The Dacre Gryphon
May one see it?
Yes, receiving visitors
Victoria and Albert Museum
RoomStair CLondon, United Kingdom
On public display.
- Checked
- 8 days ago
- In this state since
- Sep 25, 2026
- Source
- The museum's own collection data
About the sculpture
Object Type
This figure of a black griffin holding a banner, forms part of a group which, together with bull, ram and dolphin, are known as the Dacre Beasts. The griffin represents Thomas Lord Dacre's forebears, the Dacres of Gilsland. The banner bears the 19th-century arms (three rose chaplets) of the Greystoke family (The New Greystoke Arms). Chaplets (bearings representing a garland of leaves with four flowers at equal distances) signify great military prowess. The Dacre Beasts are rare survivors of a tradition of heraldic ornament. They represent one of the most powerful families in northern England and are a unique survivors of free standing, large-scale wooden heraldic sculpture from the English Renaissance.
People
Elizabeth de Greystoke (1477-1516) was Thomas Lord Dacre's wife. The Dacres were one of the most powerful families in northern England in the Middle Ages.
Places
Read on
Naworth Castle, Brampton, Cumbria, was a family seat of the Dacre family from 1317 until 1577, when the Castle became the property of Lord William Howard through marriage to Elizabeth Dacre. Dacre Beasts have stood in the Hall at Naworth Castle since the early 16th century.
Materials & Making
The Dacre Beasts were probably made by unnamed local craftsmen from a single, large oak grown on the estate.
Victoria and Albert Museum
Particulars
- Accession number
- W.7-2000
In the catalog
Sources
- Victoria and Albert Museum: the museum's own open data · fetched 8 days ago
- Image: Victoria and Albert Museum — © Victoria and Albert Museum, London
