The daily union. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1845-1857, 1854-08-11

EABAIMED BoDIKs--A writer in the London Notes and
Queries, furnishes the following interesting account;
"A few weeks ago. in clearing old chapel at Nune-
ham Regis Warwickshire which had been pulled down
all but the bey tower forty years since thought il
necessary to trench the whole space that might more
certainly mark the boundaries of the building
wished to restore it in 10 its former state
II had been used stackyard and depository for rub
bsh by the tenants of the farm which it was ever since
its dapdaton We began TO trench at the west end and
a great many bones and skeletons from which
the collins had crumbled away TILL finding the earth had
been moved went deeper and discovered eaden coi
quite perfect without date or inscription OF any kind
There had been wooden coffin which was decayed
but quantities of the black rotted wood all round IT,
We cut the lead and folded back the top not to de
sroy it beneath wooden coffin, in good preserva-
ton, and also without any inscription.
As the leaden top rolled back most over
powering aromatic smell diused itself all the place
We then untsened the inner coiin and found the body
of embalmed with great care and heaps OF rose
mary and aromatic leaves piled over him. On examining the
body closely, found it had been beheaded The
head was separately wrapped up IN linen ana the 1 t
neck where the head had been cut off The head laid
straight with the body and where the joining of the head
and neck should have been it tied round with broad
black rband His hands crossed his breast the
wrists tied with black riband and the thumbs
tied together with black riband lie had peaked beard
and quantity of long brown hair cured and clotted with
blood round his neck The only mark anything about
him the linen his chest just above where his
hands crossed it were the letters T. b. worked
in black silk.
"On trenchng towards the channel we came four
leaden collins laid side by side with Inscriptions each
contained the body of Francis Earl of Chichester and
Lord Dunsmure, 1885, the next the body of Audrey,
Countess of Chichester 1852 another the body of Lady
Audrey Leigh their daughter l64o and the fourth the
body of Sir John Anderson, of Lady Chichester by
her first husband We opened the coffin of Lady Audrey
Leigh and found her perfectly embalmed and in entire
preservation her flesh quite plump if she alive
her face very beautiful and her hands exceedingly small
and not wasted She dressed in fine linen trimmed
all with point lace, and two of lace fiat
her forehead She looked exactly if she were lying
asleep and seemed not than sixteen seventeen
old her beauty very perfect her eyelashes and
eyebrows quite perfect and her eyes closed
part of her face figure was at all fallen in We also
opened Lady Chichesters con but with her the embalm
ing had perfectly failed She skeleton though the
coffin filled with aromatic leaves Her hair however,
fresh if she lived long, thick and soft
and glossy that of child and of perfect auburn
color
we found another leaden coffin with an inscription 1t
contained the body of Dame Maria Brawne daughter of
of the Leghs and of the lady Marie daughter to Lord
Chancellor Brackley. This body also quite perfect
and embalmed principally with very small coeecolored
seed with which the coffin nearly filed and it also
had powerful perfume that it filled the whole place
The linen rbands &C. quite strong aud good in all
these instances and remained after exposure to the air.
We kept piece out of each cofn and had it washed with
out its being at all destroyed Young lady Audrey had
rings in her ears black enamecd sepens The perfume of
the herbs gums used enbalmng them was SO sckenng
that we were all Ill after inhaling it. and of the
employed in digging up the collins were i'll also My object
in sending this account Is If possible to discover who the
beheaded The chapel Is the estate of Lord
John Scott who inherited it from his paterna grandma
her the Duchess of Buceuch daughter of the Duke of
Montague into his family Nuneham Regis and other pos
sessions in Warwckshre by the marriage of his
grandfather with the daughter Of Lord Dunsmure Earl of
Chichester"