The Inventory of John Hosear's Humble Life, 1463.

Some of the seemingly most boring historical records turn out in fact to be filled with fascinating information. Take for example the inventory of the chattel property of John Hosear. It can be found in Anstey's Munimenta Academica. It is taken from the Acts of the Court of Chancery of Oxford University in February of 1463.

I am not able to find any further information on Hosear or the occasion for which the court ordered the inventory. He had to be attached to the university after some manner in order to be under the jurisdiction of the court.

As for the men doing the inventory we can say that at least three already had fixed surnames. Crofton hailed from the town of the name, in the north of England, his forefathers being John from Crofton. John Fletcher's name was settled when the patriarch of the family practiced the trade of fletching arrows. Edmund Seiner's name may well have been when the patriarch of his family made seine nets for fishing. Kelly likely came from the Irish Kelly clan.

Haec sunt bona Johannis Hosear appreciata per viros subscriptos, videlicet per Johannem Matthew, Nicolaum Kele, Johannem Croftone, Edmundum Seyner, Johannem Flechyr, Johannem Dobynette,

These are the goods of John Hosear assigned values by the undersigned men, namely John Matthew, Nicholas Kelly, John Crofton, Edmund Seiner, John Fletcher, John Dobynette,

Among the first things we notice is that Hosear owned a lot of wooden boards. This strongly suggests that he was not a wealthy man. Also that he had limited space for his needs. He clearly was still in the (by then old) habit of assembling his furniture as occasion required from boards. His dining table would be assembled by placing the 2 long boards on 3 trestles (presumably called studs and stud-ends here) and two long wooden benches placed one each side. This manner of assembling the table for dinner time already went back centuries. It is the source of the board in our phrase “room and board”. When dinner was over, the table would be disassembled and stored along the wall leaving space for other activities.

But Hosear was no menial. He also owned some manufactured furniture: three small tables at least one of which was “joined” (made by a furniture-maker). A yarn treadle of some sort, apparently, might suggest a wife at some time. If the “bench for a wheel” refers to a spinning-wheel the wife theory seems greatly strengthened. The humble cooking implements suggest meals at home rather than a tavern or ordinary.

In primis xxxviij. schort bordys - - viijd.	To begin 38 short boards... 8d.
Item, iij. Stodys and iij. endys of stodys - ijd.	Item, 3 studs and 3 ends of studs... 2d.
Item, ij. syde bordys of a bed wt iiij. Ffete - ivd.	Item, ij. side boards of a bed wt 4 feet... 4d.
Item, ij. long bordys and ij. schort - vjd.	Item, 2. long boards and 2 short... 6d.
Item, a forme wt ffete and j. wt owte ffete - ijd.	Item, a bench wt feet and 1 wt owte feet 2d.
Item, ij. schort formes - ijd.	Item, 2 short benches - 2d.
Item, a lytyl table wt iij. ffette - - jd.	Item, a little table wt 3 feet - - 1d.
Item, a joyned table - - - xij.	Item, a joined table - - - 12d.
Item, a reel for woollen terne - - jd.	Item, a reel for woollen turn... 1d.
Item, a table wt iiij. fette - ivd.	Item, a table wt 4 feet... 4d.
Item, a forme for a whele – jd.	Item, a bench for a wheel... 1d.
Item, ij. lytyl brochys - - - ivd.	Item, 2 little brooches - - - 4d.
Item, a posnet of brasse wt a frying panne xijd.	Item, a small pot of brass wt a frying pan... 12d.
Item, ij. lytyl olde brokyn pannys - ijd.	Item, 2 little old broken pans... 2d.
ltem, a lytyl hachet wt a fleshe hoke jd. Obolum1 [half-pence].	ltem, a little hachet wt a wrist-strap... 1½d.
Item. repe hoke and candelstyk - - ijd.	Item. rope hook and candlestick - - 2d.

Among the final items are a few more mysteries still. While Hosear had enough chattel to suggest that he lived, at the time, in more than one room, the details do not suggest wealth. Not wealth enough, at any rate, to need a horse comb — a curry comb. Keeping a personal horse was very expensive.

The question as to whether he worked in one of the many stables at the university would not be unreasonable. But why, then, only one item from the stables? Why not several?

Item, ij. podengerys wt a sawcer - - iijd.	Item, 2 porringers wt a saucer... 3d.
Item, iv. stolys and a morter - - vd.	Item, 4 stools and a mortar... 5d.
Item, a selyr and a peynted cloth - ijd.	Item, a salt cellar and a painted cloth... 2d.
Item, a liytyl cofyr wt a 1yd and j. wtowte lyd ivd.	Item, a little coffer wt a 1id and 1 wtout lid... 4d.
Item, a lytyl grene cloth wt a quarter of kendal iyd.	Item, a little green cloth wt a quarter of kendal... 4d.
Item, an harpe – ivd.	Item, an harp... 4d.
Item, iv. lytyl olde barrells - - ijd.	Item, 4 little old barrells... 2d.
Item, a staffe schoyd wt iryn wt odyr small stavys }	Item, a staff embedded wt iron wt other small staves }
Item, a skewer and a new hors combe - } iijd.	Item, a skewer and a new horse comb... } 3d.
Item, a lytyl cofyr wt loos bordys in ye syde. }	Item, a little coffer wt loose boards in the side. }

In the end, for all the inventory has taught us there is much more that it cannot. It is only a sample no matter how representative. Or how fascinating.

Sources:

Anstey, Henry. Munimenta Academica (1868). II.704-5.

Wright, Thomas. A History of Domestic Manners... During the Middle Ages (1862).

1 Obolus] Latin for a half-pence.

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