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Ceiling

Image
Image Type
Image Date
2002
Source

Sally-Beth MacLean

Commentary
The original roof is richly decorated. There are 5 equal bays created by 4 hammerbeam trusses. The hammerbeams rest upon curved braces, each carved in a different pattern, with angels at either end overlooking the hall. The 8 angels may have been retrieved from a Lancashire monastery after the Dissolution; 2 differ in style from the rest and may have had a separate origin.

Curved braces rise from the hammerbeams to battlemented collarbeams, each with a heraldic wooden boss. From low to high end, the bosses represent the arms of the Hesketh of Rufford family; early 16th c. coat of arms with 4 quarters for branches of the family; the Stanley family crest (eagle and child), for the Heskeths' patrons; and the royal Tudor rose.