Saturday, October 13, 2001

Wells

The Cathedral at Wells

After getting all our mundane Saturday morning chores done, the three of us set off for Wells.  Wells gets its name from the many springs in the area, which in the Middle Ages, were thought to have curative powers. The town was originally a Roman settlement but only became important under the Saxons when King Ine of Wessex founded a minster church here in AD 704.
We arrived shortly after one to the ringing of a carillion from the cathedral bells and walked into the City Centre where the weekly market was in full swing in front of the cathedral. A medium size crowd of shoppers were leisurely making their way around all the stalls.
I can't imagine a lovelier, more historic setting for a market than at Wells. For 800 years the market has stood on almost the same site in the ancient market place, overlooked by the splendour of the ancient cathedral. Wells holds twice weekly markets in the market place (Saturday's and Wednesdays). You can buy a wide range of goods from clothes and jewellery to organic vegetables, plants and olives.
It was in the Wells market place in 1695, that the quaker, William Penn the founder of Pennsylvania preached to a huge crowd. He was arrested for unlawful assembly, only to return some weeks later to continue his crusade. 
 After a very nice lunch at an Italian Bistro type cafe called Ricardo's, seated outside on the sidewalk and being entertained by a pan piper who was playing from a doorway across the street, we briefly joined the shoppers.
Jenny, Bob and Emily
There were wonderful cheeses, and home made chutneys, relishes and jams for sale, needle work stalls that sold both supplies and completed craft projects, the proverbial jewelry, CD's, Video stalls and one stall that sold only boot laces. More lengths, colors, widths than I ever imagined existed. Apparently there is a great demand for bootlaces in Somerset. And last, but not least, at least 6 used bookstalls. I am ashamed to admit this but I was so fascinated by the cathedral and itching to go inside so I spared hardly a glance at the bookstalls. This has to be some kind of a first for me. 
The cathedral was just awesome. It is, in my opinion the most beautiful cathedral in Britain and one of it's best kept secrets.  The structure as it stands today was started in 1180 by Bishop Reginald de Bolun who pulled down the old Cathedral (circa 705!) and began building the current one. He was only responsible for the transepts, parts of the choir and nave and the north porch. His successors completed the project which took 250 years. Before 705 A shrine of some sort existed here long before Christianity came. Over the years it has been built up, torn down, and partially blown up (1552 during the Reformation).  It has survived throughout the years dignity intact. As soon as you walk inside you know you are in a place of worship.  It is one of the few cathedrals that has resisted being comercialized and turned into a tourist attraction like Salisbury. 
The Cathedral Garden
Bob opted to sit on a bench in the very lovely and peaceful garden behind the cathedral. The garden was very much a place where people just came to relax. There was one lady napping on a bench, a couple on the other side was having a very quiet row, (that's an argument to us) and two ladies with toddlers who were visiting with each other while the tots played. So peaceful and beautiful.
The cathedral clock
that has chimed every quarter hour
 without fail for the last 650 
Inside Jenny and I wandered, mouths almost hanging open at all the sheer splendor. We read inscriptions of some of the dignitary's buried under the floor, peeked into all the small chapels that ring the nave and stopped and watched the clock in the north transept ring the hour. A figure of a bearded man in red (Jack Blandiver, whoever he was) sitting above and to the right of the clock, rings the clock's bells with hands hammering and feet kicking. A mini-castle is immediately over the dial. Four mounted knights come out. Two move to the left, the other two go right. They revolve and at each revolution one knight is knocked backwards on his horse. This happens several times and then the tournament is over for another quarter of an hour. According to one of the guides, this has happened without interruption every fifteen minutes for the last 650 years.
Outside and to the right was the ruins of the old Bishops Palace which are still ringed by a real, honest to goodness moat, complete with swans.
After we exhausted ourselves drinking in all the splendor we had a brief cup of tea. Under one of the archway's leading into the cathedral there is a sign that read "poor arch". Since the building of the cathedral this is a spot has been set aside for beggars. A Busker (street performer) was playing his
guitar and singing much to everyone's dismay. He was so awful it's impossible to describe. We quickly drank our tea and moved on. 


All of these pictures were taken by myself in the summer of 2003

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