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One of my fave photos I took inside Bath Abbey - as if the organ music has been piped into the vaulting.
Let no one says the past is dead.
The past is all about us and within’
Oodgeroo Noonuccal, The Past
Holding On To The Past
I’m stood in the cloister at Norwich Cathedral. I've rarely been to a place that so deeply embodies the human need to express their hopes and fears through architecture.
The walkways, reputed to be the largest cloister in England, are lined with a series of bosses along the vaulted ceilings.
A boss conceals the awkward junction where the ribs of a vault converge. In ecclesiastical buildings it is often decorated with scenes from the Bible, the Bestiary or foliate carvings.
The bosses at Norwich depict scenes from the life of Christ, the lives and miracles of saints, and the apocalypse.
Walking through the cloister and admiring the intricate bosses is a zoetropic experience. Movement brings them back to life, spinning out a visual narrative from the static of the material present.
As I circumnavigate the cloister, each glance at the bosses unfurls a vivid narrative, bridging the here and now with the pulsing emotional complexity of the medieval mind. It isn't just visual either, it's also acoustic; the vaults act as echo chambers, immersing me in sound as they would have experienced it.
Behind the biblical references lie reflections on the human condition and the syncretic nature of the church. The foliate head, with origins in pre-Christian traditions, abounds.
I've visited many places that offer a wonderful glimpse of the past, but rarely have I felt the past glimpse back at me.
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Become a MemberThe Prior's Door
I complete a full lap of the cloister and finish at the Prior’s Door, dating back to around 1310. This door, once the entrance from the cloisters into the cathedral for the monastic community, features Christ in Majesty with St. Peter, Moses, St. John the Baptist, and St. Edmund King and Martyr.
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Members can see the Prior's Door in augmented reality - it gives a real spatial view of the door (viewable on any device).
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The Cloister Bosses
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Norwich Cathedral is renowned for its medieval bosses, particularly those within the main body of the cathedral.
However, the bosses in the cloister are almost within touching distance and remarkably intact. Here's a selection of the bosses I photographed during my visit. Beyond the Biblical references, these carvings reveal the mental angst and trials of the medieval mind, captured through symbolism, whimsy, and iconography.
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Woody (my camper van) has his own boss - a depiction of Samson and The Lion from Exeter Cathedral.
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The original was carved in 1307 by William Montacute from Somerset for a fiver. The reproduction is made of stone from the cathedral during restoration work and was crafted by Herefordshire stone mason Martin Webb.
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I'm so glad I read this article, and so grateful for Simon Boas - you have taught me so much through your words and given me a new zest for each day. Thank you.
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What I'm listening to in the van:
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This time last year:
'Here in Brixworth in front of this humble dry stone wall everything is alive: the stone, the moss and even the boundary that it betrays. It's all so bloody beautiful.'
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Photographs and words by Andy Marshall (unless otherwise stated). Most photographs are taken with Iphone 14 Pro and DJI Mini 3 Pro.
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