Reports of Proceedings 1930

( 315 ) REPORTS OF PROCEEDINGS, 1930. SPRING MEETING. THE Annual General Meeting of the Society was held at the Museum, Maidstone, on Thursday, April 3rd, at noon. The Rev. C. Eveleigh Woodruff, M.A., Vice-President, occupied the chair, and there was a fair attendance of members considering the wet weather. The Report and Accounts for 1929 were passed and other business transacted, particulars of which appear in the Council's Report in the present volume. In the afternoon a General Meeting was held, which was largely attended. Two lectures were dehvered by members of the Society, the Brst by Mr. Ralph Griffin, F.S.A., on " The Heraldry of Kent, with some account of the sources from which it can be derived, and the mode in which the knowledge of it can be turned to account by the antiquary and archaeologist." This lecture was illustrated by lantern slides. Mr. Woods Wollaston, Norroy King of Arms, thanked Mr. Griffin for his lecture and added a few remarks on certain aspects of the subject. The second lecture was contributed by Dr. Gordon Ward on "The Old Potteries at High Halden," in which he gave the results of investigations which he had made on the spot into the history and working of the potteries, and which he hoped to foUow up stiU further. Specimens of the pottery were on view. The Chairman, the Rev. C. E. Woodruff, expressed the thanks of all present to both lecturers. SUMMER MEETING. The Summer Excursion was held in Gravesend and District on July 24th and 25th, and was largely attended, about 230 tickets having been issued. Excellent arrangements were made by Mr. F. C. EUiston Erwood, F.S.A., Hon. Excursion Secretary. 316 REPORTS OE PROCEEDINGS. On the first day members assembled at the Town Hall at 10.30 to meet the Mayor, Mr. Graham Leigh Simmonds, who welcomed the Society on this, the third occasion on which it has visited Gravesend. The Rev. Canon S. W. Wheatley, F.S.A., thanked the Mayor on behalf of the Society and those present. The party then left for Milton Chantry, which was described by Mr. A. J. Philip, M.B.E., F.L.A., the Borough Librarian. This Chantry, built between 1290 and 1324, was originally either a part of Milton Church or a chapel surviving from more extensive buildings. After many vicissitudes, during which it has served as part of a rectory, a tavern, and even a fort, it was bought by the Corporation from the War Office at the end of the war. If the necessary funds can be raised for its restoration—Mr. PhiUp mentioned the figure of £2,000—it is proposed to make use of it as a town museum. On leaving Milton the members drove to Shorne, where they were met by the Rev. C. E. Marsh, M.A. References to old houses in Shorne, Celtic interments, the Church, and to Master John Shorne occur in Vols. XXVII , XXIV and XI of Arch. Cant. The many interesting features of the church were dealt with by Canon Wheatley. The position of and approach to Shorne Church are striking and may have had an effect on the character of the buUding, for the chief entrance is by a N. porch, an uncommon feature, and the fine effect of the lofty internal tower arch has in part been gained by the flight of six steps required to reach the tower floor. That there was an early church here is manifested by the presence of a double-splayed clerestory window in the arcade wall of the N. side almost opposite the porch door; it has been described by many authorities as Saxon. Also an early church is suggested by the dual dedication to St. Peter and St. Paul, the latter name having since been allowed to drop out. The early church was doubtless quite small: a nave 40 ft. in length perhaps, and a chancel about 20 ft. It may clearly be surmised that the wall on the N. side was pierced to form an arcade when REPORTS OE PROCEEDINGS. 317 a N. aisle was added. StiU later, perhaps in the thirteenth century, the chancel was extended E. and the nave W. ; a chancel dedicated to St. Nicholas was added on the N. and one to the B.V.M. on the S. side. The S. nave wall gave place in the late thirteenth century to the present arcading and S. aisle. In the fifteenth century the impressive tower was built, with its " chequered " parapet and flint panelled buttresses. The nave arcading on the N. side is puzzhng ; the E. bay is very plain and is Norman in style ; the next bay W. seems to be E.E. and the W. bay Dec. In the piers of the chancel arch are fragments of interesting earlier work. The N. porch is ascribed to the fifteenth century. A narrow lancet window, presumably E.E., is to be seen in the W. waU of the N. aisle, where it seems to be out of its place. The differing width of the aisles ought to be noticed. The fifteenth century font is well-known. Seven of the octagonal panels of the bowl are carved, and one is left plain, possibly because at one time that facet was placed against a wall. The carving has vigour but no marked delicacy of expression. The subjects are : (1) a chalice with a wafer ; (2) the Baptism of Christ (the Baptist is using a jug) ; (3) St. Michael the Archangel weighing souls ; (4) the sacred monogram within a quatrefoil; (5) the Agnus Dei; (6) St. Peter holding in his right hand a spired church and in his left the keys ; (7) a very interesting panel: Christ stepping in triumph out of the tomb. The cross-legged effigy of Henry de Cobham doubtless represents the builder of the chancel in which it is placed. Two demi-piUars on the N. side of the N. arcading, one against an old piece of nave walling and the other against the chancel pier, are curious. Canon Scott Robertson suggested that they were signs of a proposed vaulting for this aisle, but they seem rather substantially built for vaulting shafts. Almost opposite the porch is an old capital, probably Norman and used perhaps later as a bracket for an image. Two old woodwork screens, fourteenth and fifteenth century respectively, fill in the arcading on the N. side of the chancel. Messrs. Griffin and Stephenson give a list of nine brasses formerly in this church; 318 REPORTS OE PROCEEDINGS. in 1912 six of these were loose in the church chest; others remain in situ. There is an admirable modern window by Reginald HaUward. At Cobham, the principal objective of the day, full arrangements had been made for the party. The church with its famous brasses was first visited, the members being conducted round by the Rev. A. H. Berger, M.A., and Mr. F. H. Day, F.S.A. A useful diagram indicating the position and names of the brasses in the church was printed in the programme. The church and afterwards the CoUege were described by Mr. Aymer VaUance, F.S.A., who contributes a paper on the subject to the present volume ; and explanation of the brasses was given by Mr. Ralph Griffin, F.S.A., by means of a series of rubbings displayed in the HaU of the College, to which the members passed after lunch at the " Old Leather Bottle." Members then resumed their journey and soon reached Southfleet, where the description of the Church was undertaken by Mr. A. A. Burrows. Dedicated to St. Nicholas, Southfleet church dates mainly from the fourteenth century, but stands on the site of a Saxon church, which itself replaced a Roman temple, the only remains of which are two small red tiles to the right of the porch. It contains a good deal of fourteenth century glass and an octagonal fifteenth century font resembling that at Shorne (see p. 317). but with an antelope in one of the panels. There are also good brasses of the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. A short run then brought the party to Swanscombe, where the church was. described by Mr. F. C. EUiston Erwood (see his paper in the present volume). The last place to be visited on this day was Northfleet, where the church is a large and fine building, dedicated to St. Botolph. Here the Vicar, the Rev. C. G. T. Colson, M.A., took charge of the party and gave an address, deahng with some special features in the church. The S.W. quoin of the nave, adjoining the tower, shows long-and-short work in tufa, the sole remaining fragment of the stone Saxon church, which probably replaced an earUer REPORTS OE PROCEEDINGS. 319 wooden one destroyed by the Danes. The church was extended in Norman times, the arch of its west tower (c. 1180) still standing in the present fabric, most of which is of the fourteenth century. The present tower was built inside the ruins of the Norman one, when it feU, in 1628. The church was subjected to a not very successful restoration in 1886, during which the chancel, was raised, so that the early fourteenth century wooden rood-screen, one of the oldest and finest in Kent, no longer shows to the best advantage. There are three brasses, of which the most interesting is that of Peter de Lacy (1375), Rector of Northfleet and secretary to the Black Prince. There are good sedilia and an exceptionally fine carved chest. After leaving Northfleet, a short drive brought the members to Gravesend in good time to prepare for the evening meeting at the Town Hall. For this a representative coUection of Gravesend prints and antiquities had been got together by Mr. A. J. Philip and members of the Gravesend and District Archseological and Scientific Society. The Mayor was present and there was a good attendance. An interesting lecture was delivered by Mr. A. J. Philip, entitled A Brief Sketch of the History of Gravesend, with lantern illustrations. Mr. Philip began by contrasting the greatness of the past history of the Borough with the deplorably scanty relics that have survived. The earliest material evidence of historic man in the district was the GaUey HiU skull discovered in 1889 in the middle deposit of the 100 foot terrace of the Thames vaUey; then .there was the twinchamber denehole from which he had recovered worked flints and also found what were thought to be horn pick marks. All the evidence went to show that Gravesend was the centre of a great industrial or commercial people several hundred years before the Roman occupation. The Romans inhabited a half circle extending from a mile down the river below Gravesend to two mUes up it, just beyond Northfleet, where a Roman farmhouse was excavated in 1910. He also described various Saxon sites, notably in the neighbourhood 320 REPORTS OE PROCEEDINGS. of Meopham church, and the ninth century Danish or Saxon chapel at Denton. The chief link with Norman times was Milton Chantry, which the members had visited that morning. Mr. Philip then showed and described a number of lantern slides illustrating the later history of Gravesend: notably the defence of the river at the time of the Spanish Armada— the first recorded instance of a bridge of boats across the Thames; the Princess Pocahontas, who was buried in Gravesend; and the popularity of the place as a hohday resort in the early part of the last century. The chair was taken by Mr. E. C. Matthews. Hearty votes of thanks were passed to the lecturer and to the local Society for their assistance in carrying through the meeting. On the second day the first place to be visited was Nursted Court, the home of Major H. Edmeades and an ancient and remarkable house, which has undergone much alteration and even now presents problems. It was described by Mr. Aymer VaUance. Proceeding next to Meopham, the party was met by the Rev. G. A. Tait, M.A., who shared with Dr. Golding-Bird the description of the church. Dedicated to St. John the Baptist, Meopham Church is a pure example of Early English architecture, all traces of the earlier Saxon and Norman churches having disappeared. The oldest portions are the lower half of the tower, and the E. end (13th cent.). The church is rubble built, and on the S. chancel wall are remains of rough-cast. The spiral staircase, characteristic of Kentish towers, is in this case concealed in the S.E. angle. At the angle between the E. wall of the vestry and the N. waU of the chancel is an oblique course of hoUowed stones forming a pipe leading to a water tank from the gutter above. On the outer arch of the porch can be seen several masons' marks, in the form of a Y with a bar across it, probably representing an Archbishop's paUium combined with a cross, and standing for Archbishop Courtenay, who repaired the aisles, and presumably the porch, about 1500. The nave is of five bays, with octagonal REPORTS OE PROCEEDINGS. 32 1 columns, the archivolts of the arches being chamfered square. The splayed openings of the clerestory are original, but the tracery and glass are modern. Just before the Society's visit, a doorway above the pulpit, the original entry to the rood-loft, which had been closed with boards, was opened up, and the cupboard into which the staircase had long ago been converted was cleared out. This revealed the original stone stairway, a noticeable feature of which was that its access from the vestry was under a stone hood, closely resembling the hood of a Norman fireplace, whUe the partition waU between the vestry and the chancel, forming the left-hand wall of the stair, was found to be built of evenly spaced chalk " bricks." The old beam of the rood-loft is still preserved in the tower. In theN. waU of the chancel is a hagioscope, closed with an iron griU. There are remains of a low-side window, and there is a priest's door of shouldered pattern in the S. chancel wall. The mid-day halt was made at Wrotham, where the church was described by Mr. V. J. B. Torr. After lunch the route was resumed to Old Soar, Plaxtol, the residence of Mr. and Mrs. A. E. Lawrence. Here the Rev. Wilmot PhiUips, Rector of Plaxtol, undertook the description. Old Soar is the most perfect example of a thirteenth century Manor House survivmg in the county. Of the original building there stiU remain : the main HaU, measuring 28 by 18 feet, possibly the solar of an earUer haU on the site of the present farm ; a chamber leading from its N.W. corner; an oratory leading from its N.E. corner ; a rubble-vaulted undercroft; and turret containing a vice. The turret and the chamber are Ughted by cross-loops only, and were therefore fortified. The most interesting part is the oratory, which may, however, be a later addition. It measures 14£ by 10 feet, and contains, among other interesting features, a very perfect thirteenth century piscina with cinquefoilheaded arch, hexagonal basin and crocketted canopy. There is reason to beheve that the house stands on a site inhabited in Saxon times, and a Roman viUa was discovered near by 23 322 REPORTS OE PROCEEDINGS. some fifty years ago. The owners towards the end of the thirteenth century were the Culpepper family, and it has been suggested that the oratory was built as a chantry for the souls of Walter and Richard Culpepper, who were put to death in Leeds Castle, but a search for the hcence for a private oratory was fruitless. In EUzabeth's reign the manor was sold to the MiUar famUy, and passed by marriage to the Bartholomews in 1714. (For further details and plan see Architectural Review, Vol. 63, p . 136.) The party then left for Ightham, where they were cordiaUy welcomed by the Rector, the Rev. L. W. Browne, and a description of the church of St. Peter was given by Sir Edward Harrison. The oldest part of the building is the chancel, attributed to the first half of the twelfth century. The square chancel, the quoin-stones of squared blocks of tufa, and the two round-headed, blocked Ughts set high in the east wall, aU point to this date. The present nave, which probably replaced a Norman nave, the tower, south aisle and porch were aU built in the fifteenth century, but the N. aisle was rebuilt, probably between 1600 and 1650. The nave has a good fifteenth century roof which was opened up in 1912 after being hidden for many years by a plaster ceiling. The roughly-carved heads in the S. aisle suggest viUage craftsmanship. The screened enclosure at the E. end of the S. aisle was once the chapel of St. Catherine, and contains a square-headed piscina. The pre-reformation altars were removed in 1552, when the great inner door of the porch was made, the cost having been defrayed by the sale of a chalice. There is no chancel arch, an unusual feature, but the ends of an old rood beam and screen, which mark the entrance to the chancel, can be seen. The present screen is modern and the ancient rood beam has been replaced by a new beam of the same shape. The window in the N. waU of the chancel was inserted at the end of the fourteenth century, under the will of Sir Thomas Cawne, of Ightham Mote: (See Arch. Cant., 1861, Vol. IV, pp. 221-5.) The S. window of St. Catherine's chapel was REPORTS OE PROCEEDINGS. 323 placed in the church in 1854; the glass is Dutch, and represents Henry VII and his consort. Four Jacobean pews remain, other closed-in pews having been taken away in 1854 when the church was re-seated. A Jacobean pulpit has been broken up, but its sides have been used to panel the E. waU of the chancel. The 24-Ught candelabrum hanging in the nave closely resembles a large candelabrum in the old House of Commons, shown in the picture of the House in 1793, now in the National Portrait GaUery. There are several interesting monuments in the chancel. The effigy of Sir Thomas Cawne (c. 1374), under the Cawne window, is noteworthy, the enriched armour and ornamentation of the gauntlets and sword belts being even finer than the corresponding work on the effigy of the Black Prince at Canterbury. Sir WiUiam Selby, of Ightham Mote (d. 1638), whose monument stands against the S. waU of the chancel, was Keeper of the Keys at Berwick-on-Tweed, and delivered the keys—symbohcal of the keys of the kingdom of England —to King James I, on his coming to take possession of his southern inheritance. There is also a monument to his wife, Dame Dorothy Selby (d. 1641—see Arch. Cant., Vol. XLII, p. 177). The church contains many brasses, inscribed gravestones, and mural tablets, including a notable brass of Jane Dirkin (d. 1626) in characteristic Jacobean costume. The first known rector of Ightham, Herbert de Essewell, was presented by King Henry I I I in 1232. A famous rector was John Gryme (1616-44) whose refusal to submit to the Parliament led to a local rising in the troubled days of King Charles I. The parish registers date from 1559, and the Churchwardens' and Overseers' accounts from 1669. Other references to Ightham church and the Cawne monument wiU be found in Vols. XXIV and XXVIII of Arch. Cant. Through the kind invitation of Mr. F. E. Mair, the members passed on to Ightham Court and tea. The earthworks in the grounds were explained by Mr. Cecil Bowra, and a description of the house was given by Mr. Torr. The meeting then terminated with a hearty vote of thanks to Mr. EUiston Erwood, the organiser. 324 REPORTS OE PROCEEDINGS. AUTUMN MEETING. The Autumn Excursion took place on September 16th, in the neighbourhood of Sandwich, the programme being an attractive one. From the starting point of Minster Station and elsewhere members gathered in large numbers at Richborough Castle, where Mr. W. G. Klein, F.S.A., met them and conducted them round, pointing out the results of the operations which are being carried out by the Office of Works. The excellent little Museum lately estabhshed at the Castle was much approved. Particulars of the work in progress are pubhshed from time to time by the Society of Antiquaries, to which members are referred. Leaving Richborough, the party drove to Sandwich for lunch at the Bell Hotel, after which a move was made to St. Clement's Church, where the Rev. C. H. Hutt, M.A., welcomed the members and briefly described the main features of the Church, which has a beautiful Norman tower. Canon Livett, F.S.A., drew attention to the graffiti and other special points of interest. An adjournment was then made to the Town Hall, a well-known and ancient building, which was shown to the members by Mr. G. C. Solley, who dehvered an interesting address on its history. The building was erected about 1567 and continued practically undisturbed until 1819, when it was " modernised " by being cased over entirely in yellow brick ; the overhanging eaves were removed and a parapet carried up sufficiently to obliterate practicaUy the whole of the view of the roof. The exterior of the building continued thus until 1912 when a wing on the S.W. side which was found to be past repair, had to be demolished, and the entirely new portion of the hall, forming what is now known as the Grand Jury Room, was erected. The whole of the 1819 brick casing was then stripped off, and the front restored as nearly to the original as possible. The interior also was at the same time restored as far as possible on the original lines, although the removal of the plaster covering REPORTS OE PROCEEDINGS. 32 5 the ceiUng joists and of the paper on the walls has still to be accompUshed. Particular attention was drawn to the interesting series of old paintings fuUy described by the late Mr. Thos. Dorman in Arch. Cant. XV. In the Mayor's Parlour several portraits of former mayors and other worthies were shown, also the Royal Charter granted to the town by Charles II, now preserved in an oak frame recently presented to the town by Lady Mary Montagu, daughter of the late Earl of Sandwich. A short drive then brought the members to Minsterin- Thanet, where they divided into two parties, one visiting the Church while the other saw the Abbey. The church was described by Mr. V. J. Torr. I t consists of an unaisled chancel, a transept, nave with aisles and a W. Tower. The latter has a spire and once had a W. porch, which, together with another porch to the N. aisle, was removed in the nineteenth century. The stairturret adjoining the tower on the S.E. is early twelfth century work. The nave dates from Norman times, or even earlier, while the chancel and transept are of the first half of the thirteenth century. Chancel, transept and crossing are all vaulted in stone, but only the vaulting of the Chancel is original. The aisles of the nave were rebuilt in the fourteenth century. The quire-stalls are fitted with carved misericords, which are beheved to date from this time. A fragment of the old Norman font, the bowl square, with a Norman arcade in low relief sculptured round it, is preserved in the N. aisle of the Nave. Mr. Senior, the owner of the Abbey, kindly assisted in conducting members over it, while a description was given by Mr. Aymer VaUance, F.S.A. In early Saxon times this was the only Manor in Thanet, and in Domesday Book it is styled " Tanet Manor." For a long period it bore the name Minster Court. It was renovated in 1414. The Abbey was founded in 670 and remained in the possession of the nuns for nearly three hundred years, then of the monks of St. Augustine's, Canterbury, for five hundred 326 REPORTS OE PROCEEDINGS. and nine years, then of the Crown for one hundred and twenty-six years to the beginning of the seventeenth century. In 1668 the Marquis of Conyngham owned it, and it remained in his family for two hundred and sixty years. It has been continuously used as a residence since being built. An article on the Saxon features of the place, by Canon G. M. Livett, appears in Vol. XLII of Arch. Cant., together with a plan of the entire range of buildings. The members then dispersed after a very successful day, the weather having been favourable. CORRIGENDA TO REPORTS OF PROCEEDINGS IN VOL. XLII. ADISHAM. In Arch. Cant., XLII, 223, I stated, in good faith, that the font at Adisham is " certainly [of the early thirteenth century] except the possibly older bowl." This opinion was arrived at through working from a photograph, but having since re-examined the actual font I hasten to correct my own statement. The bowl, which bears locking marks on top at N. and S., and its sturdy central shaft, are original, but the angle shafts, with the course of encompassing mouldings of definite E.E. pattern, and the plinth and step aU round are modern restorations, so that the chief evidence for a thirteenth century date (these mouldings) is rendered worthless. Moreover, the shafts are mis-restored, as beneath the bowl may be seen the marks where the ancient shafts joined it, set further out towards the angles than at present. There seems no reason, therefore, to suppose that this font in its ancient portions should not be assigned to some time in the tweUth century, to which I thought before that the bowl seemed to belong. ST. MARY'S-IN-THE-MARSH. With the authority of Miss Roper, I am permitted to caU attention to one or two points in her account of this church, in Arch. Cant., XLII, 260-1, which need correction. For (p. 261) " fourteenth century female face " (at W. end of N. arcade) read " thirteenth " : this is only an incidental error, as the true date of the arcade is to be found on the preceding page, and no doubt REPORTS OE PROCEEDINGS. 327 whatever can exist about the E.E. character of this capital, which has a counterpart, in the same position and probably by the same hand, at Warehome. The statement that the tower " was added some fifty years after the original church was buUt" is less venial, and is admittedly based on the opinion of Mr. EUiston Erwood, F.S.A., in Arch. Cant., XXXVII, 205, repeated in the dating of his ground plan of this buUding facing p. 203. I have no doubt— my view being supported by the authority of Canon Livett, F.S.A.—that this plan, which also conjectures an abnormaUy short Norman chancel, is incorrect so far as concerns the tower. Mr. Erwood was apparently misled by the mid tweUth century character of the tower arch, which must be a subsequent enlargement of the original; and he contradicts himseU in this paper, in one place calling the tower a late tweUth century addition, and in another noting " early " windows in its upper stages. StUl more must the ground- story be " early " and not " late," especially as the architectural evidence of its two lights (that on the N. omitted in the plan) is insuperable, making it impossible to doubt that the tower is an early to mid Norman work. WhUe Mr. Erwood bases his short Norman chancel at St. Mary's on the analogy of Burmarsh, it wiU be found that his plan of the latter church again contradicts that of St. Mary's in chancel dimensions. I t may be noted in conclusion that the font at St. Mary's, though quite possibly of the thirteenth century, is difficult to date, hke its stiU more puzzling neighbour at Dymchurch. V.J.T.