The uncovered head of a mummy: showing the head with the outer covering removed and the head with a pledget of tow in the mouth. Lithograph by J. Basire after George Scharf, 1852.

A pledget of tow is a compress of lint for laying over an ulcer or wound

The mouth is shown after the removal of the pledget showing a one inch gap between the lips. Next to the mummy was a crozier, indicating that the deceased was possibly a bishop. The committee of the Society of Antiquaries concluded that it was the body of William Lyndewode (William Lyndwood), ca. 1375–1446, administrator, ecclesiastical lawyer, and bishop of St David's, Pembrokeshire. "His will was proved on 26 November 1446, and his body was buried in St Stephen's Chapel in the palace of Westminster, following the desires expressed in the will. The later history of the burial spot is uncertain, but in 1852 a body with a crosier thought to be Lyndwood's was discovered in the crypt. It was reinterred in Westminster Abbey in the north wall of the north cloister, a short distance from the east entrance door. The black marble ledger, under which it rests, is unfortunately now invisible because of construction carried out at a later date around the cloister door."--Oxford dictionary of national biography

London : Published for the Society of Antiquaries of London, 23 April 1852.

1 print : lithograph

Head with the outer covering removed. Head with the pledget of tow in the mouth. The mouth immediately after the tow was taken away. George Scharf del. Jan 31 st. 1852. J. Basire lith

On the same bifolium as No. 43272i (this catalogue)

The committee that commissioned the print consisted of: James Prior, T.J. Pettigrew, W.J. Thoms, John Bruce, and J.Y. Akerman

'XXXII. Report of the Committee appointed by the Council of the Society of Antiquaries to investigate the circumstances attending the recent discovery of a body in St. Stephen's Chapel, Westminster. Read February 12, 1852', Archaeologia, 1852, Vol. XXXIV, pp. 406-430

Wellcome Collection 45271i