GeoGraph - photograph every grid square

Mayfield Village Sign

In 1920 The Duke of York gave a speech at the Royal Academy which prompted a revival of village signs. The Daily Mail organised a village signs competition in which this design secured second prize, winning £500. The sign depicts girls in a flower covered field as traditionally it is said that the name of the village means "Maiden's Field". The founder of the local church was the Saxon Archbishop St Dunstan. He was not only a scholar and musician but also a skilled metal worker. It is said that when working in his forge in Mayfield, a young maiden entered to tempt the good man but Dunstan noticed the cloven feet of the devil under her skirts, and pulled the devil's nose with his tongs. This scene is depicted on the sign under the name of the village.