Carving, boss

This ceiling boss originally came from the vaulted roof of Merton Priory church. The priory was demolished in 1538 to provide building stone for King Henry VIII’s palace of Nonsuch, four miles away. Many of the carved stones and intricate mouldings from Merton were unsuitable for use above ground at Nonsuch. This boss was one of the 'rejects' used for foundation rubble. It still bears traces of its original red paint and gilding. Local carters from Wimbledon, Cheam, Merton, Tooting, Mitcham, Clapham, Sutton, Putney and Wandsworth were among those who were paid 8 pence per ton to transport over 3,600 tons of rubble to the palace site. Thomas Fenner of Cuddington supplied the demolition team with wooden hand-barrows costing 4 pence each, and many labourers from London were impressed into service. The boss was found during excavations at Nonsuch Palace in 1959-60.