liv. SHAFTESBURY MEETING. 



"seven messuages, three gardens in Shaston, of the Abbess ; forty acres of land 

 in Bellchalwel of the Earl of Northumberland ; and seventy-eight acres in the 

 hundred of Alcester, of the Abbot of Evesham, by rent of five shillings. In the 

 east window of the church is some old stained glass ; one shield bears the emblem 

 of the Trinity, another of the Five Wounds of the Passion ; the third shield 

 bears the arms of Eitzj^mes of Lenston :— Azure, a dolphin embowed or, 

 impaling. Bendy of eight or and azure, within a bordure of the first (Newburgh 

 of Wiufrith). The arms on the fourth shield are :— Quarterly 1 and 4, Argent, 

 a barrulet gules, between four bars gemelles wavy azure ; 2 and 3, Argent, a 

 chevron gules, between three castles sable. 



On the floor of the nave are two memorial slabs, the one to Walter Barnes who 

 died in 1707, the other also to a Walter Barnes who died in 1722. 



The font dates from the 15th Century, and is of Purbeck marble, which has 

 been barbarously painted. 



The altar table and alms box date back to the 17th and the pulpit, with 

 sounding board, to the ISth Century. Ranged round the walls of the church are 

 a number of carved bench ends and some linen-fold panelling. The roofs of 

 nave and north aisle are late Perpendicular work, and are covered with lead. In 

 the east end of the south aisle is a doorway blocked up, and beneath this aisle is a 

 crypt at present used for a cellar. The south wall of the tower has been pierced 

 with a lancet window at a height of four feet from the ground. This is now 

 blocked up. Possibly the inn which abuts against this side of the tower was of 

 old the priest's house. Externally, perhaps, the finest feature of the church is 

 the pierced stone parapet of the north aisle. Carved on shields are the Tudor 

 rose, pomegranate, portcullis, &c., which enable us to date the work with 

 certainty to the early part of the 16th Century. 



The Abbey. 



By way of the narrow passage between the church and the 

 Town Hall, Mr. Doran Webb conducted the party over Gold 

 Hill to the site of the Abbey, which is now being excavated. 

 Here, addressing the party, he informed them that they were on 

 the site of the old church founded in honour of Our Lady and 

 St. Edward, King and Martyr, as long ago as the loth century. 

 The portion of ground they were now standing on was the 

 choir of the Abbey Church, and on cither side they had the 

 two choir aisles. The north aisle, excavated last year, was 

 apsidal internally and square externally, and compared with the 

 choir aisles of Romsey Abbey. The south aisle, excavated 

 this year, was much wider than the north, and had evidently 



