Church/ Cathedral/ MonasteryRipon Cathedral > Review
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perfection!
A Sobering Experience
Caradawn (32)
Adelaide, Australia
THE CEMETARY
Ripon's Cathdral is located in the centre of Ripon and is fairly easy to find. When we arrived in Ripon it was one of the first places we looked for. As it was approaching 9pm the cathedral itself was no longer open, but the the cemetary was, and we had an atmospheric stroll around. The area nearest to the cathdral seemed to be mostly reserved for the rather grand tombs and markers of the high ranking clergy such as the Canon and Arch Diocese. However, there was one ordinary (or extraordinary) man who appeared to have been honoured with a resting place in this area. His headstone read: "Here lies poor, but honest Bryan Tunstall; he was a most expert angler, until Death, envious of his Merit, threw out his line, hooked him, and landed him here the 21st day of April 1790." This I thought was a lovely sentiment and I was quite surprised at how good the condition of headstone was. Unfortunately, not all of the stones are in as good condition. One part of the cemetary had been taped off and you were cautioned not to enter because of the risk of falling headstones.
We were able to walk all the way round the cathdral that evening, spotting various little bits of interest including what looked like some empty sarcophagi by the catherdral walls. There a large lights which light up the building as darkness falls and benches placed in convenient places for those in need of a rest, or just contemplation.
A BIT OF HISTORY
The following day we paid the cathdral two more visits and got to learn a bit more about it. Its history begins in 672ad when St Wilfred built one of the first stone churches on this site. Today, the only surviving part of that church is the saxon crypt where relics from Rome used to be kept. Simply put, it is nothing more than a some tunnels leading to a small room where the relics were displayed. But, for me the interest is in the feeling of actually walking through those small tunnels which have been around for over a thousand years.
The second church on the site was destroyed in 1069 by William the Conquerer and the third church has left "traces" in the 12th century minster. This twelth century minster has been extended throughout the ages to make the building that is seen today. In the museum/treasury to one side of the main chapel, you can see how the building was developed and changed over the centuries. There you can also see diocesan silver and other treasures.
In 1836 the minster finally became a cathedral.
THE CATHEDRAL EXPERIENCE
From the moment I entered this cathedral through the ancient, heavy main doors and the beautifully carved inner door I was awe inspired. I have been in medieval churches before, but this was my first real experience of a cathedral. On entering the enormous nave I had to tear myself away from the vastness which pulled my gaze up to the amazing ceilings in order to notice what was happening at the entrance. Infront of me was a donation box, with a suggested donation of £3. I didn't have much change on me so I put a £5 note in and then spotted the sign which said a photography permit was needed if you wanted to take photos and this was available from the shop (which was to my left) for £2.50. If only I'd seen it sooner, I could have made my fiver go further! It was a good thing I didn't want to use a video camera as a permit for that would have set me back £4.
Going through the nave there is so much to take in. On the architectural side there are the towering collumns, the mixture of rounded and pointed arches, the arched ceilings and the stained glass windows (only one of which has survived from medieval times). When you bring yourself back down to the lower parts of the building you can see the memorials on the walls and the tombstones on the floors telling you who lies there. The pulpit in the nave is actually a fairly modern one dating from 1913 and done in the Art Nouveau style. However, I was happy to see that a medieval one still exists at the far end of the nave. There were also a couple of large standing tombs with the effigies on the top of them. One of them has the effigy of Sir Thomas Markenfield, a former Sheriff of Yorkshire, according to a leaflet I picked up.
Through the double doors at the end of the nave is the large chapel. There are smaller chapels to either side of this one, one of which houses the afore mentioned museum. The main chapel houses the large organ, part of which can be seen on the other side of the screen in the nave. I've read that the current organ contains a few ranks from a 1690 organ, but most of it was built in 1878. It has then been rebuilt and modified throughout the last century. The thing that caught my eye more than the organ itself was the wooden case. This is an amazing and intricately carved piece of work. A rather quaint feature is the carved wooden hand which was formally used to conduct the orchestra and apparantly still works today.
Below the organ case, in the choir stalls are the misericords which were completed in 1494. The misericords are little, wooden perch like seats, apparently designed to make elderly or infirm priests look like they are standing. Each one of the ones in this cathedral has been individually carved with fantasy creatures and scenes.
AN EVENSONG SERVICE
Despite the size of the cathdral and all the visitors there, I found the atmosphere very tranquil. I'm not religious, but I really felt like I was in a special place and felt safe, peaceful happy. We decided to return to the cathedral in the evening for the evensong service as I have only ever heard the beautiful sound of choir and organ on television programmes before. It was an experience I was pleased to have had, even if in truth it was a bit louder than I had expected, but the sound of the organ and choir really is something. If we'd gone to a church service like this as children, we might have actually enjoyed it! Just as we were leaving at the end of the service the Dean came back through and shook everyone's hand with the most wonderful smile and "God bless you". It was a small thing, but the way he did it made you feel that he was so pleased to see each individual person.
PROS AND CONS
One of the things I was particularly pleased about was that, unless an area was in use, you were free to walk around the cathedral unrestricted save for the organ room, offices/changing rooms and the nave alter area which was cordoned off. If you wished you could walk on the tombstones laid in the floor, you could go right up to the raised tombs and there wasn't even anthing to stop trying out the medieval pulpit; although I felt more comfortable just looking than trying. The only downside to this was that what I thought should really have been displayed was almost used as part of the furniture. The tombs with effigies had notice boards infront of them or were in the mother and toddler area with furniture around them. This meant that not only was it awkward to look at them properly, but when you tried to photograph them you got modern furniture in the picture.
There are a couple of obstacles for disabled visitors to the cathedral. The first one that comes to mind is the two steps leading to the main doors. I don't remember seeing a ramp for wheelchair users, but if helped up these steps then once in the actual building they should have no problems. Certain people would struggle with the crypt as well because it is down some steps and the tunnels are quite small, almost claustraphobic.
TIPS
If you can, pick up a colour leaflet from the tourist information across the road about the cathedral. I didn't do this until after my visit and missed a couple of things, like finding out why the lopsided columns were still standing (I didn't even notice they were lopsided!). They also mention things to do like counting stained glass windows inside and out and seeing if you notice anything (sorry, I missed that as well). Of course all this information may also be in the full colour brochure, but you have to buy that and I wasn't about to break into another note (I know, I'm tight!).
Ripon's Cathdral is located in the centre of Ripon and is fairly easy to find. When we arrived in Ripon it was one of the first places we looked for. As it was approaching 9pm the cathedral itself was no longer open, but the the cemetary was, and we had an atmospheric stroll around. The area nearest to the cathdral seemed to be mostly reserved for the rather grand tombs and markers of the high ranking clergy such as the Canon and Arch Diocese. However, there was one ordinary (or extraordinary) man who appeared to have been honoured with a resting place in this area. His headstone read: "Here lies poor, but honest Bryan Tunstall; he was a most expert angler, until Death, envious of his Merit, threw out his line, hooked him, and landed him here the 21st day of April 1790." This I thought was a lovely sentiment and I was quite surprised at how good the condition of headstone was. Unfortunately, not all of the stones are in as good condition. One part of the cemetary had been taped off and you were cautioned not to enter because of the risk of falling headstones.
We were able to walk all the way round the cathdral that evening, spotting various little bits of interest including what looked like some empty sarcophagi by the catherdral walls. There a large lights which light up the building as darkness falls and benches placed in convenient places for those in need of a rest, or just contemplation.
A BIT OF HISTORY
The following day we paid the cathdral two more visits and got to learn a bit more about it. Its history begins in 672ad when St Wilfred built one of the first stone churches on this site. Today, the only surviving part of that church is the saxon crypt where relics from Rome used to be kept. Simply put, it is nothing more than a some tunnels leading to a small room where the relics were displayed. But, for me the interest is in the feeling of actually walking through those small tunnels which have been around for over a thousand years.
The second church on the site was destroyed in 1069 by William the Conquerer and the third church has left "traces" in the 12th century minster. This twelth century minster has been extended throughout the ages to make the building that is seen today. In the museum/treasury to one side of the main chapel, you can see how the building was developed and changed over the centuries. There you can also see diocesan silver and other treasures.
In 1836 the minster finally became a cathedral.
THE CATHEDRAL EXPERIENCE
From the moment I entered this cathedral through the ancient, heavy main doors and the beautifully carved inner door I was awe inspired. I have been in medieval churches before, but this was my first real experience of a cathedral. On entering the enormous nave I had to tear myself away from the vastness which pulled my gaze up to the amazing ceilings in order to notice what was happening at the entrance. Infront of me was a donation box, with a suggested donation of £3. I didn't have much change on me so I put a £5 note in and then spotted the sign which said a photography permit was needed if you wanted to take photos and this was available from the shop (which was to my left) for £2.50. If only I'd seen it sooner, I could have made my fiver go further! It was a good thing I didn't want to use a video camera as a permit for that would have set me back £4.
Going through the nave there is so much to take in. On the architectural side there are the towering collumns, the mixture of rounded and pointed arches, the arched ceilings and the stained glass windows (only one of which has survived from medieval times). When you bring yourself back down to the lower parts of the building you can see the memorials on the walls and the tombstones on the floors telling you who lies there. The pulpit in the nave is actually a fairly modern one dating from 1913 and done in the Art Nouveau style. However, I was happy to see that a medieval one still exists at the far end of the nave. There were also a couple of large standing tombs with the effigies on the top of them. One of them has the effigy of Sir Thomas Markenfield, a former Sheriff of Yorkshire, according to a leaflet I picked up.
Through the double doors at the end of the nave is the large chapel. There are smaller chapels to either side of this one, one of which houses the afore mentioned museum. The main chapel houses the large organ, part of which can be seen on the other side of the screen in the nave. I've read that the current organ contains a few ranks from a 1690 organ, but most of it was built in 1878. It has then been rebuilt and modified throughout the last century. The thing that caught my eye more than the organ itself was the wooden case. This is an amazing and intricately carved piece of work. A rather quaint feature is the carved wooden hand which was formally used to conduct the orchestra and apparantly still works today.
Below the organ case, in the choir stalls are the misericords which were completed in 1494. The misericords are little, wooden perch like seats, apparently designed to make elderly or infirm priests look like they are standing. Each one of the ones in this cathedral has been individually carved with fantasy creatures and scenes.
AN EVENSONG SERVICE
Despite the size of the cathdral and all the visitors there, I found the atmosphere very tranquil. I'm not religious, but I really felt like I was in a special place and felt safe, peaceful happy. We decided to return to the cathedral in the evening for the evensong service as I have only ever heard the beautiful sound of choir and organ on television programmes before. It was an experience I was pleased to have had, even if in truth it was a bit louder than I had expected, but the sound of the organ and choir really is something. If we'd gone to a church service like this as children, we might have actually enjoyed it! Just as we were leaving at the end of the service the Dean came back through and shook everyone's hand with the most wonderful smile and "God bless you". It was a small thing, but the way he did it made you feel that he was so pleased to see each individual person.
PROS AND CONS
One of the things I was particularly pleased about was that, unless an area was in use, you were free to walk around the cathedral unrestricted save for the organ room, offices/changing rooms and the nave alter area which was cordoned off. If you wished you could walk on the tombstones laid in the floor, you could go right up to the raised tombs and there wasn't even anthing to stop trying out the medieval pulpit; although I felt more comfortable just looking than trying. The only downside to this was that what I thought should really have been displayed was almost used as part of the furniture. The tombs with effigies had notice boards infront of them or were in the mother and toddler area with furniture around them. This meant that not only was it awkward to look at them properly, but when you tried to photograph them you got modern furniture in the picture.
There are a couple of obstacles for disabled visitors to the cathedral. The first one that comes to mind is the two steps leading to the main doors. I don't remember seeing a ramp for wheelchair users, but if helped up these steps then once in the actual building they should have no problems. Certain people would struggle with the crypt as well because it is down some steps and the tunnels are quite small, almost claustraphobic.
TIPS
If you can, pick up a colour leaflet from the tourist information across the road about the cathedral. I didn't do this until after my visit and missed a couple of things, like finding out why the lopsided columns were still standing (I didn't even notice they were lopsided!). They also mention things to do like counting stained glass windows inside and out and seeing if you notice anything (sorry, I missed that as well). Of course all this information may also be in the full colour brochure, but you have to buy that and I wasn't about to break into another note (I know, I'm tight!).
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