wide. It is illustrated in the Rev. Elias Owen's Old Stone Crosses of the Vale of Clwyd and Neighbouring Parishes, p. 85.

Moel y Gaer.-A mile and a quarter beyond Halkin, the members left the carriages to walk up to the top of a hill 993 ft. above the sea-level, called Moel y Gaer. The whole of the summit is enclosed within a single rampart of stones and earth, with a ditch on the outside. This hill-fort is probably ancient British. It commands a fine view of the Moel Fammau range of mountains, which were, however, on the present occasion, unfortunately concealed from view by a dense, black mist hanging over the whole valley. The fortification is nearly round in plan, and has a small artificial mound within the ring. A gold torc was found near it. (See Arch. Camb., 2nd Ser., vol. v, p. 85.)

Northop Church.-Rejoining the carriages at the foot of the hill, a drive of two miles in an easterly direction brought the party to Northop Church. The most remarkable feature about the exterior is a massive Perpendicular tower, 98 ft. high, built in five stages, at the west end of the nave. The church has been recently restored, and furnished with carved oak seating. The plan consits of a nave and chancel of the same width, with a north aisle continued along the whole length of both, and separated by an arcade of six pointed arches springing from octagonal pillars. The old Perpendicular roof, of low pitch, still remains. The portion over the chancel has,

at the recent restoration, been decorated with painting. The windows are debased Perpendicular. The arch under the tower is panelled both on the jambs and soffit. The font is a modern one, of marble, with an inscription. It is weak in design, the inside of the bowl being far too small. At equal distances along the north wall of the north aisle are four effigies, placed, at the time of the former restoration, in arched recesses in the wall, three being those of knights in plate-armour, and one that of a lady under a canopy. The inscription on the effigy of one of the knights is in late Lombardic capitals, as follows:

HIC IACET: ITH VACH: AP BLED: VACH.

(Here lies Ithel Vychan ap Bleddyn Vychan.)

The effigy of the lady is inscribed in almost identical characters: DIE MAI ANNO : DÑI : M°: CCCCLXXII.

(... day of May, in the year of Our Lord 1472.)

On the edge of this effigy was another inscription, but it has all been chipped away except the letters v c v. Pennant conjectured from this that it might have been the tomb of Leuci Llwyd, who died in 1482. (See his Tours in Wales.) These effigies will be more fully described by Mr. Stephen Williams in a future Number of the Arch. Camb. An account of Northop Church will be found in Archdeacon Thomas' History of the Diocese of St. Asaph, p. 478.

Mold Church. From Northop the party proceeded to Mold, two miles to the south, where, after luncheon at the Black Lion Hotel, and a short rest, the parish church was inspected. The plan consists of a nave with north and south aisles separated from it on each side by an arcade of seven Tudor arches, having a western tower built in 1770, and an apsidal chancel, of octagonal shape, built in 1856. The effect of seeing the three windows of the apse through the wide chancel-arch, from the west end of the nave, is not by any means unpleasing. The nave and aisles are Late Perpendicular in style. The arcades are very richly decorated with sculpture. Above each pier is an angel holding a shield bearing a coat of arms; in the spandrels are other similar shields, but smaller; and a frieze of beasts runs the whole length of the church, above the points of the arches. The devices on the shields are partly religious, consisting of the emblems of the Passion, and partly heraldic. Amongst the latter were to be seen the curious representation of the eagle carrying the swathed body of an infant in its claws, which was adopted as a crest by the Stanley family;1 the royal arms of Henry VII; the Prince of Wales' feather and motto; the three legs of the Isle of Man; the fleur-de-lys, etc. The religious symbols include the five wounds, nails, crown of thorns, etc., of the Passion; the Virgin and Child; the Crucifixion; and a representation of the chalice and wafer inscribed with the letters IHC.

1 See E. Sidney Hartland's English Folk and Fairy Tales, p. 63; and Burke's Peerage (Earl of Derby).

The whole of these sculptured details are quite worthy of a separate monograph, to the preparation of which some local antiquary would do well to devote his attention.

The clerestory windows are square, and very small. There are several fragments of old stained glass in the windows of the north aisle. One small piece bears the date 1500. Over the north door of the north aisle was remarked a beautiful painted glass window with two coats of arms and inscriptions beneath; the one on the left being the royal arms of Henry VII, with a request to pray for the soul of Elis ap David ap Res, Vicar of Mold, 1565-76; the other, on the right, the Derby arms, with a request to pray for the soul of Edward Earl of Derby, who died in 1572, and his wife. A frieze of beasts runs round the church, outside as well as inside. The porch has a stone roof.

Mold Church was restored by Sir Gilbert Scott in 1856. The font is modern, and Perpendicular in style. The Registers commence in 1624. There are several monuments in the church belonging to the Davies family of Gwysaney; amongst others, one to Robert Davies, 1728, by Sir Henry Cheer, Bart.

Pentre Hobin.-Leaving Mold, the members drove on to Pentre Hobin, a mile and a half to the south-east, the residence of Mr. Pennant A. Lloyd. The house is built of yellow sandstone, and is an interesting example of old Welsh domestic architecture, with pointed gables, mullioned windows, and oak-panelled rooms. date on the doorway is 1540, and that over the curious, carved oak chimney-piece in the dining-room, 1546, accompanied in both cases by the initials E LL, M LL.

The

Adjoining the house is a series of eight vaulted cells erected by an ancestor of the present owner in order to afford accommodation to travellers, after the dissolution of the monasteries, when the monks could no longer entertain strangers. The cells average 5 ft. by 7 ft., by 6 ft. high, and each has a small entrance-doorway, and an aperture for ventilation at the side of it. The cells are all covered by one roof. At one end is a building containing a room for the superintendent, which is reached by a short flight of steps.

The Tower.-After Pentre Hobin, the next place visited was The Tower, half a mile to the south-west,-a medieval, fortified house where, in 1465, Reinallt ap Gruffydd ap Bleddyn killed Robert Bryne, the Mayor of Chester, after a faction-fight at Mold Fair. The ring in the stone-arched ceiling of the lower room of The Tower (now used as a dining-room) is traditionally believed to have been made use of to hang the Mayor; but it was more probably intended for the suspension of a chandelier. The building has been modernised, but without destroying any of the ancient features. Mr. Howard, the present occupier, was kind enough to offer the members refreshments, and to show them through the various rooms from roof to cellar. The Tower has already been described and illustrated in the Arch. Camb., vol. i, p. 55. It is a tall, rectangular tower, embattled and machicolated at the top, and with a round stair-turret at the south-east corner, having a pointed stone roof.

Gwysaney. On the return journey to Holywell, the party again passed through Mold, getting just a glimpse of the once strongly fortified mound called the Bailey Hill. The last stop was at Gwysaney, two miles north-west of Mold, the residence of Mr. Philip B. Davies-Cooke, who entertained the members to tea, and also read a paper on Ewloe Castle. Mr. Davies-Cooke exhibited some of his Welsh MSS. He is the fortunate possessor of the original MS. of the Liber Landavensis; but it could not be seen on this occasion as it is being copied at Oxford.

The pedigree of the Davies family is given in the Arch. Camb., 4th Ser., vol. vi, p. 47. A list of the MSS. at Gwysaney will be found in the Historical MSS. Commission Papers, iv-xii, 202.

List of pictures, old documents, etc., at Gwysaney, Mold, seen by the Cambrian Archæological Association on the 19th August 1890:

LIBRARY.

In Glass Case on Table.

MS. Book of Welsh Pedigrees.

Tile from the Old Church at Flint.

Signature of Henry VII in Letter to John Puleston of Hafod y Wern. MS. Book of Welsh Poetry by Iolo Goch, etc.

1548, January 16th, Grant from Henry VIII of the office, for life, of Recorder of Bromfield, Yale, and Chirk, to Robert Davies, one of the Yeomen of the Guard, for faithful services. Great Seal attached. Book of Prayers (Latin and English) with Badge (a crowned Marguerite) of Margaret Tudor, Queen of Scotland, and sister of Henry VIII, Her Book of Prayer.

MSS., St. Paul's I and II Epistles to Timothy, and the Epistle to Philemon, translated into Welsh.

1552, Sept. 14th, Edward VI, R., Grant of Fees of the Crown, "videlt. sex denar' p' diem", for services to Robt. Davies, "Garde m'e ordinar"." Great Seal attached.

1560, June 26, Elizabeth Regina. A Pardon of Outlawry to Mr. John Puleston, Gentleman. Great Seal attached.

Two pieces of a dress said to have belonged to Queen Elizabeth.
Commission to Captain Davies, signed by Charles I.

1581, Grant of Crest and Arms to Robert David, son of John David, son of David Griffith of Gwysaney.-N.B. The arms he had a previous right to; and this crest the Davies family, to my knowledge, only once used, as they preferred their old Welsh

one.

Locket containing Miniature of Robert Sidney, Earl of Leicester, K.G., younger brother of Sir Philip Sidney. Died 1626. Painted by Isaac Oliver. Wears same dress as in the portrait Lord de Lisle has. Signature of Oliver Cromwell, to release Robert Davies of Gwysaney from prison at Chester Castle, 30 June 1658.

Glass Case hung to Wall, containing—

Grant to John Davye (Davies), Gentn., of Land in Broughton, Merton, and Tredesmawen, in the Commote of Cateshill, co. Flint. Philip and Mary, 1553, 1554. Great Seal attached. John ap David (Davye or Davies) of Gwysaney, co. Flint, married Jane, widow of Richard Mostyn, and daughter of Thomas Salusbury of Leadbrook, co. Flint.

Miniature of Dorothy, wife of Sir John Pakington, Bart., reputed authoress of The Whole Duty of Man.

Miniature, in silver case, of Charles II.

Miniature of Lady Coventry, wife of Thomas, first Baron Coventry, Keeper of the Great Seal, 1625.

Miniature of Philip II of Spain, by Coello.

Betrothal or Wedding-Ring, thirteenth century. Stone, uncut sapphire.

Silver Pendant, bust of Charles I.

Piece of the mane of" Copenhagen", the Duke of Wellington's horse at Waterloo.

Bronze Pendant taken from the body of a Russian soldier after Inkerman, 5 November 1854.

Ring given to George Earl of Kingston in memory of Right Hon. Spencer Percival, Prime Minister, assassinated in the House of Commons, 1812.

Wedding or Betrothal Ring, time of Queen Elizabeth.

Memorial Locket of Death of Edward Earl of Kingston, 14 November 1797.

Medallion of Leo II, Pope from 1823 to 1829.

Miniature of William Chambers, Esq., of Ripon; b. 1734: d. 1796. Painted by Cook.

Russian Medallion with Portraits of Saints Bdrlaam or Varlam and Susanna.

Miniature of Lady Helena Rawden, Countess of Mountcashell. Died 27 May 1792.

Miniature of Lady Charlotte Fitzgerald.

Miniature of Philip Davies-Cooke, b. 1793, d. 1853; and Philip Bryan Davies-Cooke, b. 1832.

Portrait of Thomas Earl of Strafford, b. 1593; beheaded on Tower Hill, 1641. This portrait, on wood, is a sketch by Vandyck for the large picture belonging to Earl Fitzwilliam.

Portrait of the Earl of Essex.

Portrait of Mrs. Davies-Cooke of Gwysaney, by Il Cavalieri Capalti of Rome, 1862.

Portrait of the Lady Helena Caroline Cooke, born 11 April 1801, died 9 May 1871. By Bonavia.

Portrait of Catherine (Davies), wife of Pyers Pennant of Bychton, co. Flint, b. 1642, married 1656. Drawn from some picture by Moses Griffith.

Design for Wilson Memorial-Window in Mold Church.

Portrait, on wood, of Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester.