Oak Coffer With 17th Century Carved Front Panel And Deed/Inventory Inside Dated 1649

Oak coffer with 17th Century carved front panel and later alterations.

Glued on the front inside are pages from a legal document relating to the Prebendal Manor of Nassington and its land claims, dated 22 March 1649. In 1107-1116, Henry I granted the churches in Nassington, Woodnewton, Tansor, and Southwick, with their lands, tithes, and customs to the bishop of Lincoln, to be held in prebendam. The powers of the Nassington prebendaries were wide. They were permitted to hold a manorial court and many of those appointed were the king‘s clerks. These documents may be part of the 1649 valuation of the prebend, which in 1650 was given to Edward Bellamy, a prominent Presbyterian and Lieutenant General in Cromwell’s army.