 
ON THE PROPOSED SUGGESTIONS FOR PRESERVING A RECORD OF EXISTING MONUMENTS.
In No. 73. Vol. iii. of "Notes and Queries" you have honoured me by an allusion to the Monumenta Anglicana I have in the press, as "a plan which would have your hearty concurrence and recommendation, if it were at all practicable; but which must fail from its very vastness." It may be so; but the motto of my family is Essayez. Every "gigantic scheme" must have a commencement, and this "scheme," I am perfectly aware, is one "that no individual, however varied in attainments and abilities, could without assistance hope to achieve." My father, upwards of half a century since, commenced collecting mortuary memorials; many of the monuments from which he copied the inscriptions have since been destroyed by time, and many, very many, more by the ruthless innovations of beautifying churchwardens. These "very vast" collections—the labour of a life—however, only form a portion of the materials I now posses; for since I issued my prospectus in 1844, I have received many thousands of inscriptions and rubbings of brasses from clergymen and others; and I trust I shall be favoured with still further assistance, as in all cases where information is rendered, the source whence derived shall be most thankfully and freely acknowledged. The plan I have adopted with regard to arrangement is to folio each page three times, viz., i. each parish by itself; ii. each county; iii. alphabetically; so that each parish can be considered complete in itself; each county can be bound up by itself; or the whole alphabetically, gazetteer-wise. The index will be also in three divisions,—i. general; ii. names of places; iii. names of persons. With regard to the number of volumes,—I need not say that that is entirely in nubibus. My impression is limited to seventy-five copies, the same as my father's Oxfordshire, with which it corresponds in size. I should have preferred seeing the government performing the task of preserving manuscripts of all existing monuments; but it is the fashion in Britain for government to leave all apparently national undertakings to individual exertion. I will here conclude with a quotation from the report I have just published of the Transactions at the Congress of the British ArchÆological Association held in Worcester:
Our next is from a correspondent (who has favoured us with his name) who proposes a scheme almost more extensive than that advocated by Mr. Dunkin, but who differs from that gentleman by recognising the necessity of combined endeavour to carry it out. A few years since I propounded a scheme for an Ecclesiologicon Anglicanum, or record of the history, not only architectural and monumental, but also local and traditional, of every parish in England. Though I had long conceived such a design, I must confess myself indebted to some excellent remarks on the subject which appeared in the Ecclesiologist (New Series, No. x., April 1846). Fully aware that so stupendous a work could never be accomplished by any single individual, I compiled a prospectus of my design, and invited the co-operation of all antiquaries. I proposed to publish at intervals, and in alphabetical order, the parishes of every county, and by dividing the labour among different coadjutors, and giving to each a separate branch of inquiry, thereby insuring, by successive revisions, a certainty of correctness, I hoped to succeed in the undertaking. My project was, however, laid aside by reason of other engagements; but, as I still think it worthy of consideration, I have troubled you with these "Notes" in the hope that, by publication in your pages, they may be the means of suggesting to others interested in the matter the practicability of carrying them out. Though with no definite object in view, but with a presentiment of their after utility, I have, during many provincial campaigns, collected architectural notes, as well as genealogical memoranda, from the churches I have visited. To these, such as they are, any of your readers is welcome, for the purposes to which I have referred, and I know many who would gladly send their contributions to such an undertaking. Our next letter, though brief, is valuable as furnishing a case in point, to prove the practical utility which would result from the realisation of some well-considered scheme for the attainment of the great national object which we are advocating. As an instance of the practical use of such a collection, let me inform your readers that in 1847, being engaged in an ejectment case on the home circuit, it became most important to show the identity of a young lady in the pedigree, the parish register of St. Christopher le Stocks only giving the name and date of burial. I found that when St. Christopher's was pulled down for the enlargement of the Bank of England, some kind antiquary had copied all the monuments. The book was found at the Herald's College; it contained an inscription proving the identity, and a verdict was obtained.
In Vol. iii, p. 218., you suggest that the Society of Antiquaries is the body which should undertake the task of forming a record of existing monuments in churches. Entirely agreeing in the opinion you have expressed, I would venture to offer some remarks on the subject. The undertaking is a vast and laborious one, and can only be effected by great subdivision of labour. That the Society of Antiquaries is the fittest agent for the work, I think admits of little doubt; its Fellows are widely spread throughout the country. In every neighbourhood may be found one or more gentlemen able and willing to give their aid, and to excite others to assist. The ArchÆological Institute and the British ArchÆological Association would doubtless add the weight of their influence, and the personal assistance of their members. The clergy throughout the country would be able and willing labourers; and surely these conjoined forces are adequate to the occasion. One consideration suggests itself, viz., whether The inscriptions in churches should be accompanied with rubbings of all brasses; and, as far as possible, with drawings of the most interesting monuments. I am satisfied the thing can be done, if it be undertaken with prudence, and continued with energy. The copies should be certified by the signature of the person making them, and they should all be transcribed on paper of the same description, so that they might be bound in volumes. The expense would probably be considerable, because in some instances paid labour might be requisite; but it would be as nothing compared with the magnitude and importance of the result; and if, as is probable, the Society of Antiquaries might hesitate at undertaking the whole charge, I doubt not that many would contribute towards it, and amongst them A very slight consideration of the object which it is proposed to accomplish, and the means by which it can be attained, will show that it falls properly into three distinct operations, namely, Collection, Preservation, and Publication. The first and most important is, the Collection of Materials. In this, it is obvious, the co-operation of individuals well qualified for the work may be secured in all parts of the country, provided some well-defined plan of operation is furnished for their guidance, by some recognised centre of union. A Committee of the Society of Antiquaries, who should well consider and determine upon some uniform plan of recording the inscriptions, &c., is clearly the body who, from their position, could most effectually, and with the greatest propriety, issue such circulars. That the Antiquaries would in this receive the support of both the ArchÆological Societies, there cannot, of course, be any doubt. And as we have in the Society of Antiquaries a machinery already established for the proper collection of the materials, so we have an existing and most appropriate place for their preservation in the British Museum, where they may be consulted at all times, by all parties, with the greatest facility, and free of charge. These two great points, then, of Collection and Preservation, it is clear may be attained at an expense so inconsiderable, compared with the benefits to be gained from their accomplishment, that we cannot believe in their failure from want of funds. For the accomplishment of the third great end, that of Publication, there is no existing machinery. But let the work of collection and preservation be once fairly entered upon—let it be seen how valuable a collection of materials has been gathered ready to the hand of a Society which should undertake its publication, and there need be little fear that from the supporters of the various Antiquarian, ArchÆological, and Publishing Societies, now spread throughout the country, there would be found plenty of good men and true ready to lend their aid to the printings and publishing of the Monumentarium Anglicanum. But as the first step is Collection—and that step is the one in which the Society of Antiquaries can best move, we trust that the present year, in which this Society celebrates the centenary of its chartered existence, will be signalised by its promotion of such a Record of Existing Monuments as is here proposed; which cannot be otherwise regarded—(and we use the words of the Society's Charter)—than as "good, useful, honest, and necessary for the encouragement, advancement, and furtherance of the study and knowledge of Antiquities and the History of this Country." |
|
