St. Mary's is a "daughter" church of the Beverley Minster, similar vintage and style...that is (after a few earlier starts), Decorated, mostly, with a similar history of collapses and other mishaps. St. Mary's is a four-star church, in Jenkins' rating, but also a Grade 1 listing, nationally, as are all these old churches we are visiting. Beverley was one of the wealthiest Medieval wool towns in the East of England, and evidently could well afford two major churches. St. Mary's catered largely to the merchant crowd, I've read. Our visit was delayed by baptisms going on that Sunday afternoon, so we had ample time to examine the exterior. The carvery, so to speak, inside the church, the capitals, the corbels, misericords, and bosses, are its main interest, however.
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| The flying buttresses are a Victorian addition |
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| Another Green Woman? Too eroded to tell |
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| Nave |
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| Elevation |
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| 600! |
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| In the nave; click to enlarge |
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| From the church website |
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After the tower collapsed, during Evensong, April 29th, 1520, there was another
major rebuilding effort, a major funder of which was the minstrels' guild, their
contribution memorialized in this famous corbel |
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| Helpful model |
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Working model of a Medieval "human wheel" and crane
system for lifting the huge blocks and everything else into
place |
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| Chancel ceiling; more bosses; and paintings |
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| Can't tell the players without a program |
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Perhaps St. Mary's most famous feature...said to have been
the source of Lewis Carroll's famous rabbit...also disputed,
even locally |
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| Finally, St. Mary's has a fine collection of misericords... |
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| Huh?! An oliphant! Neat church! |
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