The Cathedrals of Great Britain: Their History and ArchitectureDitchfield, P. H. (Peter Hampson)
History
The Cathedrals of Great Britain: Their History and Architecture
Ditchfield, P. H. (Peter Hampson)
Cathedrals -- Great Britain; Church architecture -- Great Britain
The _North Front_ is new, designed by Sir G. Scott and Mr. Pearson. It
is very elaborate work, and much of it is beautiful, but it does not
seem to harmonise with the rest of the building. There is a large rose
window; on each side tall buttresses crowned with turrets and covered
with niches. There is an arcade of open work below, and then some
deeply-recessed Early English windows, and below three doorways under
one string-course, the centre one having a high gable. This door is
divided by a pier having a finely-carved figure of the Virgin and
Child. The tympanum is divided into three panels. In the highest is
Our Lord in glory surrounded by angels, and below Him are the Twelve
Apostles, while in the lowest tier are figures representing Art,
History, Philosophy, War, Legislation and Science, with the builders
of the Abbey, Edward the Confessor, Henry III. and Richard II. The
niches are filled with figures of persons in some way connected with
the Abbey. The _Choir_ is in the form of an apse, with radiating
chapels, planned on the model of the French _chevet_, according to the
taste of Henry III., which he had cultivated during his sojourn in
France. The _Lady Chapel_ at the east end, commonly called Henry
VII.'s Chapel, is one of the noblest examples of the best
Perpendicular work in the kingdom, and ranks with St. George's Chapel,
Windsor, and King's College, Cambridge. The monastic buildings are on
the south side of the Abbey, and will be approached from the interior.
THE INTERIOR
The view of the interior is very impressive. Standing at the west end
of the nave we cannot fail to admire the magnificent beauty of this
noble shrine. This _Nave_ of twelve bays, with its clustered columns,
its beautiful triforium, and its lofty and firmly-proportioned roof,
soaring to the height of 101 feet, is very striking. A close
inspection will show the difference between the piers of the portion
finished by Henry III. and the newer work of the fourteenth century.
The tracery of the triforium openings is very fine. The
_Choir-Screen_, which crosses the nave at the eighth pier, is modern,
and also the pulpit. The west window is Perpendicular, and has some
Georgian glass containing figures of the Patriarchs. Much
architectural beauty has been sacrificed for the sake of ponderous
monuments, but many of these have much interest, and for many visitors
will prove the most attractive features of the Abbey. A list of the
most important monuments will be found at the close of our account of
the Abbey.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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