Bell's Cathedrals: The Cathedral Church of Lichfield: A Description of Its Fabric and A Brief History of the Espicopal SeeClifton, A. B.
History
Bell's Cathedrals: The Cathedral Church of Lichfield: A Description of Its Fabric and A Brief History of the Espicopal See
Clifton, A. B.
Lichfield Cathedral
In a similar position in the third bay is the effigy of Bishop Patteshull,
who died in 1241. This is also of Purbeck marble, and was probably
jewelled. There are ministering angels outside a pediment at the head;
the figure has the pastoral staff in the left hand, while the right
is obviously raised in benediction, though only the fingers are left,
the second wearing the episcopal ring. Pennant and others have drawn
attention to the fact that this effigy has the "stigmata" or marks of Our
Lord's wounds on his hands and feet. Some antiquarians think that this
is the monument of Bishop Weseham, and not of Bishop Patteshull. There
are engravings and descriptions of these last two monuments in Gough's
"Sepulchral Monuments in Great Britain," 1796, but it is certainly strange
that Langton's monument is described as Patteshull's, and _vice versa_.
Opposite to Bishop Langton is the most curious monument in the
cathedral. It has now been identified as the tomb of Sir John Stanley
of Pipe. The effigy represents a knight naked to the waist, below which
was formerly a deep skirt painted with the arms of Stanley, the legs
being in armour, while under the head is a buck's horn, and a similar
horn is placed beneath the feet. The whole subject of this tomb is
one presenting many difficulties, but they have now been cleared up,
and in a communication to the "Archaeological Journal," vol. 24, Mr J.
Hewitt has given much interesting information. From it the following
account is taken:--The monument was always known as that of "Captain
Stanley," who for some offence had been excommunicated, and who, after
atonement, had been admitted to sepulture in holy ground on condition
that the evidence of his punishment should appear on his sepultured
effigy. The mutilations of the Civil Wars have so defaced the monument
as to make this story extremely doubtful, until among papers belonging
to the Earl of Winchelsea was found a coloured drawing of this effigy,
done by Sir William Dugdale just before the wars for Sir Christopher
Hatton. This sketch showed that the skin was bare, and that the skirt
had the Stanley arms. But this did not clear up the difficulty. Pennant,
in his "Journey from Chester to London," describes the tomb and gives
the story, and then says: "I find a Sir Humphrey Stanley of Pipe, who
died in the reign of Henry VII., who had a squabble with the Chapter
about conveying water through his lands to the close ... so probably
this might be the gentleman who incurred the censure of the church for
his impiety." Shaw, in his "History of Staffordshire," declares that
the arms on the base of the tomb show "the arms of Stanley impaling or,
three chevronels gules (Clare)," which means that the person represented
married a Clare. This Sir Humphrey did not do, and, moreover, he was
buried in Westminster Abbey, where his brass still remains. Further
investigation showed that the arms of Clare are also the arms of Gerard,
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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