medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and culture
I think the retrospective monument and the soon-after-death cenotaph are probably 2 different phenomena (though both equally fascinating!) 
I wonder whether we can get any idea of intention - are there ever inscriptions which make it clear that the body is elsewhere? (you do of course get this on post-medieval monuments.) I don't think that retrospective monuments ever had any intention to deceive - but there's a slippery area between retrospective monuments and reliquaries which again confuses the picture. 

Maddy

Dr Madeleine Gray PhD, FRHistS
Reader in Church History/ Darllenydd mewn Hanes yr Eglwys
School of Humanities and Social Sciences /Ysgol Ddyniaethau a Gwyddoniaethau Cymdeithasol
University of South Wales/Prifysgol De Cymru
Caerleon Campus/Campws Caerllion,
Newport/Casnewydd  NP18 3QT Tel: +44 (0)1633.432675
http://www.southwales.ac.uk
http://twitter.com/penrhyspilgrim
http://twitter.com/HeritageUSW
http://twitter.com/USWHistory
 
'We all cherrypick the past but you have to be aware that you're cherrypicking' (Ruth Goodman)
From: medieval-religion - Scholarly discussions of medieval religious culture [[log in to unmask]] on behalf of Jon Cannon [[log in to unmask]]
Sent: Monday, February 03, 2014 9:52 AM
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Subject: Re: [M-R] cenotaphs

medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and culture
I concur with what Maddy says strongly. And I'd also counsel -- this may be obvious -- against making assumptions in any given case. Given their size, it is astonishing how many medieval tombs have demonstrably been moved around the church, or major parts of them -- entire effigies -- lost. This confuses the evidence for the true picture, ie the original relationship of effigy and burial -- all the more.
 
A couple more examples:
The retrospective bishops of Wells are a celebrated example of a much more widespread phenomenon: there were programmes of 'heritage' monuments to past bishops at Hereford and York, too.
 
The Bristol merchant William Canynges has two effigies in St Mary Redcliffe church, Bristol. One is a full-scale affair with a canopy in which he and his wife are depicted as a wealthy burgess-class couple; the other shows Canynges alone in alabaster, in his role as Dean of Westbury. They can't both be tombs!
 
At Gloucester (Prince Osric) and Malmesbury (Athelstan) abbeys there are sixteenth-century monuments to Anglo-Saxon royal founders and benefactors.
 
Jon
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