The number of arches on a doorway indicates the importance of the door. The West Door to Ripon Catheral is clearly VERY important!
The view from just inside the West Door towards the Quire
The Pulpit dates from 1913. Apparently it was quite controversial when it was installed. The sounding board (above the pulpit) was replaced in the 1950s. It predecessor is reputed to have been a table from the Deanery!
The organ is located above the Quire Screen.
Poor Henry II has spent hundreds of years needing to go to the toilet!
Another fine Lectern
The Quire
These carvings under the misericords are from the 15th century. Each one is different. There are 34 but I have only included my favourites here!
A mermaid! Note her long hair, mirror and brush. Mermaids represent the sins of pride, vanity and temptation.
A pig playing the bagpipes while others dance. Dancing pigs represent lust and gluttony.
Jonah about to be eaten by a big fish. This story symbolises the entombment of Christ.
The spies returning from Canaan with grapes, the fruit of the promised land. Lewis Carroll's father was a Canon of the Cathedral. It is said that some of these carvings gave him the inspiration for "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland".
Detail of the above
The organ from the Quire. If you look closely, you might be able to find...
This wooden hand was installed in 1695 and allowed the organist, at that time seated directly above and with his back to the choir, to beat time. It still works but is redundant as the organist can now watch the conductor via CCTV monitor.
Windows depicting the apostles James and John
These appear to be billiard cues but are, in fact, staff used by Ripon Councillors during civic parades. You can see them in use at the right of the photo below.
Satoshi is touching one of the organ pipes. They are too large to fit with the rest of the pipes!
Initially, I thought this window depicted an act of violence but it is Ruth entreating Naomi not to leave her. (Ruth 1:16)
This section of a window depicts Joshua, St Michael and King David.
This is the crypt of the cathedral. It dates to 672. It is thought to be the oldest part of any cathedral in England.
This little carving (located in the crypt - behind the cross in the photo above) depicts the risen Jesus stepping on to a soldier. It is from the 14th century and is precious because it was hidden from destruction at the Reformation.
This window, depicting St Wilfrid dates from 1977. He was appointed Abott at the monastery at Ripon.
Faith, Hope and Charity (1 Corinthians 13: 13)
This seat is in a little park just outside the cathedral. It seems quite ordinary but...
...it's a bit special really!
Our
next visit today was to Bolton Abbey.
This is about an hour's drive from Ripon. The Nave of the
abbey was saved at the dissolution of the monasteries
because it became the Parish Church. We had lunch at the
"Tea on the Green" café. I had potato and leek soup followed
by a slice of Victoria Sponge, Satoshi had a coronation chicken
sandwich.
The nave is on the left and is still used as the Parish Church. The remainder is in ruins.
Looking east from the crossing
Inside the Parish Church. The wall at the end divides the nave of the Abbey Church from the ruins of the remainder of the building.
This windw depicts St Cuthbert. A gift from a nineteenth century steward of the Duke of Devonshire, it shows Cuthbert as Bishop of Lindisfarne, cradling in his arms the severed head of his fellow saint, Oswald, a Christian King whose skull is indeed believed to lie with Cuthbert's bones in Durham Cathedral.
This section of a window depicts the body of Jesus being taken down from the cross. See photo below for information about the windows.
This is a section from one of six windows designed by Pugin, a great 19th century architect and artist, and installed in 1853.
It depicts the Ascension of Jesus - note his two feet above the heads of the disciples!
This section of window shows the Holy Spirit coming down in the form of a dove at Pentecost. (Acts 2:1-13)
It is thought that his small section of a 14th century window survived the dissolution of the abbey because it represents royalty rather than a story from the Bible.
I took this photo because I liked this tree!
Our last visitation today was to Kirkstall Abbey, near Leeds. It is one of he best preserved examples of a medieval Cistercian monastery in England. It was founded in 1152.
The Cloister
The Abbey Church looking towards the East Window
The Abbey Church looking towards the West.
The Chapter House
Inside the Chapter House, looking toward the entrance
These steps led to the Abbott's House.
Fireplces on different floors.
This is the hearth of a fireplace.
This magpie calls the Abbey home.
Another inhabitant of the Abbey
This is the Abbey Museum. It was once the gatehouse of the Abbey.
A room in the Abbey Gatehouse.
Of course I thought of the door knocker in "A Christmas Carol" when I saw this one!
The museum included a recreation of a Victorian streetscape in Leeds. There were many shops, some of which could be entered. A lot of work had gone into the presentation of the shops and home both internally and externally.
This is a machine in which a penny is placed in order to find the answer to the question. The characters move around to show the answer.
Another section of the museum exhibited children's toys from Victorian times to the present.
We had to leave the museum at 5:00pm because
it was closing time. We made our way to our accommodation
which was not very far away (an AirBnB this time). Once
checked in, we drove to Toby Carvery where we enjoyed
another tasty roast.
On our return, we made good use of the
clothes washing machine before settling down to journal
writing and then bed. The weather today was not as good as
it has been lately. It was cold and it felt like it was
going to rain. Fortunately for us, it rained while we were
driving to Bolton Abbey, then stopped just before we got
there! We were just as lucky at Kirkstall.