101. QUIRE STALLS CANOPY

I look at a quire canopy like this and think of a mechanical production line. But how did they do it all by hand and achieve such uniformity?    PLAN

102. QUIRE SCULPTED FIGURES     

The Quire stalls are made of Burmese teak with a row of Celtic saints below each canopy. Here are pictured (from the left): St Conan, St Nectan, St Paul (of Leon?), St Columb, St Winwaloe, St Merio(?). The Celtic saints were part of a Christian movement involving the development and spread of distinctive traditions, especially in the sixth and seventh centuries. Some elements may have been introduced to Ireland by the Briton St. Patrick; later others spread from Ireland to Britain with the Irish mission system of Saint Columba..        

103. QUIRE LOOKING WEST

From the Quire we get a good view down the nave towards the West wall. Again the bend in the axis of the Cathedral is evident.

104. CATHEDRA

At the East end of the South Quire stalls stands the Bishop’s throne or cathedra. In Latin, this word simply means a seat with arm rests. However, in the Church of England it has come to represent the position of authority of the Bishop, and a church in which a cathedra is placed is called a cathedral.

105. SEDILIA

In front of the cathedra there are three smaller seats, or sedilia, used by the general clergy. Traditionally, the sedilia are often made of stone and set into the wall.    

106. QUIRE SIDE SCREEN

Looking in the other direction towards the reredos, there is some ornate carved screening on the sides..       

107. REREDOS

The show piece of Truro Cathedral is this magnificent carved reredos or screen which stands behind the high altar. The reredos was the work of Nathaniel Hitch. Canon Paul Mellor writes of it: The great reredos in Truro Cathedral is a ‘magical work’ in which its creator, Nathaniel Hitch has made stone do what by its nature it cannot do, and that is speak two messages at once.    

108. REREDOS CENTRAL PANEL

The central and powerful panels of the reredos show Christ seated in glory above Christ suffering in agony on the cross.    

109. REREDOS ANGELS

Below the Crucifixion scene and above the altar stand a row of nine coloured angels. These represent the ninefold choirs of heaven. The idea comes from the book of Isaiah 6:1–7, where a passage about worship lists Seraphim, Cherubim, Thrones, Dominions, Virtues, Powers, Archangels, Principalities and Angels. The High Altar itself is a work of art, but unfortunately it is usually covered with an altar cloth.

110. REREDOS LEFT

The reredos contains an incredible amount of detail. In columns from the left and viewing from the top down, we see (Prophets) Malachi, Zechariah, Joel, Jeremiah; Abel’s Sacrifice, Eating the Passover, (Apostles) St Philip, St Jude, St James the Just; (Martyrs) St Vincent, St George, St Cecilia, St Edmund; Noah’s Sacrifice, the Sacrifice of Isaac, St Matthew, St James the Greater, St Peter.

111. REREDOS RIGHT

On this side we see Four Pairs of Adoring Angels; The Tree of Life, The Shew Bread, St John, St Andrew, St Bartholomew; St Alban, St Laurence, St Polycarp; The Brazen Serpent, Gathering Fruits, St Simon, St Thomas, St Matthias; Ezekiel, Isaiah, Amos, Daniel.

112. EAST WINDOW

We conclude our visit to Truro Cathedral by admiring the Great East Window. It is hard to appreciate the intricacies of this window because of the distance and the detail, and we are really just struck by the blaze of colour. There is an information notice about this window, and this can be read on https://www.flickr.com/photos31068574@N05/7023956721/in/photostream/