An Exceptional Monument, Hereford Cathedral

I’m afraid I didn’t get the details of this family monument in the south transept of the cathedral and can’t find anything online, but it is extraordinary, and the original colours largely survive though of course there has been damage and parts of it show graffiti.

south-transept-couple

Though the couple were wealthy to enable this expensive monument, it seems the woman died in childbirth, apparently with their first child.

south-transept-family

The man’s feet rest on his faithful dog

south-transept-dog

His gauntleted hands

hereford-cath-south-transept-gauntlet

I thought this was another faithful dog, but this is part of the man’s helmet, on which knights were shown resting their heads. This is a Tudor tomb so it is unlikely he ever fought as a knight, as gunpowder had by then made guns the weapons of choice.

hereford-cath-south-transept-helmet

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