Ely Cathedral exterior. There were so many interesting aspects of this cathedral, I'll spare you the usual views of rose windows, organs, screens, etc.The cathedral was begun in the late 11th century. Ely is northeast of Cambridge. |
Interior; it is a large cathedral. The ceiling is painted, scenes from the life and background of Jesus, covering the nave. |
There is a maze at the west entrance. |
Note the entwined arches, seen throughout the building;
kind of a Celtic allusion?
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The abbey was founded by Saint Etheldreda, a 7th century Anglo-Saxon queen. It became such a popular pilgrimage site, that the bishop, in the 13th century, decided to add on a "lady hall" to accommodate the pilgrims. But building the lady hall undermined the foundation of the crossing, and the huge tower, right at the center of the building, collapsed. (Ely is in the Fens, high water table, marshy, even today in places.) The crossing tower was rebuilt as an octagon, the only of its kind. |
Looking up at octagonal crossing from nave |
Looking up into octagon, many stories above |
Looking up into octagon, many stories above |
One pretty good window |
The lady hall, eventually built in the 14th century, adjoined the north transept. |
Fan vaulting in the Lady Hall |
Interior of the lady hall. |
The contemporary statue of the Virgin, unveiled in 2000 (the Prince of Wales was present), was derived from the Shreck movies, we think. |