DUDLEY PRIORY, WORCESTERSHIRE.
PLATE II.

ERDESWICKE, in his history of Staffordshire, describes the flate of this priory in his time; although it did not, as he allows, belong to the county of which he was treating.

" DUDLEY castle stands, says he, within the manor of Sedgely, in the very confines of Staffordshire, and so near Worcestershire, that the town of Dudley, (whereof the castle is called) standing within a stone's cast of the castle is in Worcestershire; and so I take it, is the priory also, which priory was at first founded, as I think, by Willielmus filius Aufculfi, or his son.

" IN the church of the fame priory were diverse goodly monuments of the Somereyes and Suttons, and especially one being crofs legged, and a very old one; which as it was a very goodly one for the workmanship, so it was much more strange for the flature of the person buried; for the picture which was laid over him, I took the measure of, and found it to be full eight foot long; neither was the person lefter of flature, for the coffin wherein the charnel was laid, being of free-stone, and hewed hollow, and fivable to the proportion of a man; the hollow was also eight foot, so that the body could be no lesf; for if it had, it could not with conveniency have been laid in it.

DUDLEY PRIORY, WORCESTERSHIRE,

PLATE II.

"DUDLEY caftle stands, fays he, within the manor of Sedgeley, in the very " confines of Staffordshire, and so near Worcesterfhire, that the town of " Dudley, (whereof the caftle is called) standing within a flone's caft of the " caftle is in Worcesterfhire; and so I take it, is the priory alfo, which priory " was at firft founded, as I think, by Willielmus filius Aufculfi, or his fon.

" IN the church of the fame priory were diverse goodly monuments of the " Somereyes and Suttons, and especially one being crofs legged, and, a very " old one; which as it was a very goodly one for the workmanship, so it was- " much more ſtrange for the ſlature of the perfon buried; for the picture " which was laid over him, I took the meaſure of, and found it to be full. " eight foot long; neither was the perfon leſſer of ſlature, for the coffin. " wherein the charnel was laid, being of free-flone, and hewed hollow, an- " ſwerable to the proportion of a man; the hollow was alfo eight foot, ſo- " that the body could be no leſs; for if it had, it could not with conveniency " have been laid in it.

Yale Center for British Art, 2011

“ WRITING I could see none, nor any other matter whereby I might differ
“ cern whole it was, until seeking something narrowly, I found under the
“ arch of the monument the gold fresh, wherewith, no doubt, it had been
“ wholly gilt over, and in the gold an hinder leg, and a piece of a tayle of a
“ blue lion, which also a man might discover to be paflant, and that by the
“ space of place it was contained in, there must necessarily be two lions;
“ otherwife the leg and tayle must proportionably have been much bigger
“ and larger than they were, and otherwife placed; so that thereby you may
“ perceive it was a Somerye, and, as I take it, the first founder of the said
“ priory.

“ DIVERSE other monuments there were. One other also crofs-leg’d, but
“ much flenderer than this other was, and also shorter. Another newer,
“ which I take to be for some of the Suttons, since they were Lords of Dudley;
“ but great pity it was, methought, to see both the church and the monu-
“ ments so defaced as they were; and so I then told my Lord; and that I mar-
“ velled that either he, or any of his ancestors would suffer it; and he answered
“ me, that it was done while the Duke was owner of it, so that the fault was
“ neither in his ancestors nor him.”

AT present, even the very ruins of the monuments here mentioned, are de-
froyed. The chief remains which have outlived the ravages of time and ava-
rice, are those of the Conventual Church. On the south side of the east window,
which seems to have been richly ornamented, there is a niche and canopy for
an image. The west end is built with a coffer and redder stone than that
used in the other parts of the building. The arches all appear to have been
pointed. Both to the east and west of the ruins, are large pools of water,
seemingly the remains of a mote which once encompassed the whole mona-
stery; and a little to the north, are traces of several large fish-ponds. It is
said, that water in any quantity is not to be found any where else hereabouts.

THE flattered walls of some of the offices, were, about four years ago,
patched up into a dwelling, and conveniencies for a tanner; but are now
occupied by a manufacturer of thread. Againft the house are set up several
coats of arms, found among the ruins.

This view, which fhews the S. W. aspect of thefe ruins, was drawn anno 1774.