Pictures from Wells Cathedral

Darcy August 9, 2023 0 Comments

I’m sharing pictures from Wells Cathedral. Mr. Burke loves to visit cathedrals, and I knew Wells would be special. I was also quite keen to go there since I’d included a visit to the cathedral in The Duke of Ice. In it, I specifically mention the library and the octagonal chapter house. We were able to visit the latter and it is STUNNING. However, the library wasn’t open, much to my daughter’s disappointment.

I did my best describing the chapter house, but having been there now, I could have gone on in much greater detail! It’s absolutely gorgeous. It’s too bad they stopped using it for meetings – until Covid! Then they started using it again because its space allowed for social distancing. The carved heads around the room are fascinating, and it’s fun to try to find certain ones, such as the guy sticking his tongue out (go to my website to see it!). In The Duke of Ice, Violet stumbles on the staircase and seeing it in real life, it’s not hard to imagine that happening! There are deep, rounded grooves where most people walk, which makes for a very uneven surface. It would be really easy to slip and fall!

One thing I did not include in the book was the 12th century astronomical clock, which was truly the highlight of our visit. It’s the second oldest clock in England and the oldest working clock with a dial in the world. The best part is the chime show every quarter hour featuring a jousting match! Search the Wells Cathedral clock on the internet if you’d like to learn more. I definitely need to include it in a future book!