A guide, descriptive and historical, through the Town of Shrewsbury

by W. A. Leighton

The remnant of the screen of a chauntry chapel, in the north aisle, decorated with a series of small foliated niches, each divided by a buttress and finial, and containing traces of sculptured imagery, appears to indicate the situation of the chauntry of the guild of St. Wenefrede.

The ancient and curious font originally belonged to the church of High Ercall, in this county. In the pavement, near the vestry-door, are many interesting specimens of emblazoned tiles; and a font, the basin of which, representing an open flower, wound with drapery festooned from the mouths of grotesque heads, was found among the ruins of the Abbey, and is fixed on a pedestal formed of the upper part of the ancient cross, called the “Weeping Cross,” and sculptured with the Visitation, the Virgin and Child, the Crucifixion, and a figure in the attitude of devotion.

Communicating with the north aisle by a fine semicircular arch, overspread with massy round mouldings, rising from clustered piers, is the spacious vaulted north porch. The exterior portal is formed by a deeply recessed square opening, the mouldings of which fall over the angles far down the sides, ending in mutilated busts. Within this is a graceful pointed arch, rising from a round column on each side. Above are two chamber stories, each lighted by a small window. On the right and left, a tabernacled niche, extends the whole height of the upper stories. An ill-designed stone parapet crowns the gable.

And now

“let’s talk of graves, of tombs and epitaphs;”

of which many ancient ones, either found among the ruins, or removed hither on the demolition of other sacred edifices in the town and county, are preserved in the ample side-aisles; the more remarkable of which, we shall briefly enumerate in the order of their supposed dates:—

In the north aisle, a cumbent figure, brought from St. Chad’s, of a person in the robes and coif of a judge.

In the south aisle, a monument brought from St. Giles’ church, of the shape en dos d’ane, and probably of the early part of the thirteenth century. The sculpture consists of a rich foliated cross, in high relief: under which is a figure in priestly vestments with uplifted hands, also in relief, and the insignia of the priestly office, the chalice, bell, book, and candle, in outline. Round the edge of the stone are the letters, T : M : O : R : E : U : A.

Opposite to the last, a cumbent effigy of a cross-legged knight, in linked armour and surcoat, removed from the priory church of Wombridge, in this county, and conjectured, from the tradition of that neighbourhood, to commemorate Sir Walter de Dunstanville, the third lord of Ideshale, a great benefactor of that priory, who died 25th Henry III., 1240.