Braughing, Hertfordshire, England 1st October 2015. Old Mans Day, the Rev'd Julie Gawthrope and children from Jenyns First School around the grave of Mathew Wall. Brambles have been placed on the grave as directed in his will to prevent cattle grazing over it.
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Contributor:
Homer Sykes / Alamy Stock PhotoImage ID:
2WDT1KFFile size:
52.8 MB (2.6 MB Compressed download)Releases:
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5250 x 3514 px | 44.5 x 29.8 cm | 17.5 x 11.7 inches | 300dpiDate taken:
1 October 2015Location:
Braughing, Hertfordshire, EnglandMore information:
This image could have imperfections as it’s either historical or reportage.
Old Mans Day Braughing Hertfordshire. The vicar the Rev'd Julie Gawthrope sweeping Fleece Lane from the Fleece Inn leading to St Marys the Virgin church with the help of children from Jenyns First School. On 2 October 1571 as the funeral bell was being tolled, the coffin of a local farmer, Mathew Wall, was being carried from his home down Fleece Lane towards the village Church of St Mary the Virgin. As they made their way to the funeral service, a pallbearer slipped on the damp leaves the coffin was dropped, waking Mathew. He had perhaps been in a coma or suffered from a form of epilepsy. The following year he married and lived until 1595. In his will he made financial provision for Fleece Lane to be swept each year, after which the funeral bell, and then a wedding peal, were to be rung. The vicar now received £1-00 to be paid by the owner of Mathew’s farm house. The Deeds to the ownership require the payment. The invested money in Braughing Parish Charities also paid for his grave to be pegged with brambles to prevent grazing cattle from damaging it.