The engraved woolsack and inscription are those of Staple Inn, one of the ten Inns of Chancery, which were subordinate to the four Inns of Court. The Inns of Court and Chancery are legal societies which were founded in the late 13th century to house students in proximity to the courts of law in London. Law students were first admitted to the Inns of Chancery for performing their "moots, bolts, and putting of cases" and if successful were elevated to one of the four Inns of Court-- Lincoln's Inn, Inner Temple, Middle Temple, and Gray's Inn--where they could be called to the bar. Staple Inn, connected with Gray's Inn, was extant by the reign of Henry V, and its last building was of the Elizabethan period. The Inns of Chancery reliquished their legal character to the four Inns of Court by the mid 18th century.