Memorial tablet

A panel like this was made to hang near a grave, and around 1500 its purpose was practical. People believed that the prayers of the living shortened a soul's time in purgatory, so a memorial asked every passer-by for help. Here the request is written in Latin beneath the open tomb, beginning with the words "whoever you are who passes by, look at this and weep." On the lid propped beside the grave is Requiescant in pace, "may they rest in peace", in the plural, for the four canons kneeling on either side. The walled garden behind them is full of small consolations. Three angels make music, the Christ Child plays with a hobbyhorse, and peacocks, a sign of eternal life, move among the monastery buildings. Saint Augustine, whose rule the canons followed, holds up a heart.