50 
THE MONUMENTAL T RASSES OF WARWICKSHIRE. 
THE MONUMENTAL BRASSES OF WARWICKSHIRE. 
BY E. W. BADGER, M . A. 
(Continued from page 11.) 
ASTON. I.- -Thos. Hulte, Esq., late justice of North Wales 
and lord of this town , 1545, head lost, and wife Margery, with 
one son and two daus., Mary, inscr. pecul. Haines .—This 
brass lies on a slab on the floor in the N. aisle of Aston 
church. Its length, to the outside of the marginal inscrip¬ 
tion, is 6ft., and its width 2ft. Sin. The effigies of Thos. 
Holte and his wife are 2ft. long, those of the children about 
Bin. The inscribed plate beneath the effigies is 2ft. by Bin. 
Haines (pp. 29, 248) considers this brass and those at 
Coleshill, Hampton-in-Arden, Middleton, Whitnash, Solihull, 
and Sliuckburgh to be the work of local artists. 
At the four corners of the slab are the four evangelistic 
symbols, an angel for St. Matthew, a winged lion for St. Mark, 
a winged ox for St. Luke, and an eagle for St. John. The 
common use of these symbols in this position is supposed by 
some to be the origin of the well-known rhyme: 
Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John 
Bless the bed which I lie on, &c. 
Between these symbols, on strips of brass, is the following 
inscription in black letter : 
&& ©f 20 cbarttge pra2e for tb.... | soolles of ©bomas 
Ibolte eeqiiBer late justice of IRortb Males and lorde of 
tbls towne of Bston Bud | /Iftarqerge bts fltdufc wtcb 
©bomas | Deceased tbe jjftt Daue of /iftarcbe Bitito dm 
AbcccccUv whose soolles Gob parboil. 
Above the effigies, on a shield, are the arms of Holte, 
Az., two bars, or, in chief across pattee fitch.ee, of the second ; 
impaling Willington, Gu., a saltire vaire, arg. and az. 
Thomas Holte, whose head is unfortunately lost, is 
attired in the robes of a justice. Possibly he wore a coif, or 
close skull-cap. (Compare the brass at Middleton.) On his 
shoulders is a tippet and hood, under which is a cloak 
fastened on the right shoulder. Beneath this is a gown with 
wide sleeves. The last two were generally lined with a fur 
called minever, but there is only a faint suggestion, if any, 
