THE HOUSE OF GODOLPHIN. 417 



short square returns. I call attention to this fact as the arrange- 

 ment of the hood-mouldings varies in different parts of the 

 house. 



Within, the greater part of the lower story is occupied by 

 the dining-hall, which still retains traces of its original decora- 

 tion. At the northern end a modern range has been fitted into 

 the open fireplace that stood there, but around this the whole of 

 the north wall is covered with panelling of old oak. The 

 pattern of this panelling is that known as the ** linen-panel," 

 from its resemblance to a folded napkin, and this pattern is 

 mentioned by Parker in his " Domestic Architecture of the 

 Middle Ages " as typically representative of the time of Henry 

 VIII. The ceiling is divided into plastered squares by richly- 

 carved oak beams, with bosses of worked foliage at their 

 intersections, and is a very handsome piece of work. Let into 

 the wall between the two windows is an iron plate bearing in 

 relief the Eoyal Arms of England emblazoned, but not such 

 as we know them now. The familiar Unicorn is absent as a 

 supporter, his place being taken by a red Dragon ; and the shield 

 itself, surrounded by the garter, bears a different set of charges 

 to those now in use. Neither the Scotch Lion nor the Irish Harp 

 find any place there ; and even the Lions of England, which 

 are there, have changed their quarters, their present site being 

 occupied by the Fleur-de-lys of France. Above the shield are 

 those well-known badges of the Tudor dynasty, the Eose and 

 the Portcullis. An achievement such as this constituted the 

 the Eoyal Arms of England from the time of Henry VIII to 

 the end of the reign of Elizabeth. Bearing in mind the histori- 

 cal record that a gift of the Eoyal Arms was sent to Sir William 

 Godolphin by Henry VIII "for valour," there seems little 

 reason to doubt that this coat-of-arms now in the dining-hall 

 was the actual guerdon which that knight received for his 

 prowess at the siege of Boulogne in 1544. 



The southern end of the hall, which extends beyond the 

 embattled south wall outside, has been partitioned off to form 

 a scullery ; but the oak timbers of the ceiling may be traced 

 throughout the whole length. I 'am inclined to think that this 

 southern portion of the hall opened originally into the main 

 building behind the south wall of the quadrangle, and that the 



