GIFFARD CHAPEL, ST HIERITHA'S CHURCH
CHITTLEHAMPTON, DEVON
Grace Giffard (1641-1667) died unmarried at the age of 26 after being pricked by a fern. Her recumbent effigy and an inscribed plaque are all that remain of a larger monument, and she is shown holding the symbol of her death. She was sister of John Giffard (1639-1712) whose first wife was Susan Bampfylde (d.1670), and second wife was Frances Fane.
Mary Emma Sercombe (1859-1922) is directly descended from John Giffard and Frances Fane.
For the most part the inscription on the wall plaque is illegible, but the following may still be read:
TO THE WELL DESERVED MEMORY OF MIS[TRESS] GRACE GIFFARD WHO DYED AT SHERBORNE THE 3D NOV 1667
HERE BURIED ... [illegible] ...
SHE MADE GOOD HER NAME OF GRACE …
HER LOVING PARENTS …
[image copyright: Jane Sercombe Lewis]