XXI. 



the Abbey is that it was established in A.D. 870 by Edwald, who, struck 

 by the unhappy fate of his brother, St. Edmund the Martyr, retired here, 

 where he lived a hermit's life and died in 871, many miracles being wrought 

 at his tomb. Of the Conventual Church there remain no vestiges, but it is 

 supposed to have stood east of the Abbey Gatehouse, partly in what is now 

 the Churchyard and partly in the field on the North Side. The Abbey 

 buildings stood at the north part of the town, and extended east towards the 

 foot of the hill. Scarcely any vestiges of it remain. The only remnant 

 is a Mansion House, situated at the N. end of the Market-street, which 

 seems to have been built out of the ruins of the Abbey. 



From the New Inn the party proceeded to the Church, where the Rev 

 H. D. Gundry acted as cicerone. Here Sir T. Baker read extracts from 

 the report of the British Archaeological Association in 1871. The church 

 is supposed to have been erected by the Convent for the use of the town 

 about the middle of the 15th or beginning of the 16th centuries. It is 

 chiefly of Perpendicular architecture, and largely built of Ham Hill 

 stone, with external walls composed of alternate layers of chipped flints 

 and stone. The tower, built in three lofty stages, with octagonal 

 buttresses, and with a figure of the Virgin, holding the infant Saviour, 

 filling a niche in the west front, the entire west front of the Church with 

 its wealth of ornament, and the curious gurgoyles on the exterior formed 

 the chief features of architectural interest. 



St. Augustine's Well was next visited. Mr. Chisholm Batten remarked 

 that they were standing on what was probably the most ancient object of 

 interest in Cerne. It was probable that the Well was named after a very 

 important person in the history of the Christian Church St. Augustine, 

 Bishop of Hippo. From here the party proceeded to the ancient Abbey 

 Gateway and Barn. The embattled tower and gate are all that remains 

 of the Abbey of Cerne. It is bxiilt of brick and stone with escutcheons 

 bearing arms, 16 in number, placed on the west front. The old Abbey 

 House, with bams, dog kennels, <Src., made from the ruins of the Abbey, 

 were burnt in 1740 with the dogs and horses. Here, too, was the Park 

 belonging to the Abbot, and the fine Valley, east of the present house, 

 is still called the Park. Under the south point of the hill are traces of 

 the garden, with walls and posterns, called Beauvoir. The Abbot 

 possessed a Vineyard, which still gives the name to a field ; hops, too, 

 were successfully cultivated here. The Barn stands on the S. West of 

 the town, and on the S. side of the river, a magnificent structure, 

 capable still, in 1810 of receiving the produce of 800 acres. It is built of 

 alternate layers of freestone and chipped flints, the flint masonry being 

 of the most beautiful description. Great interest was shown in the 



