We had heard that Winchester was the place to go from several different people. Not being the type to ignore good advice, we headed out. It was only a single transfer train trip to get there with the transfer being in Southampton Central. We made it there without issue and started walking through the little town. It is quaint and we were peckish. Luckily for us the Sushi place was open. We got a salmon platter 25 pieces for 20 GBP. With a fresh batch of omera-3's coursing through our blood we were ready to wander through Winchester Cathedral. It was founded in 1079 and was extensively remodeled over the next five centuries. The first Christian church was built on the site in 645 AD ten years after the first Christian Monarch of England, Cynegils was baptized. The church grew steadily and by 1000 AD it was a Cathedral and was the final resting place for several West Saxon Kings. After the Norman Conquest in 1079 this older church, the Old Minster, was demolished to make way for the new one that still stands today. There were some problems in the 1530's when Henry VIII nationalized all the churches and converted then to the Church of England. There were mortuary boxes scattered about within the Cathedral that supposedly contained the remains of the Kings. Studies were made of the bones and even a facial reconstruction was produced. All very interesting stuff. The famed Winchester Bible was on display in all it gilded glory. At over 800 years old it is an amazing work of art. It was all there except for a page that was sold to JP Morgan and is now in NY at the Morgan Library. We got back to Southampton and were excited to see our next train on the track next to ours. We hurried over to get on the train but as we reached to open the door, the conductor blew his whistle and stopped us. The doors remained closed and the train left. As we watched the train depart we decided not to sit there for an hour for the next train so we took an uber.
Swan central from the train
An seriously old wrecked boat
Some tasty lunch at this stop
Sushi!
We passed a few regular churches on our way through town
Fancy doors
Can't build a "new" church without stepping on some historic toes
Holy water is not for drinking
Nice wooden beams on the ceiling
Of course a wall of stained glass
Etched glass on this tiny church
Giggling Squid!
A pedestrian mall to walk along
We are on the grounds
It is big, one of the largest Gothic Churches in Europe
English Doughboy
A big door
From the front entrance
Insert choir boy sounds
Some banners hung along the walls
Gurkha Rifles, an military group from India formerly part of the British Army
These gothic arches are stunning
The great author Jane Austen. Only five folks were at her funeral. She was mostly unknown in her day. Sense and Sensibility had no author listed just a note that said "Published by a Lady"
A more elaborate plaque for Jane Austen and this one mentions her writing. The second novel had the note "Published by the Lady who published Sense and Sensibility"
This hunk of Tournai marble stone was used for baptisms as far back as the 1100's
Wall after wall of stained glass
The echoes that we could generate here if it was a proper activity
Looking down to the stained glass
A side knave
Elegant
Some graffiti etched into the walls
Mortuary casks filled with famous bones
An exhibit of sculpture was scattered throughout the perimeter of the cathedral, this was named "Rise" and made by Patricia Volk
A great glass piece by Colin Reid
It is called Cello
This piece is hard to even see. The left hand side is all reflection
So much detail work
The "Open Eye" is not for sale
It looks great at this location
Not pictured was a group of Czech students who were on a tour. One of them tried to speak German to me but his German was very rusty
"Urban Thinker" by Peter Walker
Another delightful knave
These tiles are original and make up the oldest paves surface in England
So much detail just for a ceiling!
This is a statue of William Walker who used a dive suit to shore up the sinking foundations. He dove in total darkness every day up to 20 feet deep for six years from 1905 to 1911. He placed 25,800 bags of concrete, 900,000 bricks and 114,900 concrete blocks underneath the cathedral.
This shows how he worked all those years
"Humanities Contempt for Humanity"
Laid out
A wall of statues similar to this was torn down in the 1500's as part of an anti-idolatry campaign
A wooden structure in the center of the space
The carving is exquisite
Bunnies
Upstairs by the library
Another tomb
Roar!
A newer style
Some very long legs
King of the mustaches
One of the mortuary boxes
These are carved stone pieces were part of the original wall of statues pulled down int he 1500's. The smashed bits were used as building stones for other construction works but these surfaced and were reclaimed
The big guy
More graffiti
The colors used in the Winchester Bible
How the calf skin was stretched
This bible is 800 years old and is the largest and finest of all surviving 12th century bibles
The JP Morgan page
Blue was the most expensive color. It was ground up Lapis Lazuli
1688! Long time ago
Park it where you can...
An dd vehicle to be located here, perhaps it is a coffee stand
Another glorious day worthy of sunbathing
Leaving and getting another view from the side
A small graveyard is on the side
More graves
A whole lot of patterns and shadows
Row houses
Train Station!
It has been 1 year and 8 days since we began our Migration
