Catalogues the Burghley Swan-roll Part 1, Burghley Swan-roll Part 2, Breese Swan-roll, Primrose Swan-roll A, Primrose Swan-roll B, Primrose Swan-roll C, Primrose Swan-roll D, Hanford Swan-roll, Fulford Hall Swan-roll, Pepysian Library MS 2443, Swan-marks of the River Arun, Pepysian Library Swan-roll, Scarpe Swan-roll, with name index of owners of swans at end.
Burghley Part 1, in 1929 the property of Marquis of Exeter at Burghley House, Northamptonshire. Fenland roll, the arrangement is like BL Add MS 6301 and Harley MS 3405, and the Marriott and Bromhead rolls, all must have a common origin.
Burghley Part 2, a leather bound book of Broadland marks, in collection of Marquis of Exeter, a later addition to Part 1.
Breese, belonged in 1929 to Trustees of the late Hon. Neil Primrose, in custody of Messrs Hansells, Hales & Bridgwater, Norwich, no published references to it. A pocket book 6 vellum and 6 paper leaves in cover of brown horse hide with hair, ‘Robert Breese, his Book / 1737’ on first f., he presumably the swan herd in 1737.
Primrose roll A, in 1929 same ownership as Breese, includes on f. 1 a large drawing of a swan standing, facing left, with crown on chain round neck, inscriptions ‘Robt Breese 1728’ and “Robt Copeman 7th Augt 1758’. A composite roll, earliest portion 1693.
Primrose roll B, in 1929 same ownership as Breese, paper roll, 16 pairs of heads facing each other, 5 ¼ x 34 inches.
Primrose roll C, in 1929 same ownership as Breese, marks for rivers Yare and Wensum, after 1827, has swans’ heads side view, truncated at necks.
Primrose roll D, in 1929 same ownership as Breese, two folio sheets of paper 12 x 8 inches, later than 1843. Ticehurst does not include a sketch facsimile. Says ‘doubtful whether this was really a working roll’.
Hanford roll, property of Seymer family of Hanford, near Blandford, Dorset, in 1927 with Mrs M. Ker-Seymer of 7 Sloane Gate Mansions, London SW1. A foolscap quarto book of 21 paper leaves in vellum cover, referred to in Canon C.H. Mayo, Notes & Queries for Somerset and Dorset, XIII, 1914, p. 297, with 2 photographic reproductions. Covers Hampshire Avon and Dorset Stour rivers, early 17th century handwriting, probably made between 1619 and 1624, probably c. 1620. The heads from a roughly cut wood block, rather than the usual drawn heads, Ticehurst includes sketch facsimile drawing of f. 8, showing bills coloured pink.
Fulford Hall roll, in 1929 belonged to Capt William Henry Key of Fulford Hall, near York, a framed and glazed vellum roll of 3 membranes with inscr date 1650, covers marshes of south-east Lincolnshire. Includes 2 pasted-in photographic prints and sketch facsimile.
Pepysian Library roll, at Magdalene College Library, Cambridge, was originally a small vellum book of 27 leaves, since cut and mounted into an album, MS 2972, six per page. River Thames area, 424 marks, probably 1535-1560.
Scarpe roll (French, River Scarpe), published in Memoirs de la Société Nationale des Sciences, de l’Agriculture et des Artes de Lille, Année 1850 (1851), pp. 318-322. Ticehurst translates.
Illustrations include:
numerous drawings and sketch facsimile drawings from all named rolls except Primrose roll D.