Relhan Collection : 157 Fulbourn church. High tomb with 2 recumbent effigies to Edward Wood and Lady

Relhan, Richard, 1782-1844

Relhan Collection

<p style='text-align: justify;'><p>St Vigor’s church contains an altar tomb in the S transept with stone figures of an armoured man and his wife, whose heraldry indicates he was Edward Wood. Their children are shown kneeling. The Woods were a local yeoman family who, from C15, assembled a freehold and leasehold estate in Fulbourn. Edward Wood is recorded as running his own large farm in 1599 and died 1619 (parish register), leaving his Fulbourn mansion and remaining lands to his son John. Elsewhere in the church Layer describes a brass monument to an ancestor, Alexander (d. 1432) and Joan Wood. Damage to the Wood memorial includes loss of hands and feet of both figures and the head of a dog (?) at Edward’s feet. Both faces are worn, his sword is broken and there are scratched initials etc on the figures. Some of this damage had been done before Relhan drew it, indicating the stone used was clunch. The couple wear ruffs and their heads rest on cushions. Three elaborate coats of arms appear on N side of the base, 3 children kneel at the W end, and there could be more figures on other sides (which abut walls). The tomb is similar in style and date to the Steward memorials in neighbouring Teversham (<b>307-314</b>) and Ely (<b>152-155</b>), though the latter are far superior in quality.</p><p>Bradley and Pevsner 2014; Palmer 1932; VCH 2002</p></p>