Special Tours Of a Special Building

13 July 2010

Special Tours Of a Special Building

Winchester Cathedral – Wednesdays from 28th July to 6th October, 13.30

 Many will know and have been on a tour of Winchester Cathedral, its Crypt or its Tower and wondered at its marvels, but did you know that each summer, the Cathedral Guides and some other knowledgeable friends of the Cathedral run a series of special tours, often looking at hidden or little known things about the building and its history. This year’s series runs on Wednesdays at 1.30pm from 28th July to 6th October. The tours are free but the Cathedral’s normal entry fees for visitors apply. Please telephone 01962 857 225 to reserve a place and see the Cathedral website for full details of the tours: www.winchester-cathedral.org.uk

 As much a place of almost a thousand year’s heritage, the Cathedral has also been the inspiration for a great deal of learning and study over the years. The Special Tours run each summer aim to expose in more detail something which the general tour has not time to cover. The series runs as follows: Pestilence & Penitence: A Medical History of the Cathedral (28th July), Monks and their Masters (4th August), The Master Mason’s Craft: The Architecture of the Cathedral (11th August), Just William(s)! - or Makers, Saviours and Destroyers, looking at the part that Williams have played in the building and history of the Cathedral (18 August), 700 Years of Stained Glass (25th August), Beauty in Wood (1st September), The Cathedral Close – then and now (8th September), The Life and Times of Jane Austen (15th September), Are there bones beneath these stones? (29 September) and finally The Lady with the Lamp and The Crimean War, looking at the work of Florence Nightingale in the centenary of her death on 6th October.

 Full details of these tours and all events at Winchester Cathedral can be found at www.winchester-cathedral.org.uk

 SPECIAL TOURS 2010

28 July

PESTILENCE and PENITENCE:  A Medical History of Winchester Cathedral

Throughout the last 1000 years, the Church has played a major role, and for several centuries, the major role, in the management and treatment of illness and disease.

The Church itself has not been left unscathed by plague, death and destruction as is reflected in the structure of the Cathedral, and in it’s chapels, architecture and monuments. This tour brings to life ( if that is a suitable expression ) the men and women connected with the great Medical History of Winchester cathedral.

4 August

MONKS and THEIR MASTERS

For 400 years the Cathedral was the focal point of one of the richest monasteries in the land. Now hear about the monks, how they lived and see what signs they have left behind.

11 August

THE MASTER MASONS CRAFT: The Architecture of Winchester Cathedral

The master masons, mainly unknown, were responsible for designing, extending and altering the Cathedral over a period of 450 years. Find out about the techniques that were used and how the architecture evolved.

18 August

JUST WILLIAM(S)!- or Makers, Saviours and Destroyers

You didn’t have to be called William to play a pivotal role in the affairs of this cathedral, but it is surprising how many Williams did just that. In fairness, the popularity of William as a medieval Christian name helps to explain this, but this tour will introduce you to a number of Williams who were undeniably men of great influence, or great talent, or whom history thrust into a moment of great importance.  

25 August

700 YEARS of STAINED GLASS

A tour showing Cathedral glass from 1330 to date.

1 September

BEAUTY in WOOD

A closer look at carvings and wooden items often forgotten.

8 September

THE CATHEDRAL CLOSE -THEN and NOW

A Close encounter with the buildings and history of the Cathedral Inner Close.

See the hammer beam roof of the Pilgrims Hall, the tudor symbols on the drainpipes of the 1600’s houses in Dome Alley, the vaulted undercroft at number 10, and the monk’s Chapter House ruins.

Meet the people who lived in these buildings, Izaak Walton, Josephine Butler, Mary Sumner and Jane Austen. Take a journey through history which leads to the present day.

15 September

THE LIFE and TIMES of JANE AUSTEN

Join us to explore Jane Austen’s contacts with people and places in Hampshire and retrace her last journey to the Cathedral where she was laid to rest on the 24th July 1817.

29 September

ARE THERE BONES BENEATH THESE STONES

A fascinating glimpse into the stories behind some of the ledger stones and memorials.

6 October

THE LADY WITH THE LAMP and THE CRIMEAN WAR

Florence Nightingale, “ The Lady with the Lamp “ made a major contribution to the improvement of nursing practices during the Crimean War and was seen as the founder of modern nursing. We mark, with this tour, the centenary of her death.

Winchester Cathedral Press Office

01962 857217/07968 549628

pressoffice@winchester-cathedral.org.uk

www.winchester-cathedral.org.uk