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Mr. Jones called the Bristol bracket — a form of scrollwork to be 

 seen outside many houses in the city. Passing out by the same 

 door, and through the gateway, which now carries the tower and 

 spire of the church, the party disappeared through a low door- 

 way on the north side into the crypt beneath dedicated to the 

 Holy Cross. Considered by Freeman to be of late 16th century 

 work, it has many features of interest, especially the stoup on 

 the left hand of doorway and the vaulting. At the most easterly 

 portion the shafts carry capitals ; at the remaining part on the 

 west the groining dies off into the shafts, which are quite plain 

 throughout. Service was originally held here. S. Stephen's, 

 with its far-famed tower, built by John Shipward, Mayor of 

 Bristol, in 1455, claiming to be one of the handsomest parish 

 church towers in England, was the next point. Entering through 

 the south doorway some good stone groining over south porch 

 attracted attention. The present building, dating from 1450 to 

 1490, apparently contained no traces of the earlier date (1304) 

 assigned to the building. Probably it was longer than at 

 present. The peculiar feature of the west wall, containing a 

 good window with flaring glass, running askew and not at right 

 angles to the rest of the building, may be attributed probably to 

 the necessities of construction, and avoiding obstruction to a 

 right of way to the west. The piers, according to Mr. Jones, 

 appeared to be of somewhat different date to the arches which 

 they carried, the moulding being much poorer. As to the tombs, 

 owing to the common practice of placing older slabs under later 

 recesses, there was much doubt about their true date. The 

 somewhat highly ornamented reredos gave rise to an interesting 

 discussion. Mr. Jones stated that the whole had been resusciated 

 from one old piece of Perpendicular cornice which had been 

 preserved. The period when the Renaissance style was over- 

 lapping the Perpendicular seems to be well represented here, as 

 a certain classic refinement in the carving is plainly perceptible, 

 especially in the pine apple form occurring in the cornice, 



