Exeter Cathedral stands proudly in the center of Exeter, in the southwestern county of Devon, England. With a history spanning from Roman times to World War II, the large cathedral provides a fascinating insight into medieval Britain with its exquisite Gothic features. To this day, Exeter Cathedral is considered the finest example of the Decorated Gothic architectural style (1280–1380), an English Gothic style.
In 1050, King Edward the Confessor built Exeter Cathedral on a site that previously held many religious buildings, including a fifth-century Christian site, a 10th-century Anglo-Saxon construction, and a Norman cathedral dating from 1180. Completed in roughly 1400, the main body of the current cathedral is in a Gothic style imported from France in the 1240s, featuring extensive ornaments and decoration.
The building was damaged throughout the centuries, notably during the dissolution of the monasteries, the English Civil War, and the Exeter Blitz during World War II; the cathedral was improved and renovated throughout the 19th and 20th centuries.
Exeter Cathedral is best known for its stonework, especially noticeable in the cathedral’s vaulted ceiling, which is the longest continuous medieval stone vault in the world. The carved ceiling features beautiful bosses (a decorative knob on a ceiling) and decorative caps, which were very prominent in Gothic architecture. These bosses are often brightly colored, showing that medieval churches were once filled with vibrant colors.
The cathedral includes carvings in the minstrel’s gallery, great stained glass windows, and an astronomical clock, all dating from the 13th and 14th centuries.
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