English Church Monuments in the Middle Ages

Abstract

Abstract This book offers a survey of English church monuments from the pre-Conquest period to the early 16th century. It explores medieval monuments from the twin angles of their social meaning and the role which they played in the religious strategies of the commemorated. Attention is given to the production of monuments, the pattern of their geographical distribution, the evolution of monument types, and the role of design in communicating the monument's message. A major theme is the self-representation of the commemorated as reflected in the main classes of effigy — those of the clergy, the knights and esquires, and the lesser landowner and burgess class, while the effigial monuments of women are examined from the perspective of the construction of gender. While using monuments as windows onto the experiences and lives of the commemorated, the book also exploits documentary sources for the commemorated for what they can tell us about the influences which helped shape the monuments. One chapter looks at the construction of identity in inscriptions, showing how the liturgical role of the monument limited the opportunities for expressions of selfhood.

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