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The article discusses the important semi-effigial tomb slab at Bredon (Worcs.), assessing its iconography, stylistic affinities and the possible identity of the couple commemorated. The slab is distinctive for a number of features, notably its use of a raguly cross; the figure of Our Lord crucified at the intersection of the arms; the well-carved busts of the persons commemorated immediately above the arms; and the presence of a double canopy to dignify the figures. It is argued that the monument is a bespoke commission, and that a context for its imagery may be found in contemporary wall paintings and manuscript illuminations, in which the raguly cross is employed as a means of representing the Tree of Life. The identity of the couple commemorated is not known for certain in the absence of a surviving epitaph, but it is suggested here that they are Sir Nicholas de Mitton and his wife, as Sir Nicholas is recorded as a landowner in the parish around this time (c. 1280–90). Sir Nicholas’s will is analysed for the evidence that it affords of his wealth and social connections, and it is argued that he should be seen as a man of the right background to be commemorated by a monument of this sort. Sir Nicholas’s employment as steward of the bishop of Worcester may point to someone in the bishop’s circle as originator of the commission.
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