Misericords

Misericords are one of the hidden treasures of cathedrals, abbey churches, and some parish churches. A misericord ("mercy seat") is a small ledge underneath a choir seat that can be leaned on when it is tipped up, helping monks to stand for long periods. The area beneath the ledge was often carved, sometimes with religious themes but more often with charming, humorous, and even vulgar scenes of medieval life and popular proverbs. Below is a working catalogue of some of the best places to enjoy misericords across Europe, linked where available to photos and explanations of subjects. There are about 750 figurative misericords in 16 churches of Portugal and Spain, 1,000 misericords in 200 churches in France, and over 3,000 misericords in Britain. Only medieval misericords are counted in the "How Many" column.

Image	Location and Link	Dates	How Many	Comments
Belgium
	Bruges Cathedral
	Hoogstraten			Includes an interesting repetition, in which a man gapes before an oven on a misericord and also on an arm-rest.
Britain
	Beverly Minster		68
	Boston Church Lincolnshire		62
	Carlisle Cathedral		46
	Ely Cathedral Cambridgeshire	c.1340	65	Original misericords with fine collection of narrative scenes, with the supporters carved as part of the scene. Carved arm rests and upper parts. The choir is accessible but the misericords are roped off. Subjects include saints as well as an assorted company of animals, monks, knights, hunters, kings, men and women. Illustrated guide available on official website.
	Exeter Cathedral	c.1240	50	The oldest set of misericords in Britain and some of the best. A full list with fairly poor photos is available on the official website. Sadly, only the famous elephant misericord is on public display, but the more accessible arm rests and bench ends also have fine figurative carvings.
	Fairford Church Gloucestershire	c.1300	13	Originally from Cirencester Abbey. There is a total of 14 - one was stolen and replaced with a reproduction in 2004. The man at the gift shop kindly turned on more lights for us and said better lighting in the church is on its way in early 2008. Subjects depict village life humorously, including a drunken man and wife beating her husband.
	Gloucester Cathedral Gloucestershire	1350	46	A fine set and accessible to visitors. A cathedral guide pointed them out to us, helped by a flashlight, and explained some of their subjects. We have photos of about eight of them in the Gloucester Cathedral Photo Gallery. Arm rests are plain.
	Great Malvern Priory Worcestershire	c.1460		Excellent condition and a nearly complete set of Labors of the Months. They are related to the misericords at Worcester Cathedral. Carved arm rests, too. The choir is accessible and well-lit but we had to tip up the seats ourselves. Photos in our Great Malvern Priory Photo Gallery.
	Hereford Cathedral		40
	King's College Chapel Cambridge		68
	Lincoln Cathedral Lincolnshire	1300s	92	A set of outstanding quality and interest. Just a few are displayed (tipped up) at a time for visitors. Photos of four of them, plus some bench ends, in our Lincoln Cathedral Photo Gallery.
	Ludlow Church Shropshire	c.1430	32	One of the most interesting collections in England. Many misericords are strongly anti-feminist, showing women with hideous grins or as devils. The supporters are also elaborately carved and form part of the scene; the poppyheads include a finely carved Pieta.
	Magdalen College Chapel Oxford	c.1480	32	Medieval stalls with misericords original to the chapel now displayed in the antechapel. Fully accessible and well-lit. Mostly funny human faces and animals, plus the intriguing one pictured at left.
	New College Chapel Oxford		62	Choir accessible, but misericords roped off.
	Ripon Yorkshire			Some of the most interesting misericords in Britain, including mythical creatures and pigs dancing to bagpipe music.
	Ripple Church Worcestershire			Accessible, well-lit, and in good condition. Subjects include the Labors of the Months.
	Salisbury Cathedral		106	Largest collection in England at 106 misericords, but all with the same floral design.
	Holy Trinity Church Stratford Upon Avon	1480-1520	26	Good condition. Some supporters have figurative carvings. We have pictures of several of them waiting to be published.
	St. Botolph's Church		62
	St. David's Cathedral St Davids, Wales
	Wells Cathedral		64	Only a select few on display for visitors. We have photos of four of them in our Wells Cathedral Photo Gallery.
	Westminster Abbey London			In Henry VII's Chapel. Unfortunately photos are not allowed in Westminster Abbey.
	Winchester Cathedral	c.1305	66	Among the oldest in Britain.
	St. George's Chapel Windsor		96
	Worcester Cathedral Worcestershire		39	39 misericords of 52 (plus three modern ones for total of 42)
France
	Amiens Cathedral			Entire set focuses on the Old Testament.
	Poitiers Cathedral	c.1260		A rare example of Continental misericords with supporters.
Germany
	St. Maria Lyskirchen Cologne		6	Three choir stalls set in each of the side chapels. Misericords not tipped up, but accessible. Quality carvings, including an elegant fox (or dog) and a drinking man. Arm rests and bench ends have figurative carvings as well (mostly lions).
Netherlands
	Oudekerk Amsterdam	c.1480		Humorous and often vulgar misericords illustrate proverbs and sayings, such as "Sail when the wind allows." Several scenes center around butts. Also decorative carvings and scenes of daily life. More info
Spain
	Oviedo Cathedral
	Toledo Cathedral	15th c.?		A complete set, with most edges worn smooth over the centuries. The scenes - featuring groups of animals, humans and creastures somewhere in between - are especially lively. We have photos of eight of them in our Toledo Cathedral Photo Gallery.

Article Sources

Personal visits
A Handbook of Medieval Misericords - online Word document by William James Shadwell

More Information

M. D. Anderson, Misericords: Medieval Life in English Woodcarving (Harmondsworth: Penguin Books, 1954).
Elaine C. Block, Corpus of Medieval Misericords: Iberia (Brepols, 2005).
Francis Bond, Wood Carvings in English Churches: Misericords (London, 1910). Excerpt online here.
Christa Grossinger, "English Misericords of the Thirteenth and Fourteenth Centuries and Their Relationship to Manuscript Illuminations," Journal of the Warburg and Courtauld Institutes, Vol. 38 (1975), pp. 97-108.
Malcolm Jones, "Folklore Motifs in Late Medieval Art II: Sexist Satire and Popular Punishments," Folklore, Vol. 101, No. 1 (1990), pp. 69-87.
Dorothy Kraus, Henry Kraus, The Hidden World of Misericords (New York: George Braziller, 1975).
G. L. Remnant, A Catalogue of Misericords in Great Britain (Oxford University Press, 1998; out of print and therefore expensive).