A HISTORY OF DURHAM 



stone wall,' stood before the western piers of 

 the crossing, with the Jesus altar in front and a 

 doorway at either end.'* On the face of the 

 screen, from pillar to pillar, was ' the whole 

 story and passion of our Lord wrought in stone ' 

 and over this the * story and pictures of the 

 twelve apostles,' while upon the wall * above the 

 height of all ' stood the ' most goodly and 

 famous rood that was in aU the land, with the 

 picture of Mary on the one side and the picture 

 of John on the other, with two splendid and 

 glistering archangels.' '• Each end of the Jesus 

 altar was ' closed up with fine wainscot,' in 

 which were four aumbries on the south side 

 and a door in the north. 



The second and third bays of the south aisle 

 formed the Neville chantry, in which was an 

 altar ' with a faire allabaster table'* over it.' 

 This chantry chapel was enclosed at each end 

 by ' a little stone wall,' that at the east being 

 ' somewhat higher than the altar ' and wains- 

 coted above ; the other had an ' iron grait ' 

 on top, and towards the nave the chapel was 

 ' invyroned with iron.' In 1416 the bodies of 

 Ralph, Lord Neville (d. 1367), and Alice de 

 Audley, his wife (d. 1374), were moved to the 

 chapel from before the Jesus altar where they 

 had been originally buried,'^ and their monument, 

 much defaced,*- still stands ' betwixt two 

 pillars ' of the nave arcade in the second sub- 

 bay. The alabaster effigy of Ralph Neville is 

 reduced to a headless and mutilated trunk, but 

 that of the lady is tolerably perfect, though the 

 face is destroyed. The table tomb on which 

 they rest has been stripped of nearly all its 

 ornamentation, a portion of panelling above 

 the plinth, with shields set in quatrefoils, alone 

 remaining. In the next bay westward is the 

 monument of their son John, Lord Neville 

 (d. 1386), and his wife Maud Percy ; the tomb 

 has canopied niches,*^ with weepers, all round, 

 separated by trefoiled panels containing shields 

 which bear alternately the Neville saltire and 

 the Percy lion rampant. Of the effigies little 

 remains but the shattered and broken trunks. 



'* ' Two rood doors for the procession to go forth 

 and come in at.' Rites, 32. 



'* ' What for the fairness of the wall, the stateliness 

 of the pictures and the livelyhood of the painting, it 

 was thought to be one of the goodliest monuments in 

 (the) church.' Ibid. 34. 



*" Reredos. 



** Ralph, Lord Neville, was the first layman to be 

 buried in the church. 



*2 The mutilation of this and the adjoining tomb is 

 said to be due to the Scottish prisoners taken at the 

 battle of Dunbar, who were confined in the church in 

 1650. 



*' There are six niches on each side and three on 

 each end ; the weepers remain in aU but two, but are 

 without heads. 



' reduced to something like great boulders.'** 

 In the floor close by is a blue slab with the 

 matrix of the brass of Robert Neville, Bishop of 

 Durham (d. 1457).** 



The altar of Our Lady of Pity*" stood between 

 the pillars of the north arcade in the bay im- 

 mediately west of the north doorway, and that 

 of the Bound Rood*' in the corresponding situa- 

 tion on the south ; both were ' enclosed on each 

 side with wainscote.' Another altar, known as 

 St. Saviour's, stood on the north side of the 

 north-west tower.** Attached to the piers 

 immediately west of the north and south doors 

 were holy water stoups of marble, that on the 

 north serving ' all those that came that waie 

 to here divyne service,' the other ' the prior 

 and all the convent with the whole house.'*' 

 These stoups were taken away by Dean Whitting- 

 ham (1563-79) and put to ' profane uses ' in 

 his kitchen and buttery.** There was another 

 near the south-east doorway.'* 



Of modern monuments west of the quire the 

 chief is that of Bishop Shute Barrington (d. 

 1826), a marble statue by Chantrey, in which the 

 bishop is represented kneeling. In the nave is 

 a recumbent marble statue of Dr. James Britton, 

 sometime master of Durham Grammar School 

 (d. 1836), and a tablet to Sir George Wheler, 

 antiquary and traveller, the holder of a stall 

 in the Cathedral (d. 1723).'^ There are other 

 memorial tablets but none of interest. 



The present font dates from 1846 and has a 

 rectangular bowl of Caen stone supported on 

 pillars, in the style of the 12th century. It 

 took the place of a white marble font of chalice 

 type erected by Cosin in 1663, which was given 

 in 1846 to Pittington Church, where it now is. 

 Cosin's lofty canopyof tabernacle work, however, 

 survived all the 19th-century restorations. It is 

 a splendid piece of work, standing on eight 

 fluted pillars with composite capitals, the lower 



^^ Rites of Diirh. (Dr. Fowler's notes), 245. 



*^ According to Rites, p. 40, he was buried in the 

 chantry, but Leland says he lay in ' a high plain mar- 

 ble tombe in the Galile.' Greenwell, op. cit. 95. 



** So called from ' a picture of our Lady carrying 

 our Saviour on her knee, as He was taken from the 

 crosse, very lamentable to behold.' Rites of Durh. 38. 



*' ' An alter with a roode representing the passion 

 of our Saviour, having his handes bounde, with a 

 crowne of thorne on his head, being commonly 

 called the Bound Roode.' Ibid. 41. 



** The north end of the altar slab was built into the 

 wall. Its site is now occupied by the monument to 

 Capt. R. M. Hunter, killed at Ferozeshah, 1845. 



*9 Rites of Durh. 38. 



»» Ibid. 61. 



'1 Ibid. 40. ' A piece of Frosterley marble let into 

 the corner where the south transept and south aisle 

 of the nave join may mark its site.' Greenwell, op. 

 cit. 97. 



'2 He is buried in the Galilee. 



118 



