| Description |
From Horowitz, 2002.
This knight, the oldest surviving brass in England, is six feet long and is the only brass figure holding a lance. His shield is heater-shaped and still bears the deep blue enamel finish that once colored most brasses of this period. Sir John wears a suit of mail that includes a shirt of mail (hauberk) ending in gloves undivided for his fingers. The chains encasing his legs and feet are called the chausses. His surcoat is confined by a cord around his waist and is fringed at the bottom. Over his knees, knee-cops are worn for protection; these were made from boiled leather (cuir-bouilli). He wears prick spurs strapped over his ankles.
The strap holding his sword is decorated with roses, the emblem for the Blessed Virgin Mary. The shoulder strap (guige) securing his shield is decorated with swastikas, a very old mystical religious symbol adapted to Christianity. (In Sanskrit, it means "It is lucky"; the Scandinavians called it "the hammer of Thor.") At his feet rests a lion, believed to represent knightly courage or generosity. His shield and pennant bear the family crest, a chevron, as do two small shields. His legs are not crossed, unlike the other knights of the Surcoat Period. Sir John wears a mustache.
The indents in the marble surrounding his brass form the letters of his inscription, now lost since all the brass letters sunk into the indents are missing. It reads as follows: SIR: JOHAN: DAUBERNOUN: CHIVALER: GIST: ICY: DEU: DE: SA: ALME: EYT: MERCY. (Sir John D'Aubernoun, knight, lies here. God have mercy on his soul.") A Roger D'Aubernoun came over from Normandy to England with William the Conqueror in 1066. His name probably derived from the river Aube in Picardy and Burgundy. Gilbert D'Aubernoun, Sir John's father, died in 1236 when his son was still a minor. Sir John became sheriff for the shires (counties) of Surrey and Sussex in 1264 and again in 1266. In 1253, he gained the rights to Albury Manor, as well as judicial authority in his village of Stoke D'Aubernoun. He died before 1278, the year his son, John, received his father's lands. |
| Bibliography |
Horowitz, Mark R. The Monumental Brasses of England: The Horrowitz Collection. Morton Grove, IL: Portcullis Productions, 1980 (1979). p. 6-7.
Horowitz, Mark R. The Monumental Brasses of England. The Horowitz Collection. New Edition, 2002.
p.15-16.
Howden, Jacqueline.Brass Rubbing Catalogue. Bucks, England: Clark Paterson Limited. p. 112. |
