On our travels we decided to visit Ripon Cathedral before breakfast. This was one of the highlights of our trip, for me. I do love Yorkshire and would go to Ripon frequently when I lived in Knaresborough. The cathedral was always a place I would want to go to but seldom had the time. On this occasion we decided to set off a little later and took in this gorgeous landmark. Its full name is the Cathedral Church of St Peter and St Wilfrid and was founded in the 660s as a monestary. The church we see today is the fourth iteration of the original.
The church became collegiate in the tenth century, and acted as a mother church within the large Diocese of York for the remainder of the Middle Ages. The present church is the fourth, and was built between the 13th and 16th centuries. In 1836 the church became the cathedral for the Diocese of Ripon. In 2014 the Diocese was incorporated into the new Diocese of Leeds, and the church became one of three co-equal cathedrals of the Bishop of Leeds. Wikipedia
This was a highlight of the trip for me by Harrold Gosney of York. It is titled Mother and Child and was commissioned in thanksgiving for the life of Simon Staveley (1949-1998). Some might choose to observe this as St Mary with the child Jesus but I shall leave this to the viewer. I was touched by this. The haunting glare, the delicate affection of the physical contact as well as the joy from the child at seeing his mother was particularly moving. A joyful piece on permanent display.
The Great East Window was also a highlight of the visit. You will forgive the long inset quote below but each part of it is pertinent. We were not able to get very close to it as there was an event occurring at the time, I believe it was the rosary.
The wonderful medieval “Geometric” East window, “almost the length of a cricket pitch”, celebrates in stone the living and eternal God as the Trinity. The vibrant 19th century stained-glass portrays the risen Christ and his apostles. Below, the high altar is surrounded by the glittering, golden screen created by Sir Ninian Comper and were given in tribute to those to who lost their lives in World War 1. The many gold figures recall the story of the Christian faith and hope coming to the North of England from both Celtic and Roman Christian traditions. The figures above celebrate the triumph of life over death and of good over evil, with the youthful, beardless, risen Christ perhaps being a reference to the young men who lost their lives in World War 1. Ripon Cathedral
And finally a bit about the bells at the Minster for any campanologists and/or bell ringers who might be reading.
A ring of 12 bells with an additional ‘flat sixth’ bell is hung in the south-west tower. A diatonic ring of ten bells was cast in 1932, and three additional bells were installed in 2008 with two new trebles being added to give a diatonic ring of twelve, and an additional ‘flat sixth’ bell to give a light ring of eight. Wikipedia
Cannot recommend enough.