Saturday, 5 November 2016

Rochester Cathedral - estuary breezes in the nave


Rochester

The Cathedral Church of Christ and the Blessed Virgin Mary is guarded by a castle and sits close to the Thames estuary. We called in on the way home from Canterbury. We were received through a Romanesque door and tympanum, a semi-circular decorative surface that is part of the door.


Striking about Rochester is a superb Romanesque nave; it survives because the medieval builders ran out of money in the 12thC. The plan was to turn the whole place Gothic. The transepts, central tower and eastern end of Rochester, including the quire, are seamless Early English; however the whopping nave remains Norman. Stand at the central crossing and you can see the join.


Extract from my new book, English Cathedrals. Capturing the wonder of these very special places in 60 exciting drawings. Order via http://bit.ly/2tbCoE

PREVIEW MORE HERE http://bit.ly/timhome2go

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Thank you very much for your comments - Tim