Archive:A Caxton Memorial
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A Caxton memorial; extracts from the churchwarden's accounts of the Parish of St. Margaret's, Westminster, Illustrating the Life and Times of William Caxton, the First English Printer 1478 - 1492 Extracts by T. C. Noble. Reprinted, with permission, from the Builder, August 7 and 21, 1880.
Page 10. 1478-1480. This account is from the 7th of May, 1478 to the 18th of May, 1480 (John Wycam and Nicholas Wollestroft being churchwardens), and consist of forty-five written quarto parchment pages...
Page 11. The burials of individuals ranged from 2d. paid for two tapers, "at the burying of Elizbaeth Dennam," to the extravagant sum of 17s. 2d. paid "the day of burying of John Wytteney for 4 torches and 4 tapers, and the pytte and the belle," consequently, Westminster that day was witness to "a grand funeral."
Page 12. In the second year, the "burying of Robert of the Covent [Convent] Kychen for 2 tapers, 2d.," and the same for "Isabell Braye," - and at this early date the Bray family was a noted one in the parish. When a parishioner was above the ordinary folk, and could afford burial in the church, he was favoured with a "pytt," as the grave was called, for 6s 8d., and as a rule his "knyll with the belle" was rung, which cost 6d., as was the case with one Richard Cowper.
Copyright ©2006 Adrian Benjamin Burke, Esq., and the Whitney Research Group
