e misereres; the upper parts of the
panels behind the upper stalls are also carved in low relief; above
these is a projecting cornice decorated with pinnacles. The stalls are
late Perpendicular work, the wainscoting behind the stalls being later
still, as we can see from the subjects carved on the upper part of each
panel. Some of the misereres are, however, very old--one dates back to
about 1200, another to 1300, others are of later date, and most of them
belong to the same period as the stalls. The older ones were found lying
about in the lumber of the church, and have been placed in recent years
in some of the stalls the seats of which had been lost or stolen.
The older seats may have belonged to the original Norman choir. As the
term "miserere" may not be understood by all our readers, it may be
well to quote from Parker's "Glossary of Architecture" the following
description:--"Miserere, Misericorde, Patience, or Pretella, is the
projecting bracket on the under-side of the seats of stalls in churches:
these, where perfect, are fixed with hinges so that they may be turned
up, and when this is done the projection of the miserere is sufficient,
without actually forming a seat, to afford very considerable rest to any
one leaning upon it. They were allowed as a relief to the infirm during
the long services that were required to be performed by ecclesiastics
in a standing posture. They are always more or less ornamented with
carvings of leaves, small figures, animals, etc., which are generally
very boldly cut. Examples are to be found in almost all ancient churches
which retain any of the ancient stalls--one of the oldest remaining
specimens is in Henry VII.'s Chapel at Westminster; it is in the style
of the thirteenth century." When Parker wrote the last sentence the
still older miserere now to be seen at Christchurch had not been
discovered.

[5] She lived in the latter half of the thirteenth century.

[Illustration: CHOIR STALLS.]

[Illustration: MISERERE ON STALL SEAT. (_Circa_ 1300.) NORTH SIDE.]

It is curious to notice the absence of reverence on the part of the
mediaeval canons, according to our modern notions, that these quaint
carvings indicate. One might have expected that inside the church the
subjects would have always been of a sacred nature, rude perhaps, and
grotesque from their rudeness. Such carvings are found in many places,
but here at Christchurch we have satirical subjects, caricatures of
con