#The Bishop's Throne# was Stapledon's work, erected in 1316. It is notable for not having a single nail in it, being entirely fixed together with wooden pegs. This "magnificent sheaf of carved oak," as it has been called, rises to the height of fifty-seven feet. The carving shows foliage and finials of great beauty, and beneath the canopies are angel figures bearing the insignia of the Bishop's office. On one side the chalice and Host of blessing; on the other, the bell, book, and candle that conveyed the Bishop's curse. At the date of the 1870 restorations the throne was in a very defective state. It had been covered with brown paint, and the lower panels were not a little damaged. There are traces of ancient colouring still, but only the paintings at the base have been renovated, which commemorate the quartette of famous bishops, Warelwast, Quivil, Stapledon, and Grandisson, and were, no doubt, somewhat later than the throne itself. Originally the niches of the tabernacle work were filled with figures, but these have disappeared. [Illustration: THE CHOIR, LOOKING EAST. The Photochrom. Co. Photo.] [Illustration: SEDILIA IN THE CHOIR. The Photochrom. Co. Photo.] #The Sedilia.#--It is natural after an examination of the throne in wood to turn to Stapledon's equally splendid achievement in stone. The sedilia were most carefully restored under Sir Gilbert Scott. There are three arches, each ten feet high, of openwork, above which is a rich display of tabernacle work. The niches once contained statues, for the sockets are visible. The carving, extraordinarily skilful and intricate, consists of leaves and animals' heads. Like much of the carving in the cathedral that is attributed to this date, it was the work of De Montacute, a French artist. The seats are divided by metal shafts, the terminal divisions being supported by lions. It has been contended that these lions are of considerably earlier date than the rest of the work; but there is no evidence to go upon except a fancied resemblance to Early English work. There seems no reason why Stapledon should not have chosen lions as a fitting decoration, and carved them in a style more or less traditional. Three small heads are carved on the back of the sedilia, the centre one being that of Leofric, and on either side the heads of Edward the Confessor and his wife Eadgytha. It will be remembered that they were present, with their whole court, at the installation of Leofric. The central seat is known as Leofric's stone, on which he is traditionally said to have sat, and there is an entry in the year 1418 recording that twenty pence was paid "for writing on the stone of my Lord Leofric." On the triforium arcading, just over the sedilia, the heads of Leofric, Edward, and Eadgytha are repeated.