Mrs Knight reports,

In spite of our first two Saturday afternoon recording sessions in May and June being rained off, the monumental inscriptions recording team have had a very productive and successful season this year. All the gravestones in the southern and eastern sectors of the churchyard at Tintinhull which are of historical or artistic interest have been photographed, a total of 145 stones. Here a special thank-you is due to our editor, Mr Leslie Brooke, who so competently and willingly undertook this part of the survey. The majority of these stones have now been transcribed and the details recorded on the standardised ‘Church Memorial Recording forms’ produced by the Council for British Archaeology. This includes details of memorial type, i.e. flat, head, tomb, foot, etc.; its material, and geology, the stone mason or undertaker’s mark; details of which faces of the stone are inscribed, the number of people commemorated; the technique of inscription; the condition of the monument and of its inscription; the dimension of each stone and its orientation; and the wording of the actual inscription.

Needless to say, the recording of such information for each memorial can be time-consuming (and exhausting), especially when faced with an apparently illegible and lichen-covered stone. However, some of the group of early and mid 18c headstones of the PRIDDLE family, situated in the southern sector of the churchyard are beginning to reveal their secrets, in spite of what seems at first glance to be a completely illegible and eroded stone. The sunken chest tomb of the BROWN family of 17c date and what appears to be an early 17c chest tomb in the eastern sector of the, churchyard (an exciting discovery made by Mrs Brooke) will require a great deal of further work.

Two monuments enclosed by high iron railings and covered with brambles and ivy, will require investigation by the more adventurous and hardy members of our team next season. A few stones are showing the destructive effects of time and the elements, and are flaking and cracking, and, worst of all, breaking into sections. One large and imposing 19c headstone to the LUXTON family had to have broken-off pieces fitted together like a jigsaw, and through the careful work of Mrs Hughes and tins Wheller, the inscription has been recorded in its entirety.

Lastly, many thanks to Mr and Mrs L.Brooke, Mrs L.Hughes, Mr and Mrs J.Moon (and daughter and 18-month-old grandson!), Mrs M.Nicholson, and Miss E.Pawley, who so kindly gave up so many Saturday afternoons this summer to help with the recording work, and, of course, the incumbent who kindly allowed us to carry this out this work in his church.

Further work ‘in the field’ has still to be done starting next Spring, so more volunteers are needed, especially as the western sector of the churchyard has not been touched! Please contact me: Mrs Pat Knight at Netherfield, East Street, West Coker, Yeovil (Tel.West Coker 2120), or at one of the Society’s; winter lecture meetings, if you feel you can help in any way.

(Editor’s Note: firs Knight’s report, naturally enough, omikis to mention the most efficient organization acid sound and helpful guidance which she herself has brought to the task of this important part of our investigation in depth into the story and recording of Tintinhull church.)

ALPHABETICAL LIST OF SURNAMES, FROM MEMORIAL STONES IN ST MARGARET’S CHURCH, TINTINHULL, AS TRANSCRIBED TO DATE (i.e. August 1980).

 

Allen	Farthing	Lucas	Pearce	Rossiter
Baker	Feltham	Luxton	Penny	Russ
Berry	Ford	Lye	Perry	Sealey
Bishop	Fox	Manley	Pinney	Southcombe
Boycott	Francis	Masters	Poole	Stagg
Brown	Gaylard	Matthews	Priddle	Tavener
Burrowes	Goldsworthy	Milverton	Pullen	Watts
Carter	Hallett	Morris	Purchase	Whitlock
Cole	Hamm	Newman	Read	Williams
Cox	Jellett	Parker	Rivers	Woodman
Dowden	Jones

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