Nave

The nave was crammed full of round tables with dazzling white tablecloths and glittering cutlery. The greeter at the front entrance had told me that they were having a fund raising dinner tonight. I was surprised at this given the amount I’d already contributed to the establishment. I could see from the cutlery settings that they’d be getting a starter and pudding, as well as a main meal. I wondered about asking the greeter if I could have a complimentary ticket given my donation. It would save me buying a meal-deal from Morrisons later on. I’m not sure I’d be any good at the small talk during the meal though. Divinity at school was never one of my strong subjects. I wandered down the nave until I came to the crypt.  

Crypt

I was quite intrigued to visit this ancient structure of the cathedral. I wondered if it would be anything like the one at York. The answer was ‘no’. Even so, it dates from 672AD and is the oldest structure of any cathedral in England. The route through the crypt was a one-way system which gives an indication of how narrow the pair of passageways and staircases were into the crypt. The crypt itself was tiny. I shared the viewing experience with a young couple and it felt a bit like playing a game of Twister as we maneuvered about the floorspace. There was no denying that the place held a mysterious atmosphere. I felt the weight of all that stonework above me and so I headed up the exit staircase. The whole experience probably lasted about a minute. 

Quire

The Quire was quite impressive. The seats had the usual carvings. I particularly liked one that had a carving of figures in a castle on the back of an elephant. Well, why not? Lewis Caroll’s father was a canon here and the young Lewis used to  regularly visit him. It is possible that the bizarre wood carvings gave Carroll the inspiration for characters in The Adventures Of Alice In Wonderland. There was an impressive window on the east face of the Quire. The stained glass portrayed Jesus and the 12 disciples depicted in scenes from the book of Acts. Many organ pipes were visible on the walls of the Quire. The organ dated from 1878 and was built by T.C. Lewis. He later joined Harrison and Harrison of Durham who continue to maintain the organ to the present day. That must have been a lucrative service contract for the company over the centuries. 

Library

A wooden staircase  led up from the Crossing to a room dedicated as the library. The elevated view from the staircase gave  a good view down the nave and across the Crossing. I entered a room of modest size for a library. In fact, I was struck by how few books were actually in there. Apparently,  many of the most valuable books are now housed at the University of Leeds.  The room was built as an extension to the main building. This was evident from two gargoyles that are high up in the ceiling. In a past life they directed rainwater away from the building. I confess that I didn’t see these, but read about them in the guidebook later. The cathedral could really do with a few more information boards about the place to provide a bit more insight for visitors. There was quite a lot of silverware displayed in glass cabinets, but again little to describe what they were and their history. I made my way back to the staircase and plodded down to the Crossing. 

Crossing

The Crossing forms the central part of the cathedral between the Quire and Nave. In the past, the Quire was used by the hobnobs and the Nave by the plebs, for worshipping. To separate these two, the Quire Screen (Pulpitum) was created. The present screen dates back to the 15th century and has intricate carvings. It was certainly an impressive structure and had organ pipes above it.       

It had been a whistlestop tour of Ripon Cathedral (about an hour). Nevertheless, I’d enjoyed it and moved my historical knowledge on a notch or two. The cathedral was modest in size and so it didn’t take that long to walk around. It would have been nice to have had the opportunity of a guided tour, but there didn’t appear to be that option while I was there. I thanked God that I didn’t have to make another donation to get through the automatic exit doors.