Trinitatis Sanctae Octabae. The Octave of the Holy Trinity; the Sunday after Trinity Sunday.

Valentini, Festum Sancti. The Feast of Saint Valentine. Probably that celebrated on the 14th February; but there were other festivals in honour of persons of this name, 16th April, 16th July, 13th November, and 9th and 16th December.

Vincentii Martyris, Festum Sancti. The Feast of Saint Vincent, the Martyr, 22nd January.

(Liber Custumarum, Riley, vol. ii. pt. ii. pp. 841-844.)

APPENDIX VII
AN ANCHORITE’S CELL[22]

“Soon after the present work was begun a strange hole was discovered in the chancel wall, just at the turn of the apse on the north side. It is about 4 feet high and 20 inches wide. There is no stonework. A roughly rectangular hole has been broken through the flint wall, and the sides of it plastered to something like a smooth face. There is no provision for or mark of a door. And it was difficult to assign any reason for the making of the hole. Yet it was certain that some reason for it had been. Rough as it is, there is enough care bestowed on its making to show that it was not one of the openings sometimes left in the walls of buildings for the convenience of bringing things in during their construction, and blocked up when done with. Besides, it is too small for such a use. It was suggested that it may have been made to bring in a coffin at some funeral. But it is too small for that also: and it needs to be shown why men should have broken through the wall to bring in a coffin when it was much easier to bring it in by a door. Then it was guessed that it might belong to some extinct stove for warming the church; but neither the position nor anything in the form of the hole seemed likely for that use. It is too small to have been the entrance to a vestry, though the position is a proper one; and certainly there must have been a door had that been its purpose. Yet if the hole had ever more than a temporary use, it must have led to some chamber outside, for the church could not have been used if it were open to the weather.

Some further light was thrown on the place a few months ago when a coating of modern cement was stripped off the outside of the wall. Then was found a second hole about the same size as the first, but cut only part way through the wall. It is plastered inside with clay, and was filled up with flints and clay. Rather above these holes, and east and west of them respectively, are two smaller ones, such as may have received the ends of timbers. These also were found stopped with clay. The annexed illustration explains the work better than any description.

It seems that a little wooden hut has been built at some time against the wall of the church. The smaller holes give its length from east to west—about eight feet inside—and perhaps also its greatest height, about six feet. But this last and the width from north to south are uncertain, for there is nothing to show what was the shape of the roof, and if there were ever any foundations they are not to be found now. The walls were probably of stud and clay daubing, and the roof thatch.