Description
carved and pierced in high relief
Dimensions
57cm wide, 58cm high
Footnote
Provenance:
Purchased Arthur Brett & Sons, Ltd, Norwich, 1993
Note: A person's coat of arms indicated their lineage and social standing. Carved armorial panels were thus made to be displayed prominently in aristocratic homes as a visible sign of their pedigree. Royal armorial panels, such as this one showing the arms of Charles I, were similarly used to display familial links or close friendship with the monarchy. They might be hung above doorways or used as the centrepiece of chimneypiece and state bed decorations. After the 1534 English Reformation, they were also made to go in churches, a practice which continued throughout the 17th century.