Misericord depicting a kneeling figure; St Nicholas Chapel, Kings Lynn; ca 1419

Made of a solid, rectangular (landscape) piece of oak. The top two corners of the choir seat are cut away to form 45 degree angles.

The misericord itself is bordered with a four-sided double moulding with a tapered and facetted support to the bracket below. Obscuring most of this bracket is a scene showing a figure (?man/woman - ?possibly ecclesiastic - ?possibly donor) at prayer flanked by two articles of furniture. The figure, dressed in robes which fall in elaborate folds, kneels and raises its head toward the moulded edge of the misericord ledge. The figure's hands are pressed together in prayer and from between them comes a banner-type object which extends to the right and cascades over the desk supporting an open book located to the right of the figure. To the left of the figure is another article of furniture, possibly some sort of bench with high decorated back and sides.

At either side of the misericord is a supporter, which extends out from the ledge as a curved branch with a tiny off-shoot about half way along and ending in a letter carved to look as if it is formed of ribbon. The letter on the left is a 'B' and it encloses an eagle displayed. The eagle grips the bottom of the letter in its talons and holds the end of the 'ribbon' at the centre of the letter in its beak. The letter on the right is a 'Y' and its tail sprouts into two open seed pods (possibly the device of the donor/figure depicted in the central corbel).

This misericord is one of ten (W.6 to 12 and 52 to 54-1921) which were purchased by the V&A from the Architectural Association (34 & 35 Bedford Square, WC1), per Messrs Bricciani & Co. 254 Goswell Road, EC1., in 1921. The group was purchased in 1921 as part of a larger acquisition of fifty-eight pieces of woodwork for £500. It was originally assumed that all ten misericords were from St Nicholas Chapel, Kings Lynn until G.L. Remnant – in A Catalogue of Misericords in Great Britain , Oxford, 1969 – pointed out the differences in design in the seats.

It is now thought the misericords divide into two groups: one of six (W.6,9 to 12 and 54-1921), which are still believed to be from St Nicholas and one of four (W.7,8,52 and 53-1921) which, while possibly still from East Anglia, are not now thought to be from St Nicholas. This misericord is one of the six still thought to come from St Nicholas.

The Chapel of St Nicholas, Kings Lynn was founded by William Turbe, Bishop of Norwich, 1146-74, for the use of the inhabitants of the ‘New Lande’ he had laid out for building north of the Purfleet. His chapel was pulled down and on its site was built a small chapel, the west end of which remains (probably dates to 1200-1210). The present building was constructed in the early years of the fifteenth century and completed about 1419. This misericord was part of the original fitted wooden furnishings and was sold by the church wardens of St Nicholas, along with other objects, in 1852 to the Royal Architectural Museum.

(final paragraph pretty much copied from Charles Tracy, English Medieval Furniture and Woodwork)

Historical significance: Four of the six misericords in the V&A collection thought to have come from the Chapel of St Nicholas, Kings Lynn have supporters forming letters. Although there are some other examples of this (e.g. from Cartmel Priory) this is relatively unusual. It is not known what these letters refer to - the most likely explanation is that they are someone's initials but whose, and in what way was that person connected to the misericord?

In the case of this particular misericord it is tempting to suggest that the letters have something to do with the figure kneeling in the central corbel. It was not unusual in medieval art for someone who had been involved in the production of something, usually by giving money to facilitate it, to be pictured in the work they were instrumental in creating. This is particularly common in manuscripts used for private devotion such as Psalters and Books of Hours. This may also explain the significance of the seed-pods carved with the letter 'Y' - they may be some sort of device associated with the figure.

However, it is strange that sets of different 'initials' occur elsewhere on other misericords thought to come from the same place. It is not impossible that more than one person gave money/was involved in facilitating the production of the misericord. In fact, in the case of St Nicholas this is a distinct possibility, as the rebuilding of the chapel at the beginning of the fifteenth century was funded by the citizens of Kings Lynn. But why would they choose to be represented by a stag hunt (W.11-1921) or a chained leopard (W.6-1921) - unless these were pertinent to them in some way, perhaps elements of their heraldry?

It is also tempting to suggest that the letters on either side of the misericord depicting a carver at work (W.54-1921) refer to the craftsman responsible for carving these particular misericords. It is certainly possible that this is the case, although it was rare for medieval carvers to be referred to in this way (there is often no physical trace of who actually did the carving).

Another reading could be that all the letters are in some way related to each other and that, possibly along with other letters on misericords now lost, they meant something when the seating they adorned was arranged in a certain order - ?perhaps the motto of a single donor. Similarly, the devices entwined with the letters and the letters themselves could all be a reference to the same donor (the open-pods certainly feature again on the right supporter of W.6-1921 and the left of W.11-1921).

It seams reasonable that a donor would be depicted once in person and then be referred to more subtly through motifs in the subsidiary carving. Although, it is perhaps also possible that if there were more than one donor there was some sort of hierarchy to the extent to which they were physically represented in the carving scheme - the one who gave the most being pictured while only the intials or symbols related to the others were permitted. Either way, the depiction of the carver with 'initials' could be a means of drawing attention to what the donor/donors has/have been responsible for achieving - the carving of the misericords rather than anything to do with the actual carver.

Whatever associations the letters were menat to evoke in the viewer, a more practical suggestion as to how the letters were to be read is to do with prayer. It is interesting that the letters on all four misericords are formed of the same pseudo-ribbon as that clasped between the hands of the kneeling figure on this misericord (W.9-1921). Again, parallels can perhaps be drawn with medieval manuscripts, which quite often used blank, ribbon-like banners or scrolls to symbolise the spoken word. It seems plausible, even likely, that the banner clasped by the kneeling figure represents prayer, either as a means of showing themselves at prayer and thus recommending themselves as a pious person worthy of the mercy of God, or to encourage the prayers of others, either for them as donor or in general.

That the letters in the supporters are carved from the same pseudo-ribbon may suggest that they too are meant to prompt the viewer in some way to be moved to prayer.

Misericord is the name given to the ledge supported by a corbel which is revealed when the hinged seats in medieval choir stalls are tipped up. The word comes from the Latin misericordia which means pity and alludes to the original function of the ledge.

The rule of St Benedict, introduced in the sixth century AD, required the monks to sing the eight daily offices of the Church (Matins, Lauds, Prime, Terce, Sext, Nones, Vespers and Compline) standing up. They were only permitted to sit during the Epistle and Gradual at Mass and the Response at Vespers. Such long hours spent standing was particularly arduous for the older and weaker monks and they soon adopted a leaning staff or crutch to help take the weight off their feet.

By the eleventh century the rules were slightly relaxed and misericords were introduced – the monks were able to perch on the ledge and lean back slightly, taking much of the weight off their feet whilst still giving the appearance of standing up straight. They were in use wherever the monks were required to sing the daily offices, including cathedrals, abbeys and collegiate churches. They sometimes even appeared in Parish churches.

The earliest mention of misericords appears in the eleventh century in the rules of the monastery of Hirsau in Germany. It is not known when they were introduced in Britain but the earliest surviving examples are found at Hemingbrough in North Yorkshire and Christchurch in Dorset. Both date from the early thirteenth century. The earliest complete set of misericords is in Exeter Cathedral and dates from 1240 to 1270.

The choir seat, the ledge and the corbel supporting it were made of a single piece of wood, usually oak. The corbel provided an ideal platform for medieval craftsmen to carve all manner of narrative scenes and decoration. British misericords differ from those elsewhere in Europe by having subsidiary carvings on either side of the central corbel. These are known as supporters and are often used to develop the theme introduced in the carving of the corbel.

Over half of the misericords in Britain are decorated with foliage but of those which do have narrative decoration, both in Britain and on the Continent, very few depict religious subjects. More common themes included scenes of everyday life and moral tales, often being depicted in a humerous way.

Whether, as has been suggested, the lack of religious scenes was because the hidden location of the misericords meant craftsmen were more free to be creative with their carving, or whether the monks would have thought it inappropriate to sit on images of Christ, Saints or biblical scenes is not known. However, their lack of overt religious content together with their concealed physical position probably contributed to a large number of them surviving the Reformation and still existing today.

Information taken mainly from:
Church Misericords and Bench Ends, Richard Hayman, Shire Publications, Buckinghamshire, 1989 (no copy in the NAL)
The World Upside-Down – English Misericords, Christa Grössinger, Lonodn, 1997
(NAL = 273.H.95)

attribution taken from English Medieval Furniture and Woodwork by Charles Tracy, Victoria and Albert Museum, London, 1988, p.62

'Misericord' is the name given to the ledge supported by a corbel or bracket, set on the underside of the hinged seats in the choirs of churches. They had no religious function but gave some support to the monks and clergy in the long parts of the services when standing was required. This explains the name 'misericord', which comes from the Latin for mercy. The decoration was often amusing and sometimes moral.

This misericord, the upper one in the picture, is one of ten (W.6 to 12 and 52 to 54-1921) which were purchased by the V&A from the Royal Architectural Museum, Westminster in 1921. It was originally assumed that all ten were from St Nicholas's Chapel, Kings Lynn but now only six are thought to come from there - this is one of them.

It is possible that the figure kneeling in prayer on this misericord was the donor, who paid for the chapel. It is tempting to suggest that the letters 'B' and 'Y' occupying the supporters (the subsidiary carvings found either side of the misericord) are this person's initials. However, several other misericords from St Nicholas have letters as their supporters and their significance has yet to be fully explained.

W.9-1921