It was -4°C again this morning but were again blessed with beautiful sunshine. We left the A4 Hotel in Bristol but, before we headed the car towards Cardiff, we went back into the city as we had not looked over Bristol Cathedral properly.
As we were walking from the car park to the cathedral, we saw that this fountain had frozen over!
Poking around a little produced some large pieces of ice. No wonder we felt cold!!
The lawn near the cathedral was frosty too.
Before it became the cathedral, the church was part of a monastery. The lower part of this gate led to the Abbey's residential quarters.
This well-preserved arch is considered to be one of the finest examples of Romanesque architecture in the west country.
The West Front of the Cathedral
A gargoyle looks down on everyone.
The west door
The Nave
A memorial to a hymn writer - the first and last above are very well-known.
Sadly, the cathedral lost most of its original glass either at the dissolution or from German bombs during WWII. There are still a few fragments such as these which came from the Lady Chapel and are now in the cloister.
Another fine lectern.
The base of this one reminded me of the Daleks from Dr Who!
It wasn't too difficult to work out its age.
In the late 19th century, the nave, west front and twin towers were built and there was a re-ordering of the chancel and quire. This pulpit was also added.
The panels around the pulpit depict events in the life of Christ. This one shows his baptism by his cousin, John the Baptist.
The arches and vaulting of the south aisle. The cathedral is known as a "hall" church because the aisles are the same height as the nave.
St.Christopher
The Nativity
Jesus and John the Baptist as toddlers. Note that John is already into camel-hair clothes!
Jesus working with Joseph in the carpentry shop.
Mary and Joseph find Jesus in the temple with the priests.
The mother of Mary, St.Anne, teaching her to read.
As at some other places, there were memorials and tombs which tell stories of great sadness or of lives well-lived. The tomb above belongs to the latter category. The words read:
"Sacred to the memory of Harriet Isabella wife of john Middleton of Clifton Esq, and daughter of John Venour of Wellsbourne in the county of Warwickshire esq, who died the 13th day of May 1826 and whose remains are interred in the burial ground of this church by the side of her mother. She was a woman of artless manners and unaffected piety, exemplary in the discharge of every social and relative duty, the furvour of her faith was tempered by deep humility, her devotion, which was habitual, sustained her in the hour of her dissolution; and the calmness of her death, as an evidence of the sincerity of her religion, animated her surviving friends with the consolitary hope that she is numbered among the blessed which die in the Lord."
Detail of above
The three photos above are of a tomb recording the death of a child.
The chamber organ was built in 1956.
Not all the carvings in churches are particularly beautiful! This one is at the side of the organ above.
The Sanctuary of the Lady Chapel
The lectern in the Lady Chapel...
...has only the feet of lions at its base.
The window in the Lady Chapel
Mary and Jesus (detail from above)
These two windows are from the 17th century. The first shows Jonah and the "big fish" and the second depicts Elisha watching Elijah being taken to heaven in a fiery chariot, dropping his mantle for Elisha.
The words read:
To the Glory of God and in memory of
Edward Long Fox
Consulting Physician to the Bristol Royal Infirmary
and sometime President of the British Medical Association.
Born 1832 Died 1902
Not more honoured for the eminence he attained in
his profession than beloved for the kindness of his
heart, for his wise and ready sympathy and for the
piety which inspired his unselfish and devoted life.
This Tablet erected by his Friends
Two more memorials recording lives well-lived
The Quire
The Organ (console under the pipes on the left)
Adam and Eve being tempted by the serpent in the Garden of Eden
The current choir and canon stalls were added in the 19th century but most of the 16th misericords were retained. Each canon stall has an embroidered cushion matching the design of the misericord underneath. There are some scenes from the Bible and others from a version of the story of Reynard the Fox!
The view when looking up at the crossing
The Nave from the Quire
Daniel (looking like he's saying "Lions? No problem!"
Daniel (looking much younger) in the Lions' Den
The Prophet Ezekiel (above) and breathing life back into "dem dry bones".
The weather deteriorated as we drove towards Cardiff with a thick mist descending. When we got to our hotel (Future Inn, Cardiff), we decided to stay there! I caught up with a few organisational things to do with the car, wrote emails to people about visits yet to come and booked tickets for tomorrow's encounter with Dr. Who while Satoshi did the washing. We had dinner at the hotel - reasonably priced and very nice! We are looking forward to the buffet breakfast tomorrow morning!