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Canterbury Cathedral's Nave and Ceiling.
Photo: August 2007.
Source: Canterbury Cathedral
(Uploaded by Kurpfalzbilder.de)
Author: Hideyuki KAMON
(Wikimedia Commons)
In September 1174, the Choir was severely damaged by fire, necessitating a major reconstruction, the progress of which was recorded in detail by a monk named Gervase. The Crypt survived the fire intact, and it was found possible to retain the outer walls of the Choir, which were increased in height by 12 feet (3.7 m) in the course of the rebuilding, but with the round-headed form of their windows left unchanged.
Everything else was replaced in the new Gothic style, with pointed arches, rib vaulting and flying buttresses. The limestone used was imported from Caen in Normandy, and Purbeck marble was used for the shafting. The Choir was back in use by 1180, and in that year the remains of Saint Dunstan and Saint Alphege were moved there from the Crypt.
Stained glass windows in the Chapter House, Canterbury Cathedral.
Photo: April 2011.
Source: Own work.
Author: Mattana
(Wikimedia Commons)
The Master-Mason, appointed to rebuild the choir, was a Frenchman, William of Sens. Following his injury in a fall from the scaffolding in 1179, he was replaced by one of his former assistants, known as "William the Englishman.
A further Chapel, circular in plan, was added beyond that, which housed further relics of Becket, widely believed to have included the top of his skull, struck off in the course of his assassination. This latter Chapel became known as the "Corona" or "Becket's Crown".
Canterbury Cathedral.
These new parts, East of the Choir Transepts, were raised on a higher Crypt than Ernulf's Choir, necessitating flights of steps between the two levels. Work on the Chapel was completed in 1184, but Becket's remains were not moved from his tomb in the Crypt until 1220. Further significant interments in the Trinity Chapel included those of Edward Plantagenet (The "Black Prince") and King Henry IV.
The Shrine, in the Trinity Chapel, was placed directly above Becket's original tomb in the Crypt. A marble plinth, raised on columns, supported what an early visitor, Walter of Coventry, described as "a coffin wonderfully wrought of gold and silver, and marvellously adorned with precious gems".
Other accounts make clear that the gold was laid over a wooden chest, which in turn contained an iron-bound box holding Becket's remains. Further votive treasures were added to the adornments of the chest over the years, while others were placed on pedestals or beams nearby, or attached to hanging drapery.
Canterbury Cathedral.
For much of the time, the chest (or "ferotory") was kept concealed by a wooden cover, which would be theatrically raised by ropes once a crowd of pilgrims had gathered. Erasmus, who visited in 1512–1514, recorded that, once the cover was raised, "the Prior ... pointed out each jewel, telling its name in French, its value, and the name of its donor; for the principal of them were offerings sent by sovereign princes."
The income from pilgrims (such as those portrayed in Geoffrey Chaucer's [Canterbury Tales]) who visited Becket's Shrine, which was regarded as a place of healing, largely paid for the subsequent rebuilding of the Cathedral and its associated buildings. This revenue included the profits from the sale of pilgrim badges, depicting Becket, his martyrdom, or his Shrine.
The Shrine was removed in 1538. Henry VIII summoned the dead Saint to Court, to face charges of Treason. Having failed to appear, he was found guilty in his absence and the treasures of his Shrine were confiscated, carried away in two coffers and twenty-six carts.
The income from pilgrims (such as those portrayed in Geoffrey Chaucer's [Canterbury Tales]) who visited Becket's Shrine, which was regarded as a place of healing, largely paid for the subsequent rebuilding of the Cathedral and its associated buildings. This revenue included the profits from the sale of pilgrim badges, depicting Becket, his martyrdom, or his Shrine.
The Shrine was removed in 1538. Henry VIII summoned the dead Saint to Court, to face charges of Treason. Having failed to appear, he was found guilty in his absence and the treasures of his Shrine were confiscated, carried away in two coffers and twenty-six carts.
PART FOUR FOLLOWS
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