not satisfactory. He is satisfied, however, that the passage relates to Frodsham, and has nothing to do with Bucklow Hundred.

I am, &c.,
JOHN ROBSON, M.D.
Warrington, Oct. 18, 1862.

RESTORATIONS.

MR. URBAN,-My letter in your last number respecting the destruction of the Guesten Hall at Worcester, has been misconstrued into an attack on the Dean and Chapter. It was not at all so intended. I regret that they were so far misled by a vague fear of an enormous expense, and fell into a fatal mistake; but I exonerate them from any serious blame, and give them credit for the best intentions, and believe that they have made great sacrifices already, and are continuing to do so.

I am not one of those who find fault with the manner in which the cathedral is being restored, and talk about the "destructive restoration." I think that such persons do not make a fair allowance for the difficulties of the task, arising from the very bad material of which the cathedral is built. On the exterior, the surface of the stone was so completely perished that it was absolutely necessary to renew the whole of it; in the interior, a great deal of very beautiful work has been preserved, but a great deal more had been either entirely destroyed, or very much mutilated at the time of the civil wars and at other times. All this is being restored with great care and skill, and the carver employed displays wonderful ability: his work is quite equal to the old work, and is often mistaken for it by those who think themselves good judges. I am afraid that in a few instances the consciousness of having such a skilful hand at command has led to the renewal of some of the old work which might have been preserved; old mouldings and carvings have been thrown aside and replaced by new, merely beGENT, MAG, VOL. CCXIII,

cause they were a little chipped, or some small pieces of foliage knocked off. This should never be done; we should always bear in mind that these old buildings are historical monuments, and even though the work of the nineteenth century may be better than that of the thirteenth, it cannot be the same; a link in the chain of evidence is destroyed; we want to see the work of the hands of the men who lived in the thirteenth century carefully preserved, and not to brag what a clever copy of it we have made. But in this respect the restorations going on at Worcester are not worse than other restorations: some other architects may preach more about the preservation of every fragment of ancient art, but in practice I do not see that there is much real difference. I lately went to see a small country church which is now being restored by an architect who vehemently professes himself to be particularly conservative. I was told that it was a cruciform Early English Church, with a western tower: I found on my arrival that the tower had been entirely rebuilt from the foundations, and a spire added; the nave and chancel were then level with the ground, and the workmen were busy digging up the foundations of the chancel, which had to be lengthened two feet. The end wall and part of the side walls of each of the transepts were preserved, because they have remarkable chantry altars and tombs, or, at least, the recesses for them, with the seats and piscinas; these are curious, and were very properly preserved. There was a third chantry altar in the tower, which is very unusual, and this has been replaced by a new stone

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altar, with the old arch-mouldings and piscina; which is considered highly conservative.

Our ancestors were very familiar with a practice called underpinning, when the foundations of a building were giving way from any cause. Our modern architects do not find it convenient to follow this practice, because it requires skill and care, and constant attention: the work must be watched day by day by some competent person. An architect who undertakes a hundred churches at once cannot possibly adopt the practice of underpinning; his only plan is that which he adopts,—

begin by levelling the old building to the ground, then send down working drawings for a new building to the old pattern, with such improvements as he thinks desirable. For instance, in the small church before mentioned there was a very good Squint across the angle of the north transept, which would enable the people in that transept to see and hear the priest at the altar as well as those in the nave: this is not to be restored; it is a local peculiarity, confined to certain districts, and a London architect does not approve of it.

This is called RESTORATION.

I am, &c., J. H. PARKER.

TESSELLATED PAVEMENT.

MR. URBAN,-I beg to bring under your notice a fine specimen of Roman art not previously described, and concerning which I offer you a few particulars. It is a tessellated pavement in the possession of a bricklayer at Borough Bridge, obtained by him many years ago in large blocks, and put aside until lately, when having some spare time, he has laid it down in a small summerhouse. He has restored it so cleverly that it now presents a very beautiful specimen of Roman work. About thirteen or fourteen years ago I recollect being shewn a rough sketch of it, but having about the same time left this part of the country, I had forgotten all about it till my attention was recalled to the subject a few days ago.

At present it appears six feet square, owing to the fanciful additions of the possessor in various sized tessera of de

signs not in harmony with the central device. The centre piece, about three feet square, represents an animal under a tree, with two small objects in red tesseræ beneath the animal's belly. The animal and tree are in blue on a ground of white tesseræ. A deep border of blue, with two or three courses of red tessera beyond, complete the portion that is genuine.

The design is well and carefully constructed of small tesseræ, and a work of considerable artistic value when compared with many other pavements still extant at Aldborough.

You will be glad to learn that it is shortly to be moved, and presented, through the munificence of one of the members, to the Philosophical and Literary Society of Leeds.-I am, &c.

CHARLES MOORE JESSOP.
Bilton-hall, York, Oct. 17, 1862.

PROFESSOR STEPHENS AND THE MAES-HOWE INSCRIPTIONS.

MR. URBAN,—I read with some de gree of surprise in your September number the letter of Professor Stephens, in which he states that I had not given any of his readings correctly. I am glad to find from a letter just received from him, that he admits that to the general public the difference is very slight indeed, but that to professed

runologists the very mode of printing the letters is of importance, though it does not alter the meaning of the word. As an instance, in No. 15 the word Raeist should have been Raist, ae diphthong instead of ae. Few persons unskilled in runology, who may take the trouble to compare the readings given by me in "Maes-howe" with those fur

nished to you by Professor Stephens, will be able to perceive much difference. On referring to the MSS. sent to me, I find that with the exception of an occasional printer's error, which escaped my notice when revising the sheets, I have given the exact words used by the Professor, and of course adopted by me. Even now in some of the readings, No. 5 for instance, I look in vain for any difference between my version of the Professor's reading as given in "Maeshowe," and his own as published in your Magazine.

I must apologize for thus intruding on your columns, but I feel anxious to exculpate myself from the general charge of inaccuracy in publishing the readings of Professor Stephens, the tone of whose letter, however, is such as to prove that he did not in reality wish to cast as much blame upon me as his observations, perhaps somewhat hastily committed to paper, would seem to imply.

I am, &c.

JAMES FARRER.

THE KING'S HOUSE, AT WORCESTER.

MR. URBAN,-In your interesting account of the meeting of the Archæological Institute at Worcester, in your number for September, p. 304, is this passage:

"The King's House,' in the old Corn-market, was next visited. Mr. Parker declared the date of 1577, inscribed on the outer wall, and the motto, "Fear God, Honour the King,' connected therewith, to be the date of the building, and to have no reference to the fact of King Charles's connection with the house. The initials W. B.' are supposed to be those of the Berkeley to whom the house once belonged, but to whom the 'R. D.' referred is not known, unless they are the initials of Mr. Berkeley's wife's maiden name."

I have taken much interest in this

old house, and visited it several times. The first time I saw it was in September, 1852. The part of it at the angle of New-street and the Corn-market had been pulled down about fifty years before, but the remaining portion had its projecting upper story and picturesque gables still extant. At my last visit in October, 1860, I found these had disappeared, and an ugly slate roof had been substituted. With regard to the inscription, I read it thus,-"Love God. (W. B. 1577. R. D.) Honor the Kinge;" and it was explained to me as having been put up after the Restoration by Mr. R. Durant, who inhabited the house at the time King Charles took up his residence in it during the siege of Wor

cester, the inscription referring to that event, the initials W. B. and date to the builder of the house, and R. D. to the occupier. The house must have been built either by William Berkeley, who was Mayor of Hereford 1543, and M.P. for Hereford 1549 and 1553, and who afterwards settled in Worcester,-he married Elizabeth Burgwash or Burghill, or by his son William. But this son settled at Kilrudden, co. Limerick, and there is no record of him as living in Worcester, nor can I discover the name of his wife.

Rowland Berkeley, M.P. for Worcester from 1593 to 1601, the youngest son of the Mayor of Hereford and the founder of the Berkeley family at Spetchley, inhabited it, and here his son, the eminent Judge, was born, July 26, 1584. Rowland Berkeley died June 1, 1611.

I will conclude by giving two extracts; the first from "The History and Antiquities of the City and Suburbs of Worcester, by Valentine Green," 2 vols. 4to., 1796. Vol. i. p. 284:

"The house at the corner of the north end of New-street, on its east side, is said to have been the King's quarters whilst at Worcester. The tradition is handed down in strong and direct terms by the oldest inhabitants of the city, and by the relatives of the proprietors and possessors of the house at that time, whose names were Durant. The room in which the King slept faces the Cornmarket. Over the entrance of the house

is this inscription, 'LOVE GOD. (W. B. 1577. R. D.) HONOR THE KINGE.' It is the largest of the old houses in the city. Mr. Cooksey has, however, stated strong evidence also that the King's 'secret quarters' were at the White Ladies g. But, unless we allow that he had both public and private quarters, the one within and the other without the walls, we can hardly suppose he would have taken up his residence at such a distance from the town, in which his presence was every moment required."

And the second from "A Concise History of the City and Suburbs of Worcester," 1 vol., 12mo. Eaton, College-street, Worcester, 1816. Page 21:

"During the hurry and bustle of the morning (Sept. 3, 1651), the King appointed the chief officers of his army to rendezvous at the house in which he resided, towards the north end of Newstreet; the room in which they met was the King's bedchamber, facing the Cornmarket. Over the entrance of the house was this inscription, Love God. (W. B. 1577 R. D.) Honour the King. It was the largest of the old houses in the city. He there proposed to them the measure of attacking the main army of the enemy with the whole force of the city."

I am, &c.,

Sept. 20, 1862.

THE COTTERELS IN THE ISLE OF SHEPPEY.

MR. URBAN,-In the Number of your Magazine for September, 1860 (pp. 237 -245), is an interesting article entitled "A Visit to Sheppey," which may be relied upon as a faithful guide to that locality. Speaking of the lowlands of the island, it is stated that they "shew every here and there the remarkable mounds called the Cotterels, which, thanks to local tradition, call to mind Hasting and the Northmen;" and Seymour, in his "Survey" of Kent (A.D. 1776), remarks that "there are several hillocks in the marshy parts of the isle, which the inhabitants call cotterels, supposed to have been cast up in memory of some of the Danish leaders buried there."

Instigated by the passage in your Magazine referred to above, I and two antiquarian friends yesterday visited Sheppey for the purpose of examining the Cotterels. We came upon them at about a mile beyond Eastchurch; but we could see they extended, at intervals, both to the right and to the left far beyond the spot we selected for inspecting them. They present somewhat the ap

"Supplement to the GENTLEMAN'S MAGAZINE for 1790, p. 1191.

Cooksey's Essay on the Lives of Lord Somers and the Earl of Hardwicke, pp. 4, 5."

M. N.

pearance of the oblong barrows of the west of England: but are more irregular in shape and often of greater magnitude, their height being usually about ten feet. We interrogated many of the islanders, and especially the labourers of the farms adjoining the marshes; but not one knew them by the term "cotterels." Neither could we find that they had any particular theory about them. "When do you think," said I to a labourer residing near a group of them, "they were thrown up ?" "I don't believe," he replied, "they ever was throw'd up." He did not think, as we were disposed to believe, that they had been raised as a retreat for sheep and cattle in inundations.

Our impression is that these mounds were formed when the trenches were cut in the marshes, with the earth (a tenacious clay) excavated; probably that the pasture might be kept level, and that, at the same time, the sheep might resort to them in case of high and sudden floods. But if we are not completely satisfied with this explanation, we are fully convinced they are not the burial-places either of Danes or of any other people.-I am, &c.,

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The Note-book of Sylvanus Urban.

[Under this title are collected brief notes of matters of current antiquarian interest which do not appear to demand more formal treatment. SYLVANUS URBAN invites the kind co-operation of his Friends, who may thus preserve a record of many things that would otherwise pass away.]

MEDIEVAL STAMFORD.-There are still existing in Stamford numerous remains of buildings erected in the Middle Ages, the great majority of which, however, are unknown to the antiquary. A sale on the premises of the late Mr. M. W. Jackson, surgeon, in St. Martin's in the early part of August last, afforded an opportunity for examining some interesting remains-those of the chapel dedicated to St. Mary Magdalene, the vaults of which are now known as the beer and wine cellars, the chancel above as the back kitchen, and the room over the last named, immediately below the open timber roof, as the nursery. The ground-plan of the chapel can be unmistakeably traced. One of the jambs of the western entrance to the nave, containing the iron staples, remain: the nave has disappeared altogether; the form of the Decorated chancel, however, is almost complete, but it has been considerably metamorphosed in adapting it for domestic use. The gable of the high-pitched roof is surmounted by a crocketed finial, the base of which exhibits a trefoil in a sunken panel. The chancel was entered from an ambulatory or aisle (now perfect), the priest's doorway, pierced in the north wall, being blocked. In the south wall are the remains of a sedilia and two aumbries. There is not an existing example in any of the Stamford churches. The position of the sedilia here is the sill of the south-eastern window, where they are frequently found in small churches. Aumbries, or lockers, are recesses in the wall, made for the preservation of sacred vessels. Those here are still used, but for a very different purpose, the cook finding them a convenient depository for unsightly trifles. Several aumbries were found in the interior of All Saints' Church when it was restored a few years ago, but these, with two handsome holy-water stoups, were obliterated by the plasterer in accordance with instructions given by the committee! The garth on the north side is still enclosed by mediæval erections, westward of which, and northward of the ambulatory, are the kitchen, dormitories, and other offices. The refectory would not be very distant from the kitchen: it was probably eastward of the chapel, from which there was a communication southward, as shewn by a Decorated doorway (blocked) in Mr. Pollard's passage. It would seem that there was a place of sepulture attached to this chapel, as on the south side human bones were found during the occupancy of the premises by the late Mr. Z. Pollard. The chapel in St. Martin's having been dedicated to a saint of whose original impurity, but subsequent repentance, faith, and piety the Gospel speaks, and as many establishments were formed in England and other countries of Europe for penitent females who had lived a life of incontinence, it is probable that there existed here in the fourteenth century a "penitent female's home." The most conspicuous and earliest known of these establishments was that at Naples, founded in 1324, which would be coeval with the one at Stamford. They were all known by the name of Magdalene, and their chapels were dedi

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