The Ship of the Fens

You'll be thinking I do nothing but go out on day trips! So far this year it probably seems like that! Yes, I've been out again. Yesterday I went to Ely with my local coach friends who took us to Ireland last month. We were fairly lucky with the weather as you'll see from the photos but I decided to play safe and take a tour of Ely Cathedral, which I have wanted to visit for a long time but never seemed to have the time for on the few occasions that I happened to pass through Ely.

~

Previously I have popped into the cathedral for a cuppa but have never ventured round the whole of the interior. I have always loved the cathedral at Lincoln but I have to say that Ely is a very special place.

The cathedral is a huge edifice and has a long and chequered history. The view above is looking East towards the central octagon tower and the view below looks West to the Lady Chapel and the Octagon. (More of the Lady Chapel later).

~

Ely sits on the Great Ouse River which is now more of a leisure facility that a shipping way. I had chance to quickly pop down to the waterfront before we left Ely and as you can see it was beautiful. The grey roofed building on the far bank on the right is a boathouse used by the Cambridge University boat race crew when practising.

It is very difficult to get a good photograph of the cathedral as it is so tall but I was able to take this view from the back of the cathedral as I walked back from the Riverside.

The first thing that strikes you when you come into the cathedral is its great height. You look up and up and up! This wonderful painted ceiling runs the length of the nave and was painted (so the children's guide to the cathedral told me) by two different painters. (Shown apparently by a stronger use of colour towards the end).

This is only the two upper levels of the north aisle (transept?).

You can see the full height here in the centre of the cathedral under the octagon, which is topped by its lantern tower made of wood, lead and glass.

Many of the walls, pillars and arches within the cathedral are heavily decorated and you can still see traces of painted decoration in many places.

Just some of the painted surfaces and a glimpse of the detailed ceiling painting.

I was fascinated by the Lady Chapel. You can see how vast it is in the third photograph below. The Lady Chapel suffered badly in the Dissolution of the Monasteries during the reign of Henry VIII and in the photo below you should be able to see how the carved decoration was damaged: the figures were all smashed, their heads being knocked off.

Although I learned about the Dissolution of the Monasteries I don't think I have ever seen such clear evidence as this extensive destruction which has been left unrestored. Somehow it made it seem a real occurence with its attendant violence of destruction.

This ornate ceiling crowns the Lady Chapel and some of the bosses are grotesque faces. (I took the photo through a mirror!)

You can see how vast the Lady Chapel is. Money has been collected through local sponsorship to carry out renovations in recent years. The floor has some varied patterning in its tiling.

You can see in these niches where large statues were removed or destroyed during the Dissolution.

Ely Cathedral was founded by St Ethelreda and became a place of Pilgrimage.

While many carvings at the bases of pillars were damaged I did find this little chap lurking complete.

The sculpture of Christ in Majesty was made by Peter Ball in 2000. It is a beautiful piece of work.

This is my best effort at a photo of the Octagon. The fingers in green and gold are made of pine. The lantern is made of oak and glass weighing 200 tons and outside there is a layer of lead making a total weight (I think) of about 400 tons! If you look here you can see some very impressive images of the octagon and the cathedral in general.

I'll come back to Ely another day - it's nearly time for bed and I need to read a few blogs! I've got a workshop tomorrow and I've been exhausted today after my jaunt so I need an early night.