Looking West to Ely Cathedral
During a Communion service in Ely Cathedral I was struck anew by its magnificence.
The sheer splendour of the place was
revealed by the chairs being removed, thus emphasising the size of
the Nave (75 metres long and 32 metres high).
Being in the Cathedral reminds me of seeing an exhibition some time ago in the crypt of
Canterbury Cathedral. It was, I think, titled ‘The Building of a
Cathedral’. One of the exhibits was a scale model of the Cathedral being built,
showing the wooden scaffolds, the pulleys, the winches and the various artisans
and labourers at work both on the ground and way up in the heights.
It was one of the details of the tableau
that stuck most forcefully in my mind. One of the workmen was portrayed falling
from the scaffolding. I admit to being quite horrified at first - but gradually
came to realize such accidents would, of course, have been part of lives, that
were so much harsher than we can ever begin to imagine in the West today and
yet , I suspect, still the norm in some parts of the world.
I eventually decided to try and capture
something of that experience in the following short poem.
Touching Stone
Gaze on this edfice;
think of its noble patrons
and the mathematical skills of its
architects.
Touch its stone;
be reminded of Piers
who fell
from the vast wooden scaffold
during its building,
breaking his neck.
I find
no monument to Piers.
Another poem observing a different aspect of the building of the Cathedral can be found HERE at Long Drove
And another on one of the Cathedral’s amazing ‘qualities’ HERE in Advent Cathedral
Another poem observing a different aspect of the building of the Cathedral can be found HERE at Long Drove
And another on one of the Cathedral’s amazing ‘qualities’ HERE in Advent Cathedral