Sepultures to Knights of the Middle Ages 1146-1492
These wonderful sepultures (literally, burial concepts in image form) were created by the inspired artwork of John Mollo (who drew them) combined with the unparalleled knowledge of John Brook-Little, then Bluemantle Pursuviant at the College of Arms in London (whose own detailed descriptionof each Knight is shown below each image to which we have added footnotes to apprise the curious). They depict imaginary tomb decoration or, if you like, potential stained glass imagery of the armour and real heraldry of 12 of the leading barons who lived during a 300 year period between Richard the Lion Heart (Richard I, 1189-1199) and Richard of York (1411-1460) who fathered two monarchs culminating in the restoration of the House of York, King Edward IV (1442-1483) and King Richard III (1452-1485). The Oxford English Dictionary lists, under “armor” and “armour”: “coat armour = ‘coat of arms,’ originally a vest of silk or other rich material embroidered in colours, worn over the armour of a knight, to distinguish him in the lists or on the field of battle”. For the art and science of armory, more generally called heraldry, these 300 years were the period of its maximum development. [John Mollo was also responsible for our prints Uniforms of the Royal Navy and The Light Brigade.] These big, sumptuous images are printed on heavy cartridge paper, the predominate colours being heraldic red, blue, green, gold and silver.