We have now examined the aumbry, and noted its contents, upon which the commissioners in the reign of Edward VI. made such shameful inroads. Henceforth the plate was confined to a chalice and paten, alms-dish, and usually a large silver flagon. The form of the chalice was entirely changed. As we have noticed, the bowl of the pre-Reformation chalices became smaller and shallower, on account of the gradually introduced practice of refusing the wine to the laity. Now in the year 1562 the size of the bowl was greatly enlarged, and the "Communion cup" took the place of the "Massing chalice." Some poor parishes were obliged to content themselves with pewter vessels. St. Lawrence's Church, Reading, had a curious bridal cup, which was carried before all brides who were married in that church. The custom of drinking wine in the church at marriages is enjoined in the Hereford Missal, and the Sarum Missal ordered that the bread immersed in the wine, and consumed by the company, should first be blessed by the priest. Some of these post-Reformation vessels are extremely interesting. They record the thankofferings of pious donors on the occasion of some great event in the national annals, such as the Restoration, or of some private mercy vouchsafed to the individual. They record the connection of some family with the parish, the arms they bore; and the Hall marks tell us of their date, which is often anterior to the date of the inscription. Hall marks were first introduced in 1300 by Edward I. in order to keep up the purity of silver, and consisted of the lion's or leopard's head crowned. This was called the king's mark. The maker's mark was introduced in 1363, and was some initial or badge chosen by the silversmith. To these were added in 1438 the year letter or assayer's mark, a different letter being chosen for each year. When the alphabet was exhausted, another with differently shaped letters was begun. In 1545 the lion passant was introduced, and since 1784 the portrait of the reigning sovereign has appeared. With the assistance of Mr. Cripps' _Old English Plate_, which contains a list of the alphabets used in marking plate, it is not very difficult to discover the date of any piece of silver. Inventories of church plate are being made in many counties and dioceses, and no more useful work can be undertaken by our local antiquarian societies. [3] _Mediaeval Chalices and Patens_, by W.H. St. John Hope and T.M. Fallow. [4] Surtees Society, vol. xv. pp. 45, 49. CHAPTER XVI MONUMENTAL EFFIGIES AND BRASSES Reverence for the dead--Cists--Stone coffins--Devices--Introduction of effigies--Cross-legged effigies--Wooden effigies--Incised effigies--Brasses--Essentially English--Vast number of brasses-- Palimpsests--Destruction--Costumes and fashions--Ecclesiastics-- Lawyers--Soldiers--Canopies and inscriptions--Punning inscriptions-- Contractions--Emblems--Heraldry.