to Robert Kilwarbie, Archbishop of Canterbury, two lanes or ways next the street of Baynard's Castle, and also the tower of Mountfitchet to be destroyed, on the which place the said Robert built the late new church with the rest of the stones that were left of the said tower." It seems, therefore, that both these men helped the Friars largely; and in 1311 Edward II. by charter confirmed the gift. The Friars were also allowed to pull down the City wall and to take in all the land to the west as far as the Fleet river, and it was intimated to the Mayor that the new wall should be built at the expense of the City. Thus we know rather accurately when the Norman tower of Mountfitchet and this part of the Roman wall were destroyed. A glance at the map enables us to feel almost certain that the latter ran down to or through the Times printing office.

In May 1900, on the pulling down of No. 7 Ireland Yard, St. Andrew's Hill, previously in the occupation of Messrs. Reuben Lidstone and Son, carpenters, attention was called to medieval arches and vaulting, the upper part of which had been always visible above ground. A painting, done at this time, has been reproduced as one of our illustrations. When the modern buildings to the east

were also removed, further remains came to light, the whole being of considerable extent and interest.

As we know from a Loseley manuscript, the church of the Friars-Preachers was an important structure, measuring in breadth 66 feet, and in length 220 feet, dimensions rather greater than those of St. Saviour's, Southwark. Within the precinct of Blackfriars, before the Reformation, stood the Church of St. Anne, afterwards rebuilt and finally destroyed in the Great Fire. The remains which came to light in 1900, extending almost from Friar Street on the east to St. Anne's churchyard on the west, were about 27 feet wide by 40 feet, but the building had originally been longer. The space had been divided into two alleys of equal dimensions (each being between 13 and 14 feet wide) by a row of Purbeck marble shafts, four in number, which supported the stone vaulting of the roof. One of these shafts remained in situ, and still carried a cross rib springing at the other end from a corbel attached to the north wall. The stone of this rib had been reddened by the action of fire. The base of the shaft was 9 feet below the present ground level, the total height from the base to the crown of the arch being 16 feet.

MEDIEVAL ARCHES, IRELAND YARD,

BLACKFRIARS, 1900

The Friar-Preachers of the Dominican Order first established themselves in Holborn in the year 1221. In 1276 they moved to the site now known as Blackfriars. These arches, which came to light in 1900 and were shortly afterwards removed, formed a portion of the original building there.