Historical painted cloth set free after 70 years in Warwickshire tower
STUCK in a tower at the top of a winding staircase for nearly 70 years with no means of escape.
No, it’s not an aging Repunzel, but a delicate 16th century Elizabethan painted cloth, which is one of the most treasured items in the National Trust collection at Coughton Court.
The Tabula Eliensis, which records a history of Ely, in Cambridgeshire, covering nearly 1,000 years, has remained in the tower since the mid-1950s.
It was re-discovered in a roof-space at Coughton Court in the early 1900, but due to its size and age is not an easy item to move around.
However, opportunity came knocking when the National Trust started its £3.3 million project to repair the building’s roof – the Tabula Eliensis could be lifted out of the top of the tower by crane.
Project manager Aimee Tavana said: “With the removal of the roof, this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to move the Tabula Eliensis from where it has been marooned for almost 70 years, to facilitate its care and future re-display in an area of the property that is more easily accessible to all.”
She added: “We have been able to work with several highly skilled and specialist contractors, which has made the 7am start times worth it. We’re very pleased to be able to ensure the Tabula Eliensis can be protected and enjoyed by our visitors for generations to come.”
The Tabula Eliensis, which measures 2.3m x 2.6m, was placed in a crate and craned out of the tower by fine art handlers with the support of National Trust’s conservation team.
Created in 1596, it includes a painting of Ely Cathedral at the top, a sequence of the 40 knights whom William the Conqueror stationed at Ely, and portraits of monarchs to Elizabeth I.
At the bottom of the cloth are the arms of 29 Catholic men interned at Ely, Banbury and Broughton between 1588 and 1594, including the arms of Thomas Throckmorton, of Coughton Court, who was held at Broughton in 1590 and 1592-93 and Banbury in 1594.
Safely freed from the tower, it will now undergo conservation treatment, technical examination and research before returning to Coughton Court, which has been the home of the Throckmorton family since 1409. Although the National Trust have owned the house since 1946, members of the family still live there.
The Through the Roof project runs until 2025 with key sections of the roof conserved along other parts of the building.
