Located in the nave of Durham Cathedral, the tomb is a limestone chest, which sits on a sandstone plinth and features alabaster effigies on top and small figures of ‘weepers’ around the sides. The tomb was heavily damaged over the centuries, particularly during a period after the Battle of Dunbar in 1650 when Scottish prisoners of war were held inside the cathedral.
The Neville tomb dates back to the 14th century and is the final resting place of John Neville, 3rd Baron Neville, who lived 1330-1388, and his first wife Maud (or Matilda) Percy, who died before 18 February 1379. This tomb is one of only a handful of burial monuments in the cathedral’s nave, to avoid competing with the cathedral’s purpose as a resting place for Saint Cuthbert.
John fought in the Battle of Neville’s Cross in 1346 as a captain, under his father Ralph Neville, 2nd Baron Neville. The battle saw English and Scottish forces battle on 17 October 1346 on the moorland west of Durham. The English force out-maneuvered the Scottish soldiers, who eventually fled the battlefield. Many men lost their lives, the Scottish King was captured and imprisoned, and the English occupying the areas of Scotland south of the Forth and Clyde.
A recent conservation survey recognised that the parapet was displaced and the movement was causing the effigies on the top of the tomb to become unstable. Critical conservation work was needed to prevent further damage and to preserve the tomb for future generations to appreciate. Lincolnshire-based Skillington’s Workshop reattached the parapet, repaired the top of the tomb and reset the effigy. They also lightly cleaned the nooks and crannies of the decoration and figures on the outside of the tomb to keep it looking its best, and made small repairs with mortar to hopefully reduce further damage to the tomb.
This conservation work was made possible with funding from the Friends of Durham Cathedral, a charity who supports conservation and restoration projects in the cathedral. Over the past 10 years, the Friends of Durham Cathedral have contributed over £2 million in funding projects.
