The Cambria freeman. [volume] (Ebensburg, Pa.) 1867-1938, 1876-12-01
4 Uy0NDERFUL OLD WATCH.
TIE "MEMENTO- MORT THAT TOLD THE
HOURS FOR MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS.

TIE MEhbNIJ- MOhl lh-Al i'i4' -"
o HOURS FOR MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS.
The associations connected with this
relic of the beautiful and illstarrcd
Queen of Scots invest it with an inter-
est at once of profound melancholy.
On the evening of February I, 1867,
the night previous to her execution at
Fotheringay Castle, Mary perused her
will. read over the inventory OF her
goods and jewels, and wrote down the
names of her attendants and domcstlcs
to whom she had bequeathed each ar
ticle. Among the beqUests OF tins
sad hour was the momentO mort watch,
which was left to Mary Seton, one OF
the four Marys who were her maids OF
honor. From this lady it descends to
its present possessor, Sir Thomas
Dick Lander, Of Grange and Foun-
tainnall
The watch is Of silver, shaped like q
skull. On the forehead is figure OF
Death. armed with his customary en-
blems, the scythe and the hour glass
lie is standing between palace and
cottage, with one foot at each door.
Surrounding this figure is the appro-
pirate legend from Horace-Pdtllda
morS aeguO pllISat pete PduPeTHm taot-
1Gs g'eguTaqle tel7'es. On the back
part of the skull is Time, with his
scvthe. dcvouring all things near him
is the ancient symbol Of Eternity,
serpent with the tail in his mouth, and
around all is another legend from
Horace Icmpus edGr reruJn, etc.
The upper portion is divided into com
partments on one, our first parents
in the Garden Of Eden, With the motto,
PrecuHdo perjdione n1essriGm 8teTRUm
31osteris meruers The other compart-
ment is occupied with the subject OF
mans salvation by the death Of the
Redeemer with the crucifX is .he
motto, SiO justtjdm sGtj$tecI, mortem
SuDerGrH, sGlaien1 cOWpaTGrU Run-
ming below these compartments on
both sides is an open work, to permit
the sound to be heard more freely,
when the watch strikes, This is foIm-
cd Of designs Of the instruments of the
cruCiiiXiOn, namely: the cross, the
chalice, the fagon, the scouTge, thongs,
ladder, dice, spear, nails and hammer,
the reed with the sponge, the coat
with seam, and the crown of thOrns
beueath the motto Scala cali G{OTinm
uia. The watch is opened by revers-
ing the skull, and then lifting the un-
der jaw, which rises on 4 hinge. In
side this, which may be called the lid,
is a representation Of "Thc Holy Fam
ilv in the Stable" "ThC Infant Jesus
with His Mother and Joseph" while
in the distance are the Shepherds The
works of the watch occupy the space
which the brains do in living skull.
the dial plate being on fiat where the
roof of the mouth is. This plate is Of
silver, and it is fixed within a golden
circle, richly carved. The hours are
marked in large Roman letters, and in
the midst is figure of Saturn devour-
ing his children, with the motto, !S{cut
nlejS SIC ct omnibus jdcm All the
works are astonishingly perfect The
makers name and the place of manu-
facture, "Moye, Blois," are legibly en-
graved, but there is no date, and it is
supposed that the watch was made ex-
pressly for Queen Mary, either when
she went to Blois accompanied by her
first husband, the Dauphin of France,
or soon after his death, 1t still per-
forms well, though it requires to be
wound up every twenty six hours to
insure tolerable accuracy. This curl
Gus relic must have been intended TO
stand on a prie dIeu, or small altar
rs It's weight is much too great to have
allowed OF its being carried about the
person. 1t was bequeathed as has
been said, to Mary Seton, the life long
friend and companion of the uufortu-
nate Mary Stuart, in the palace and in
the prison, even 20 the scaffold, the
only one left to her loyal mistress of
the -four Marys' mentioned in the
distich-
"Iestreen the Queen had four Marvs.
This night she'll haze hut three;
There was Mary Seton, Mary Beton,
Mary Livingstone aud me"
The "me" being Mary FlemInu