Salisbury Cathedral’s team of Conservators found more than they expected when, as part of their on-going schedule of work, they removed the Henry Hyde Monument from the cathedral’s South Aisle wall in order to repair and clean it. Hidden behind the monument they found the remains of some beautifully written English text, most probably dating from the 16th century.
Conservator Tom Beattie said, “Our first job of the new year was to remove, repair, clean and then re-fix the Henry Hyde Monument, which consists of forty-four pieces of marble alabaster and Chilmark stone. It was only when the inscription table at the centre of the monument was removed that we made the amazing discovery of some beautifully written English text. It has been painted on a lime wash base layer rather than on the stone itself. We are used to uncovering information about the fabric of the building as we go about our daily work as Conservators but this has to be one of the best finds. The wonder is that it is there – the notion that this monument was simply placed on top of this exquisite script some 350 years ago – and we are all left wondering what the writing was for and says.”
Tim Tatton Brown, the Cathedral’s Archaeologist, said “Sir Henry Hyde had been quietly buried in the cathedral in 1650 after his execution by Parliament for supporting King Charles I. This monument was erected soon after 1660 and refers to him as finishing life ‘kissing the axe…to suffer the envied martyrdom of Charles I’. There are several lines of a large textual inscription. Unfortunately it has subsequently been whitewashed over making it difficult to read but the good gothic lettering is clearly visible. It needs a specialist to confirm what it is but I surmise that this is 16th century writing and my guess is that it is a biblical text, put there in the Elizabethan period when the nave was fitted out with high pews for people to sit in to listen to the ‘new’ sermons preached there. Inscriptions of the bible, the Word of God, would have been written on the inside walls of the building following the Reformation, having been translated into English in Cranmer’s bible. It is wonderful to think this writing has been found and seen now for the first time in over 350 years – although it is just possible this writing was first uncovered during Gilbert Scott’s restoration of the nave in the 1870s.”
Discussions are now taking place to decide the best way forward. Canon Treasurer, Mark Bonney, said “It’s a fascinating find but all these monuments the Conservators work on have to be put back into their places within a limited time span – and in this instance, by the middle of February. We think that the best approach is to consolidate the text to preserve it in its present state and then carry out a comprehensive photographic record of it before it is covered up again when the monument is returned to the wall. In many ways the text is far more vulnerable in its current state, exposed to the air, rather than hidden behind the Hyde monument.”
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