MONUMENTAL EFFIGIES Sir Philip de Gayton, died 1316, and EsCHOLACE his wife, living 1284. Gayton. The wooden effigy of Sir Philip de Gayton lies under an open ogeed arch in the wall that separates the chancel from the chapel, on a high tomb of which the sides are divided by panelled shafts with crocketed finials into twelve niches with ogeed and cusped canopies of very good design. The knight is shown in the well-known military costume of the thirteenth and early fourteenth centuries, consisting of hood, hauberk, genouilleres, chausses, spurs, surcote, sword-belt, sword and cingulum, with the head resting upon the usual two pillows, and the feet upon a smooth and sleek animal. It is apparent that a shield, doubtless charged with the De Gayton arms, was originally borne on the left arm. The whole monument, including the effigy, which had fallen into some decay, was ' restored ' in 1830. He was one of the representatives for the county in 1300, and married a lady of whom nothing further is known than that she had a daughter Juliane, married to Thomas de Murdak, and bore the unusual name of Escholace, and was living in 1284. Her graceful freestone effigy lies under a richly moulded pointed arch in the north wall of the chapel. The lady is shown wearing a long loose gown, low in the neck, with tight sleeves fastened with eleven very small buttons at the wrist, very exasperating to do up. Over this garment a mantle is shown gathered under the left arm in the common fashion of effigies of the period, and fastened by a cord held in the left hand. This is the usual attitude with effigies of ladies at this time, and Queen Eleanor is so shown in her statue at Westminster. The face of Escholace has been rechiseled in modern times. She wears one of the numerous varieties of head-dresses, consisting simply of a coverchief flowing to or silvered, and which he desired, as the medieval artists always did, to break up by slightly raised work in order to supply value and ornamental importance to the gold or silver. The gesso he impressed before it hardened with matrices or stamps of various patterns — mail of different sizes being among them — certain liney marks showing the removal of the mould as the operator proceeded with his work. As to the surfices to be gilded, there were many processes. They were usually first treated with bole Armenian, to give depth and richness to the gold leaf, which was much thicker than that of the present day — often, in early times, beaten out of specially supplied gleam- ing bezants from the East — and, as well as the silver, applied with white of egg, left dead, or burnished with an agate, the detit de knp of the Frenchman. the shoulders over small pads at the sides of the temples, and confined round the head by two jewelled circlets. She has no wimple and in this respect also her dress resembles the effigy of the queen, as well as all the figures on the crosses at Northampton, Geddington and Waltham. Sir Walter Trevlli, died 1290, and Eleanor his wife, died 131 6. Woodford. The wooden effigy of Sir Walter Treylli lies together with that of his wife on an altar- tomb in the line of the north arcade of the nave, both figures being carved with consider- able art. The knight is represented in a round headpiece covering the mail hood or possibly attached to it, a short surcote, mail hauberk and chausses, and poleyns of plate, the precursors of the more shapely genouil- leres. He bears a shield on his left arm origin- ally charged with the coat of Treylli. The hands are in prayer and the sword is suspended from the belt by two lockets in accordance with the new fashion then coming in. The feet rest upon a lion and the head upon the usual double pillows. The absence of spurs is very unusual, perhaps unique, and may be attributed to an oversight, unless real spurs were attached. The whole figure has been painted and decorated, according to the in- variable practice with wooden effigies, but nearly every trace of this treatment has perished. It is evident that it is a memorial of about the middle of the first quarter of the fourteenth century and it was no doubt set up shortly before or at the death of Eleanor relict of Sir Walter Treylli in 13 16. The figure of Eleanor Treylli is well proportioned. She wears a tight-sleeved and long gown of which the full skirt is gathered up under the left arm in the usual way, fall- ing in voluminous and graceful folds. Over this is worn a mantle ; a deep wimple is The painting upon stone and wooden effigies — for the process was the same in both cases — was of course done in distemper {tempera), and finally covered with a coat of plain or tinted oleaginous varnish, a very necessary but not sufficient pro- tection. The failure of the painting upon wooden effigies is attributable to constant changes of temperature, causing the contraction and expan- sion of the wood, and the consequent breaking up or ' fretting ' of the surface. Age, damp and neglect have accelerated the ruin of stone and wooden figures alike, and this h,is been completed by the periodical scrubbing? with soap and water and soda by relentless parish clerks. Thus it is that the effigy of Dame Treylli at Woodford retains traces only of its ancient splendour ; all the rest of these interesting memorials in the county are melancholy wrecks. 401
