Following my morning’s walk to Clitheroe and back by the River Ribble I had time to look around the church in Mitton, which was fortunately open. It features in Simon Jenkins England’s Thousand Best Churches.
The church dates from the late C13th.
Inside, the chancel screen includes some medieval woodwork, which possibly came from Sawley Abbey, Â after the dissolution of the monasteries.. There are ornate carvings on it.
In the C16th a chapel was built on the north side of the church to house memorials of the staunchly Catholic Shireburn family from Stonyhurst. The alabaster tombs, dating from the 16th to the18th centuries. are said to be some of the finest in England. This is where it gets complicated, all of the men commemorated by the effigies in the chapel were named Richard Shireburn.
The first Sir Richard died in 1594 shortly after the chapel was built. and is buried with his wife Maud, with voluminous petticoats. The detail on the carving is exquisite. It was created in the Royley family workshop in Burton-upon-Trent.
Sir Richard’s son died in 1629 and he is remembered by a large plaque on the north wall, depicting Sir Richard junior and his wife Catherine, kneeling in prayer, plus smaller images of their children. Two of the children are pictured in a bed, suggesting that they died in infancy. 
Three more altar tombs along the north wall are to the next succeeding generations: Richard (d.1668), Richard (d.1689) with his wife Isabel ( d.1693) and their son Richard (d. 1690). it was Isabel who commissioned the four marble effigies in the chapel before her own death in 1693. These were I think sculptured by William Stanton of Holborn, London.
Richard Shireburn, d.1668.
Sir Richard d.1689 and wife Isabel.
Richard Shireburn d. 1690.
A monument on the west wall, is to Richard Francis Shireburn, (grandson of Richard and Isabel), who died in 1707, aged nine. The centre piece is thought to be his mourning mother. 
On the floor is a badly eroded figure of a knight in armour, the notice tells the story. 
.
What a unique chapel telling the story of the Shireburn family whose legacy lives on in Stonyhurst School. Here it is seen from outside with the date stone and Shireburn family coat of arms above the door.
Whilst I’m outside in the graveyard I search for two Grade II listed historical relics – a sundial and an ancient cross.
The sundial is a tall inscripted, sandstone shaft dated from 1683. 
The medieval cross has a C14th round head on a more modern shaft. The head depicts scenes from the crucifixion. It possibly came from one of the monasteries after dissolution. 
Not far away up the lane is the base of another medieval cross. Whalley is close by and there would have been trade with Sawley Abbey.
*
And now for something completely different. I drive a few miles into Clitheroe to seek out a new statue that Sharon of Sunshine and Celandines pointed out. A black dog prowling the streets, it’s just outside Booths supermarket.
We are at the heart of Pendle Witch country and several of my posts have reflected on their troubled history. Only recently I was exploring the The Pendle Sculpture Trail and in the past followed the Lancashire Witches Walk. A black dog was often associated with so called witches, and this one relates to James Device. He was one of the ten accused back in 1612 and was found guilty of witchcraft and hung at Lancaster. He had named his spiritual black dog Dandy.
An evocative statue made from stainless steel by Darwen based Marjan Wouda. It was certainly getting plenty of attention from the Saturday shoppers. A Devilish looking black dog.
