106 BIKDS OP NORFOLK. 



this roll in his custody, but as a copy* (though I have 

 reason to believe not a fac simile), was executed by Mr. 

 Ninham, of this City in 1846, and was exhibited with 

 the original at a meeting of the Norwich Archaeological 

 Society, on the 22nd of October in that year (as I find 

 by an entry in the MS. " Proceedings"t of that date), 

 we know that its abstraction must have occurred within 

 the last thirty years. The long period, however, that 

 has already elapsed renders its recovery the more diffi- 

 cult, and, to this end I am desirous of giving every 

 possible j)ublicity to the fact that a roll of so much 

 value, if only in an archseological sense, both to the 

 city and county, is not forthcoming. 



From an inspection of such swan-rolls as T have, at 

 present, had access to, it would seem that prior to the 



* This copy was fortunately made at the suggestion of the late 

 Mr. Thomas Brightwell to provide against the possible loss of the 

 original, but when completed the Town Council declined to pur- 

 chase it at the sum named by Mr. Ninham, and it subsequently 

 passed into the possession of Mr. Osborne Springfield, of Catton, 

 This roll, which consists of several folio sheets of vellum, bound 

 in book form, represents the heads and beaks of swans, in profile, 

 and not, as is moi'e usually the case, a drawing of the upper 

 mandible only, with the marks on its surface, as in Tarrell's 

 illustrations. Blomefield's small figures are, however, also in 

 profile (whether taken or not from the Corporation Roll), but in 

 his the beak of the swan is represented open, and the marks are 

 displayed on the upper mandible only, whereas Ninham represents 

 each swan's head with the beak closed, and, by an error in draw- 

 ing, places some of the mai'ks on the lower mandible, an impos- 

 sibility, as the lower mandible shuts close into the upper one, 

 which leads me to question this being a fac simile of the Ancient 

 Roll. The copy contains about forty-six distinct marks, now or 

 formerly in use on the Yare and Wensum, besides several diipli- 

 cates, and from these, through the kind jDermission of Mr. Spring- 

 field, I purpose making selections for an additional plate, should 

 the Roll of 1598 not be recovered by the completion of this volume, 

 t See also "Norfolk Archajology," vol. i., p. 371. 



