A NOTED SHRINE

Hokitika Guardian, 5 October 1929, Page 7

A NOTED SHRINE

SALISDUItY CATHEDRAL. • IDEAL SURROUNDINGS. . M.any New Zealanders have seen and tranquil over Plain, and many more have heard of it. Hut perhaps lew know that it got its name "from the adjoining city of Salisbury, ill the centre of tins charming city, ninety miles southwest irom i.undon, stands the beautiful Cathedral, surrounded by a high wall which encloses many acres and within which are placed all the houses of those associated with the Cathedral. Immediately surrounding the Cathedral is a spacious lawn over which many old and beautif*il o.iKs throw their shade. The entrance to the “close” or Cathedral grounds is made through narrow gateways placed oil the four sides, and to the visitors it is interesting to read that “ This gateway is closed at lU p.m.” Any one of the hundreds of inhabitants whose arrival at any of the gates is later than 10 p.m. must pull the old-fashioned bell and await the pleasure ulf the Cathedral constables, who live in the towers which are built over the gates. It is customary for the visiting motorist to enter the closi through one of the gates and park his car in the “Cathedral park,” for which privilege he is charged Is 6d by a constable who gravely issues a receipt in the name of the dean.

The Cathedral itself is unique in England. In structure it is almost identical with that at Amiens, and its immensity cannot at first sight be realised. its spire 19 432 feet in height, and dominates the countryside for miles. Although the diocese dates hack to flie year 705, the Cathedral as it stands to-day was commenced in 1220, and completed about 40 years later. The Cathedral is pointed Gothic or “early English” in style. Jn length jt is 514 feet, in height 8G feet, and the western transept measures 207 feet. "While it has been built in the form oif a double cross it is remarkable that the western arm is the longer. Owing to its age it is not surprising that much of the carved stone figures on the facade are showing signs of decay, but .the great beauty of the carving is still apparent. One can only conclude that the designing and construction of the Cathedral was a work of love, for nowhere in to-day’s architecture is there such evidence of painstaking work. The figures in carved stone—a bishop holding a miniature cathedral in his outstretched hand, flying angels," bishops in full regalia with staffs—which adorn the building over the main entrance, are worthy of caretful examination, while the main doors, with their age-old hinges and immense locks, are charming.

AUSTRALIAN FLAGS IN PLACE OF HONOUR,

On entering the Cathedral one is struck by its immensity and its vaultlike appearance, but as one passes by tombs of bishops and knights who died hundreds of years ago, and reaches the brasses which immortalize the heroes of the late war, all feeling of austerity disappear. Beautiful brass gates, like old lace, enclose the choir and the high altar, and here one realises why England will always he “Home” to so many. High up on the walls before the high altar hang two flags—and two only—and those are the flags of Australia. The verger explained that the Australians were camped near Salisbury—on the plain—and were accustomed to visit the Cathedral regularly. Ip rnopgpition of all they did the flags to-day hang in the place of honour in that beautiful building,

There are many altars—even in the crypt below there are two or three—and the windows tell a story in colour of days long gone by. The cloisters in the eastern portion of the building enclose a lawn wherein many stones mark the last resting-place of those who served the Cathedral, and just adjoining the cloister is the “Round Hall,” where the authorities of the Cathedral meet in council; a beautifully-designed room this, with windows well out of reach even of. an inquisitive ear qt t-110 top of a ladder. Tills care for protection—no doubt very necessary in older days—is apparent even inside the Cathedral, for on the right of the high altar is the “stall-.” or pew of \\ knight of ohl, It is PimHisefl In iron bars two inches square and twenty feet high, and can he entered only through an iron door, The diocese was .founded in the year 705, and the original cathedral stood at Sherbourne, the centre of tho episcopate til! 1075. In that year a new cathedral was commenced at Old Snrum, then an important fortress. This was completed in the year 1092. Half a 'century later it was decided that a garrison village was not an ideal situation for a cathedral, being little in harmony with tho spirit of a place of worship. It was therefore decided to transfer the Cathedral to Salisbury, or Now Sarum, and the first stones of the existing Cathedral were laid on April 28, 1220.

Probably the greatest charm of the Cathedral is its position in the middle of a beautiful close. So many beautiful buildings are disfigured by the immediate proximity of other buildings, but here, in grounds spacious and simple, Hands a Cathedral hundreds of years old, and its design is such that it seems to gusli out of the grass which surrounds it like an island in an emerald sea.

There, just as it lias been through the centuries, it' rests amidst the beauty and calm of tbe close, a monument of a great achievement, for many say it is one of the finest examples of mediaeval ecclesiastical architecture extant.