Firebacks

Description: Rectangular; central shield; fleur-de-lys stamp repeated three times across top and once on each side level with shield, all regularly spaced.

Notes: It is likely that the arms relate to the marriage, in 1541, of Christopher Sackville (c.1519-1559), son of John Sackville of Chiddingly, Sussex, and Constance Colepeper, daughter of Thomas Colepeper of Bedgebury, Kent, one of whose ancestors was the heiress, Elizabeth Hardreshull. The blazon: Sackville - quarterly or and gules, a bend vair; Colepeper - argent a bend engrailed gules; Hardreshull - argent a chevron sable between nine martlets gules, six and three. Christopher Sackville's brother, Sir Richard, owned Horsted Keynes furnace, which may have been where this fireback was cast. A candidate for the earliest English fireback with an example of personal arms.

Arms: Sackville impaling Colepeper and Hardreshall

Description: Arched rectangular shape; no edging; initials evenly spaced around arch; date split between top corners.

Inscription: W S / 18 24

Description: Plain rectangular shape; no edging; separate initials in top left corners.

Notes: The regular form of the letters suggest that they might be reused printing blocks.

Inscription: T F

Description: Rectangle; no edging; date just above centre; initials above date.

Notes: The disparity between the quality of the stamping of the date and initials may be because the date has been stamped from a single block. There are stylistic similarities with the memorial plate to John and Ann Luck, dated 1771, in Wadhurst church porch, Sussex.

Inscription: I H / 1776

Description: Rectangular shape; no edging; top left, inverted 'renaissance' shield with the initials M above IE; top right, date 1671 in unseriffed numerals.

Notes: The shield with initials has not been noted on another fireback. The slots in the fireback are to accommodate andirons or firedogs.

Inscription: IME [triad] 1671

Description: Damaged rectangular plate; no edging; a buckle stamp repeated eight times in alternate horizontal and vertical pairs in four columns.

Notes: The buckle closely resembles that used to decorate glazed bricks on the walls of Laughton Place, Sussex, built by Sir William Pelham in 1534.

Description: Rectangular with two-stepped top; plain plate; date across lower step; rope saltire in upper step; initials split below outer shoulders.

Notes: The distinctive hand-formed characters on this and some other stepped firebacks imply a common source. Although the talbot crest, by which other firebacks in the series are identified, is absent on this casting, the shape and the style of the characters places it incontrovertably in the same group. Formerly part of the J. H. Every collection.

Inscription: 1615 / R T

Description: Rectangular with pediment and frieze resting on fluted Tuscan pilasters; plain podium base; rectangular central panel with double fillet edge divided into four with central panel containing initials; date in tympanum.

Notes: An early example of the use of classical architectural elements in an English fireback. Formerly part of the J. H. Every collection.

Copies of this fireback are known.

Inscription: [1]568 / ER

Description: Rectangular, with low curved top and stepped concave corners; suspended floral-chain border on top and sides; alternate small and large rings along the bottom; plain panel at base. Arms of Webster, baronet, of Battle: Azure, on a bend argent, cotised Or, between two demi-lions ermine, a rose gules, barbed and seeded proper, between two boars’ heads couped sable.

Notes: Sir Thomas Webster was created baronet in 1703; he was succeeded by his son, Whistler, in 1750. A pair of matching, cast-iron side plates form a set with this fireback.

Copies of this fireback are known.

Arms: Webster of Battle

Description: Rectangular (damaged top left corner); plain plate; centre top, a circle of twisted rope enclosing a shield, indented at the top, charged with a bird upon a branch; on each side, a cross of twisted rope above two splayed lengths of rope.

Notes: The rope design is likely to be apotropaic; the heavily pitted reverse of this fireback shows the use of poor quality iron cast at a relatively low temperature; the bird shield stamp has been seen on other firebacks.