Tuesday, May 17, 2016

Winchester Cathedral, 2016

We visited Winchester, the Saxon capital, and its cathedral, in 2009, and I was sufficiently impressed to do three posts on the great old church. It's a fun place, with way more going on than just religion and architecture. The three posts are: http://roadeveron.blogspot.co.uk/2009/10/winchester-cathedral.htmlhttp://roadeveron.blogspot.co.uk/2009/10/winchester-cathedral-ii.html, and
http://roadeveron.blogspot.co.uk/2009/10/cultural-treasures-of-winchester.html. I took a hundred or so pix this time, but wanting not to duplicate the 2009 posts and pix, I'll just post the new bits here.
Near the cathedral, the site of Nunnaminster, the monastery
founded by Ealswith, wife of Alfred the Great, in 903; interesting
stone caskets...one size fits all


















You have to love a cathedral that has its own bouncy house!
Custom-built, too

















I assume most visitors, Americans certainly,
enter the cathedral thinking of the song--how
many cathedrals have their rock song?--perhaps
quietly singing "Oh-bo-de-o-do, Oh-bo-de-o-do" 























But this time, and most of the two hours we were there, the
strains of "Oh-bo-de-o-do" were beautifully drowned out by a
full rehearsal of Elgars' majestically soaring Dream of
Gerontius; 
heavenly sights and sounds!


















Last time I did manage to find Jane Austen's
burial site





















But missed the shrine




















And the window




















And we completely missed the Epiphany
Chapel, with its William Morris windows;
here, the Annunciation






















Visitation




















Adoration




















Epiphany




















Probably 12th century fresco recently discovered
in a cleaning





















Another shot of Romanesque meets Gothic
(Perpendicular) (north transept)





















Not pictured: William Walker, the diver who
single-handedly saved the cathedral, replacing
its wooden foundations; the Isaac Walton
"Fishermans" Chapel, the oldest carved choir
in Britain, assorted relics, sculptures, the great
screen, the effects of the Parliamentarians'
visit, the crypt, etc. See the previous posts.

























Glorious place, great day















1 comment:

Rebecca said...

That is one awesome bouncy house.