Exeter

A city ‘as old as time itself’ – well almost.

The Romans were here in 50AD and left a wall to remind us.

The Roman wall- still very much a part of the city

We were here today, with photographs to remind us 😂

Churches were part of the landscape in one form or other from 50AD and the cathedral was started in 1112, demolished, rebuilt and by 1315 became what is known as Exeter Cathedral

And what a Cathedral.
Just stunning. Described as ‘an immaculate cathedral, luxurious, confident and mature’ it has the longest single continuous vault in Europe.

Which makes it the longest continuous stone vault in Europe

A close up of the vaults and ‘bosses’ which lock the vaults in place

Each ‘boss’ weighs about one Tonne and depicts a different story – this one the murder of Thomas Beckett

Canopied tomb of Bishop Stafford (1419) still perfect

Bishop from 1280-still retains its paint

Exeter Astronomical Clock dated from 1484. The hole in bottom of door below Clock was cut out circa 1620 to provide access for Bishop’s cat to deter rats and mice 😂

Bishop’s Throne is 18m (59 ft) tall. Made between 1312-1316, from Devon oak, it is held together by wooden pegs

Choir stalls with tip up seats carved in 13 century – the oldest set in England

14century Minstrels Gallery – 14 carved angels playing musical instruments

The cathedral is just spectacular, beautiful, and full of history. Signs of Cromwell and his men still remain with the heads of many effigies hacked off by them. I could bore you with so many stories 😜 but won’t.

Looking down the Naive to the stone pulpitum (built 1317-1325)

Exeter is a large city, with a glorious mix of old (very old) and new (some very new) parts. The university ‘feels’ everywhere, and the city is thriving. Large areas exclude cars so walking and window shopping is relaxed and unstressed.

And so it was that a rainy blustery English day led us to explore a lovely city, enjoy a wonderful meal overlooking the cathedral, a wander through some exciting shops – feeling very lucky