SVCA Graffiti Log: April 2015

Wormingford - St Andrew

Photo Frances Barker

Photo - Frances Barker

Photo Frances Barker

Frances Barker did a little digging around the Scarlett Merchant mark shown above and put her findings in the posts below.

http://francesbarker.blogspot.co.uk/2014/10/the-scarlett-merchant-mark.html

http://francesbarker.blogspot.co.uk/2014/11/looking-for-scarletts.html

Harkstead - St Mary

Photo - Frances Barker

West Bergholt - St Mary

Photo - Tim Dennis

Photo Tim - Dennis

Photo - Tim Dennis

Peldon - St Mary the Virgin

Photo - Tim Dennis

East Mersea - St Edmund

Photo - Tim Dennis

Binham - St Mary's Priory

photo Graham Brundell

Photo Graham Brundell

Stratford St Mary - St Mary

photo Frances Barker

Photo Frances Barker

photo Frances Barker

I was really optimistic about this church. Having driven past it on many an occasion (and noticed the gorgeous flintwork outside) I hoped that inside would yield up some graffiti.

As it turns out there is some graffiti inside, but not very much. The most interesting piece is the photo immediately above, which shows what I think is the merchant mark of the Mors family. This motif is repeated a couple of times, the second example being smaller and more faint, (on the central pillar in the lady chapel).

The Mors family were clothiers, and wealthy to boot. Being benefactors of the church was only fitting for people of their station. An antiquarian book (Samuel Pegge 1787) titled "A Sylloge of the remaining authentic inscriptions relative to the erection of our English Churches embellistred" records the flintwork as spelling out ...

Praye for the foulys or Edwards Mors and Alys his wife and all cryften fowlys anno domini 1530

This is followed by what seems to be IHS and orate p(ro) animab Margaret utono...

There is also what appears to be the Mors merchant marks on the buttress' (albeit it upside down); without having looked at the outside of the church I would never have seen a link to the graffiti inside.

Bramford - St Mary the Virgin

photo Graham Brundell

Photo Graham Brundell