Wells Cathedral, Wells, Somerset (N 51° 12’ 37” W 2° 38’ 36”) Card 150x150mm with recycled envelope and biodegradable cello. Detailed caption on the reverse of the card. Card is blank for your own message.
Wells Cathedral, Wells, Somerset (N 51° 12’ 37” W 2° 38’ 36”)
The natural springs that gives Wells its name, can be found in the garden of the Bishop’s Palace, including the holy well of St. Andrew, on the south side of the present cathedral. The first church was built near the wells in 705 and the Cathedral buildings, as seen today, were begun in 1180. It is one of the most impressive of the English Cathedrals, and the magnificent west façade, as seen in the image was built between 1209 and 1250. It is 100 feet (30.5 metres) high and 150 feet (46 metres) wide and there are niches for more than 500 figure sculptures, most of them larger than life-size. Wells’ west front is unique in retaining almost 300 of its original medieval statues and it was the first cathedral to be built throughout in gothic style. Adam Lock was probably the master mason (architect) of the western nave, and it is believed that he also designed the Elder Lady Chapel at St. Augustine’s Abbey (now Bristol Cathedral) around 1220. Apart from the elaborate carvings of the western nave, he may well have designed the imposing north porch and the lower part of the West Front, before his death in circa 1229. The building is constructed mainly in the local limestone from nearby quarries.
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