Winchester

Grab a big mug of your favourite hot drink and get cozy. This is a big post.

Believe it or not, I'm sharing less than one-third of the photos I shot today and I'm leaving out quite a few stories (such as the woman I saw in an ethereal-looking outfit doing tai chi standing on a tree branch over the river, or the two Mallard ducks who chased a black duck out of the river right behind me and proceed to quack madly as they waddled along after him, all of them lined up behind me as I walked along the path).

Lately I've been trying to gather ideas for day-trips into the surrounding area; Hampshire is a beautiful county and I don't want to travel everywhere else, missing out on the beauty right on my doorstep. Winchester was my choice for today.

First stop was the tourism office to mark a map with the key sites I wanted to visit and sign up for a ninety minute walking tour which claimed to cover the "city highlights". Nobody else showed up, so I received a private tour of Winchester. The guide waited when I wanted to pause for photos, she skipped stories if I already knew the details, and she adjusted the tour to cover the things that would most interest me. I love travelling during the off-season!

One of our first stops was a statue of King Alfred the Great (first photo on the linked page) but I forgot to go back later to get a decent photo. My favourite story of the day was in connection to the statue, installed sometime in the last century. It's mounted on two huge blocks of stone but they didn't fit together properly. The solution was to put sugar cubes between the blocks and grind them back and forth to wear down the stone slightly and get the blocks to fit together. They had trouble with wasps for a couple of years until all the sugar washed away.

I love the layers in this photo of Winchester College buildings.
(The middle building is flintstone, a stone found in layers amid the chalk found in this area.)

The home where Jane Austen died.

Spring is finally here!

These buildings date from the 1500's. The gate to the right still gets locked at night and residents of the close have a key to the gate. If they forget their key, they pull a string which rings a little bell and the porter comes out to open the gate.

Wooden pegs in a ridiculously old building.

The tour guide noticed me taking this shot so she asked if I like old buildings and architecture. I told her I love the details more than the overall buildings. She took me to a nearby building which is usually closed, but happened to be open as the students are on a break. The building had wooden beams arched on the ceiling with decorative faces carved on the beams where they meet the side walls. The building dates from the 1200's.



During the tour we walked past Winchester Cathedral and I went back on my own to take a proper tour of the interior. My guide gave me some general information about the building of the cathedral. My brain is so packed with dates, people's names, and locations that everything is jumbled. I considered taking notes but I never could have kept up with everything she told me.

These Norman ruins are built into the side of the exterior of the cathedral. The noblemen sat under each of the arches. A king whose name I recognized but can't remember was excommunicated and came and prostrated himself to beg for forgiveness in this hall. The two middle columns are a fine example of recycling - the Normans reused Roman columns.

One of the bishops, I think in the 1700's, was upset that people kept cutting through the cathedral instead of walking around so he installed this notice on an exterior wall to indicate which way to go for worship and which way to go for walking.

The last stop on the tour: King Arthur's round table.

The story is mythical, but this recreation is still old (1275) and has a pretty good story. The table hangs in the Great Hall, the only building remaining from Winchester Castle.

Westgate - one of the remaining gates into the city.
Formerly used as a debtor's prison, now a museum.

Sixteenth century, solid oak chest for storing the city's money.

Graffiti from debtor's prison days at Westgate.

Winchester Cathedral.
This was the view from the bench where I ate my lunch.
I have a rough life.

Graffiti on a pillar in a balcony area.

More graffiti.
I can just imagine somebody doodling this during a boring service.

Wooden carving in the area where the choir sits.

There are six of these mortuary chests high above the altar area.
The chests contain the bones of Saxon kings and bishops, although the bones got mixed up during the civil war in 1642.
King Cynegils (611-643)
King Cenwalh (643-672)
King Egbert (802-839)
King Ethelwulf (839-858)
King Canute (Cnut) and Queen Emma (1016-1035
Bishop Alwyn (1032-1047)
Bishop Stigand (1047-1070)

"In Memory of JANE AUSTEN, youngest daughter of the late Reverend GEORGE AUSTEN,
formerly Rector of Steventon in this County She departed this Life on the 18th of July1817, aged 41, after a long illness supported with the patience and hopes of a Christian. The benevolence of her heart, the sweetness of her temper, and the extraordinary endowments of her mind obtained the regard of all who knew her and the warmest love of her intimate connections. Their grief is in proportion to their affection they know their loss to be irreparable, but in their deepest affliction they are consoled by a firm though humble hope that her charity, devotion, faith and purity have rendered her soul acceptable in the sight of her REDEEMER."

The cathedral has a variety of architectural styles represented, this section being Norman.

Medieval tiles - influence of the Crusades to the Middle East.

There are numerous different patterns in the medieval tiles.

This stained glass originally represented prophets and saints, but it was destroyed by parliamentary troops during the civil war in 1642. It was re-assembled randomly in 1660 when the monarchy was restored, so the present windows are constructed from 14th century glass, but with no particular pattern.

If you want more information, this link has details of the interior of the cathedral with photos.

Text in the Winchester Bible.

The Winchester Bible is a Romanesque illuminated manuscript produced in Winchester between 1160 and 1175.

The light caught some of the gold and made it glisten, but it needs to be seen in person to be appreciated.

The Winchester Bible is the largest surviving twelfth century English Bible.

This photo was shot from the inside of what remains of the city wall.
The sloping portion area dates from Roman times.

Ruins of Wolvesey Castle.

Wolvesey Castle was used as a Bishop's residence beginning in the late tenth century.

The Hospital of St. Cross can be reached by a twenty-five minute walk along a footpath beside the River Itchen. The river is a chalk stream so the water is exceptionally clear. The sun was shining and the temperature warm enough for me to take off my jacket for a while.

When I shot this photo I thought, "Wow - I'm so glad I'm not sitting behind a desk today!"

Hospital of St. Cross - I didn't go inside.

After my walk I went to the Winchester City Mill (no good photo ops) and then returned to the train station for my trip back to Hook. It was a wonderful day - the weather was beautiful, I saw plenty of historic sites, and I absolutely loved walking along the river. Lately I've been wanting to take some time to get out and just enjoy the beauty of God's creation... let my mind wander and use my camera to capture the moments that catch my eye... talk to God about my life and delight in my relationship with Him. It was a good day.