NOTES ON THE OLD CHURCH OF ST. ALKMUND. 193 



date ; it reminds one of the stone cover of a Roman sarcophagus. 

 The ends of the slab are quite plain, as if it had been placed 

 under an arch. It may have been the lid of a coffin or the base 

 of a shrme, as suggested by the Rev. Dr. Cox in his " Churches of 

 Derbyshire " ; but I differ from him as to the probable date of the 

 stone, he dating it much later than I do. 



It is difficult at the present day to denote the exact position 

 of the site of the old church in relation to the new one. From 

 what I have been able to learn, I find that the former east wall 

 extended to the boundary line of the churchyard. The east end 

 seems to have been set back about two feet to allow room for 

 the east end buttresses. The vault belonging to the Bainbrigge 

 family, which is seen on the north of the chancel, still remains, 

 and has been in use until quite recently. Taking these as 

 fixed points, the new church appears to have extended about 

 20 feet both towards the south and west beyond the older one. 

 The floor was lifted about 3 feet above the old level. The 

 new porch is almost upon the line of the old one, but is carried 

 out to the south, the old porch being now enclosed within the 

 walls of the new building. 



Under the old porch, the family of " Wright," of Derby, had 

 a vault. The artist, to whom this name more especially applies, 

 was not buried in the vault, but in the centre aisle of the church, 

 as recorded on his monument. This monument has again been 

 replaced against a column in the centre aisle, and the monuments 

 of other members of the family have been brought out of their 

 hiding-places into view. Some monuments, belonging to the 

 Gisborne family, have also been cleaned and refixed within the 

 lower part of the tower. 



14 



