THE DEVELOPMENT OF ARCHITECTURE IN ESSEX. 185
sixteenth century. Throughout this county there are innumerable
buildings of this period, both ecclesiastical and domestic, which are
of the greatest interest. The peculiarities of the style are a use of
plain bricks throughout the building, varied in many instances by
chequers of dark headers worked in patterns over the face of the
building. These dark headers were produced by the wood used
in the brick burning, which emitted a kind of acid, which burnt
black or dark-grey the face of the brick exposed to its action. The
use of moulded bricks was confined to the jambs, mullions, transoms,
head and labels of doors and windows, the splays of plinths and
buttresses, the strings and the corbelling and coping and details of
battlements.
Amongst the churches, I have always thought that the tower of
Ingatestone Church is one of the finest examples we have. Then
again, Fryerning Church tower, and Sandon Church tower,
clerestory of nave, the battlements of aisles, and the dormers of
chancel of Great Beddow are really very picturesque, although
not true Gothic. Then again, the tower of Rochford Church,
although here the windows and other moulded work is executed in
stone.
Again, the tower of North Weald Church, the upper part of
the tower of Colne Engaine, and numerous porches and other
additions and alterations to windows, doors, and other details, until
in one church, Chignal Sowerby, we have the whole built of brick,
and even furnished with a brick font; well may it be popularly
known as "Brick Chignal."
Of domestic buildings of this period we have numerous
mansions about the county : New Hall, Boreham ; Faulkborn Hall,
near Witham ; the old parts of Hill Hall, Epping ; Spains Hall,
Finchingfield ; Moyns Park, Birdbrook : what is left of Graces, in
Little Baddow, and of Crixea Place, and others. Many of these
old mansions, erected during the sixteenth century, have disappeared,
and others so altered as to be almost unrecognisable, because
during the eighteenth century the rage for square-built classic houses
was so predominant, that many of the picturesque old mansions of
the Elizabethan period were destroyed. We have distinct accounts
that such was the case with Moulsham Hall, the seat of the Mildmays,
and West Hornden Hall, the seat of the Petres, Heron Hall, the
seat of the Tyrells, and Marks Hall, Romford, the seat of the
Herveys, and Gidea Hall, the seat of the Cookes.
O