Dorchester Abbey

old former monastery guesthouse

gotta love the old lady (American donor)

older gargoyle

oh yeah TIMBERING!

14th century wall painting, built 1340 for use as a parish church, there is a burial vault underneath the altar to house the bodies disturbed during the construction

close up of the 14th century painting

11th century knight

even the metal is painted

altar with one of the excellent 1340s English Decorated windows

rare Tree of Jesse 14th century window combining stained glass and sculpture (see the curved branches of the tree?)

the light streaming in gives the wood an orange glow

Dorchester was once a capital of England-controlling as far north as Northumbria. A cathedral was founded here in the 7th century but when the See left for Westminster, Dorchester became an abbey. I missed out on photographing a lot of the interior due to being in a rush but it's definitely worth a go as the English Decorated windows are beyond gorgeous, and the sedilila holds some of the oldest stained glass in England (reputedly, imported from France in the 13th century)