We took advantage of yet another sunny Saturday to visit Salisbury Cathedral, Britain's finest 13th Century Cathedral. Started in 1220, the cathedral took 38 years to build and is unique in being almost entirely in one architectural style, Early English Gothic. Its spire, at 404 feet, is Britain's tallest.
A choir with stringed instruments to accompany them were practicing the whole time we were inside, making the whole experience seem even more majestic. As always, the colors in the stained glass windows were what most attracted my attention, and they really sparkled on this clear autumn day.
Adjacent to the sanctuary is a room called the Chapter House. Built in the last half of the 13th Century, this was a meeting place for the cathedral's governing body. While the medieval friezes, windows, and floors have all been restored, its "bones," the stone columns and vaulting, are original. This room is home to the finest of only four surviving original (1215) Magna Carta, the document that represents the foundation of democracy and provides the basis for many Constitutions, including our own.
Leaving the cathedral, we walked a short distance to the Mompesson House, whose lovely enclosed garden also includes a tea shop. We sat in the sun and had a bowl of soup (carrot and coriander) and a pot of tea. An appropriate conclusion to a thoroughly civilized day!
A choir with stringed instruments to accompany them were practicing the whole time we were inside, making the whole experience seem even more majestic. As always, the colors in the stained glass windows were what most attracted my attention, and they really sparkled on this clear autumn day.
Adjacent to the sanctuary is a room called the Chapter House. Built in the last half of the 13th Century, this was a meeting place for the cathedral's governing body. While the medieval friezes, windows, and floors have all been restored, its "bones," the stone columns and vaulting, are original. This room is home to the finest of only four surviving original (1215) Magna Carta, the document that represents the foundation of democracy and provides the basis for many Constitutions, including our own.
Leaving the cathedral, we walked a short distance to the Mompesson House, whose lovely enclosed garden also includes a tea shop. We sat in the sun and had a bowl of soup (carrot and coriander) and a pot of tea. An appropriate conclusion to a thoroughly civilized day!
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