12-20 May 2007
Part1 | Part2 | Part3 | Part4 | Part5 | Part6 | Part7 | Part8 | Part9
Introduction
For some reason I had no urge to make proper notes on this trip. Perhaps it was laziness. Perhaps it was due to a packed itinerary that left little time for anything but the very act of travelling and observing. Perhaps this came to be because of long days of the season when there is enough light even at half nine at night. Often, I was just too tired to think and write at the end of each day. Emphasis had been towards feeding my senses with objects of their perception. It was not planned that way. It just happened. There was no time for reflection. Reflection is happening now as I make an effort to bring together experiences entrenched in my mind, images captured on my camera-phone, fleeting thoughts recorded on my voice recorder and brief notes scribbled on scraps of paper.
But there is a greater reason why I had to wait for my return to make these notes. The beauty of Cornwall had been overwhelming. I had been awed into numbness. If I could not find words to describe, it was only because I could not make sense of my own responses. I needed time to let initial responses subside from their tumultuous beginnings. I needed time to let them settle for clarity. Now I am able to analyze those powerful emotions without dissecting them into powerless parts. Sadly, this destroys some of the spontaneity that is inherently present when travel notes are made while on the road. Every place has its characteristics and its mood. If I had written these notes in Looe, the sea-gulls would have filled the air with their noisy calls. If I had made these notes at Lizard Point, the continuous roar of the sea would have been with me. If I had written something at Bellever YHA, perhaps the spirits of our Bronze Age ancestors would have made themselves heard in some cryptic way through these words.
Most of the trip was in Cornwall. Towards the end, I dedicated some time to Devon. Little planning had been done before the trip. I had to improvise as the days rolled. The key elements of Devon and Cornwall are the stunning coastlines, the bleak uninhabited moors, the beautiful gardens, the prehistoric monuments and the ruins of a mining industry. Within each of these, there is a greater variety that comes from the details they contain. It should be an interesting write and just as interesting a read.
Truro Cathedral
I didn’t intend to visit the Cathedral or make much of Truro. The plan was to spend the morning at Trelissick Garden. Unfortunately, I had to put up with some waiting for the next bus to the garden. So I thought I might as well take a walking tour of Truro. On this self-guided tour I had nothing to guide me except my thoughts that gave meaning to sensations of sight, smell and sound. I saw that the streets were clean though a little narrow in the town centre. The shops were closed and the streets empty. It was still quite early in the morning. I admired the cathedral from the outside. Although there was still more than half an hour for the first service, the cathedral was open. So I ventured inside to take a peek.
Just when I was beginning to feel that I have seen enough cathedrals in this country, here I was, starting this long trip with yet another cathedral. Just when I had made up my mind that I was going to take a quick peek, I got genuinely interested in the architecture and history of the building. Just when I was determined not to write about this filler, words started forming sentences on their own. With each sentence, I felt that the trip had begun rightly after all. These are the sentences I now record.
This is not an ancient Gothic cathedral but it looks like one. In fact, the Cornish Diocese of Truro was formed only in 1876; the foundation stones were laid in 1880; the choir and transepts were consecrated in 1887. The cathedral was subsequently expanded over the years. It is to the credit of the Victorians and the following generations to have completed this modern cathedral in a Gothic style that is both lofty and demanding. How did they manage to raise funds in times when belief in the Church was starting to dwindle? To repeat this in the 21st century would be impossible. I say this only because I rarely see churches and cathedrals crowded. Crowds these days are in shopping centres, sports arenas and rock music festivals. If people have found new ways to seek God and spirituality, why would they contribute to build yet another cathedral when they do not even visit the grand and ancient ones that still exist?
Truro Cathedral reminded me very much of those at Lincoln and Salisbury. There is much that is Early English in this cathedral. It all comes from Victorian taste for Gothic styles. It was motivated partly by the writings of John Ruskin and the ideologies of the Pre-Raphaelites. William Blake believed in the fluid dynamism and inherent spirituality of Gothic styles. Just as Baroque of early 18th century had to make way for the neo-classicism of Georgian era something had to take over from the latter. A revival of the Gothic was the answer. There are two points that can be made briefly about such a revival. Firstly, man seeks to be active and creative. It is not for him to accept dumbly the prevailing tastes and customs. He questions. He attempts. He invents. Secondly, all creative process, while it seeks to break away from the immediate and the present, derives inspiration from an older form or structure. This comes too from a belief that things ancient must be wise and worthy. Man may have progressed but something has been lost in the process. Thus, Gothic Revival was not just a revival of an architectural style from the Middle Ages. It was a revival of ancient ideologies and a rejection of those of their own time.
I have seen many such buildings of Gothic Revival though I can recall only some of them. The Albert Memorial in London is one example, created by the architect Gilbert Scott. The Scott Monument in Edinburgh is another example. The Houses of Parliament in London is a splendid example. Yet another beautiful example from early 19th century is the Bridge of Sighs at St. John’s College in Cambridge. In Norwich, we have one more example in the Roman Catholic Cathedral of St John the Baptist. Truro Cathedral is the creation of John Pearson.
It’s a difficult task to follow the style of an age long gone. Modern day craftsmen must attempt a style they are not used to. Modern rules of architecture must forget themselves to follow the older ones. Modern methods of building and construction, advanced as they may be, must roll back to older ways. These older ways may not necessarily be primitive. Where they are advanced, any attempt to follow them is a modern day challenge. Therefore it often happens that these buildings of Gothic Revival, though an achievement in their own right, lack the intensity and aura of true Gothic buildings of the medieval period. They lack the look of maturity. Their details are not as fine. The material of construction is not as authentic. Their history is fairly short.
The Cathedral seen from the little streets of Truro
Yet in this cathedral there are many features that stand out as a testaments to superb design and craftsmanship. One of them is the baptistry. Normally the font is placed towards the western end of the nave. This is the first time I have seen a separate space created specifically for the font and the special initiation ceremony of baptism. The baptistry is octagonal. Five of the sides open out to the aisle or the nave. The other three sides are closed against walls. Executed in Early English style, its piers are shafts of Purbeck marble clustered together. Dog-tooth moulding decorates arches and ribs. Spandrels contain images of saints and angels, although these are not of great beauty. Bosses are carved with natural motifs. The vaulting within the baptistry is a beauty in the sense of “small is beautiful”. Essentially, it creates a little private space that befits a child. The best perspective is to see it from nave. Indeed, much of the allure of the baptistry would be lost without the nave which links to it through ribs, arches, piers and bays. This puts it into perspective against architectural elements that are seen on a bigger scale in the nave.
The baptistry is dedicated to Henry Martyn a scholar and missionary from Truro. He was educated in Cambridge and went to India on a mission. He is credited to have translated the New Testament to Hindi-Urdu and Persian. There is a stained-glass window that depicts him consulting Persian scholars on his translation. The following words appear at the bottom of this window:
MARTYN BEFORE THE MOULVIES
In fact, most windows in this cathedral are accompanied by words in English, rather than in the usual Latin. These are extremely helpful in understanding the subject and context. We get to know some key events of Christianity. The death of Venerable Bede is depicted. The founding of the Dominican Order is explained to us. Francis of Assisi is described as the founder of the order of itinerant preachers, a lover of Christ, of man, birds and beasts. The Benedictine motto that work is prayer is printed: “Laborare est Orate”. Britain’s first Christian martyr, St Albans is given due honour. Miles Coverdale is credited towards improving and completing the English translation of the Bible begun by William Tyndale. Thomas Cranmer is a key figure in English Reformation. In one window he is shown receiving an injunction from King Henry VIII that Bible should be read in English in all parish churches after a century of prohibition. There are more secular personalities depicted as well: Francis Bacon, Isaac Newton, Handel, Tennyson, Queen Victoria…
The blind arcading along the sides of the aisles also derive inspiration from Gothic styles. However, instead of blindly copying their sources, the architect has exercised thought and imagination. A raised platform follows the wall, alternating with slender pillars and gaps in stone projections. This is almost like the clerestory in Paisley Abbey.
Closer to our own times, a centennial painting of 1980 celebrates Cornwall as “Cornubia – Land of the Saints”. At the time of the painting, 248 churches were listed in the Diocese of Truro. The names of these churches are simply fantastic. They reflect how well Celtic influence has been preserved in Cornwall. There is a 1999 matchstick model of the Cathedral consisting of about 43,000 matchsticks. The New Altar in St Margaret’s Chapel, dedicated in 2003, is a stunning piece of modern art made of fumed chestnut, china clay and glass. The upsweeping ends of the altar echo the priest’s arm movement at the Eucharist. The glass top lets in light falling into a vertical slit that faces the congregation. With this it carries symbolic meanings and tunes the heart to genuine prayer.
Fundamentally, something has changed in the way we pray. Neither this nor the cathedral at Coventry has a cloister. Cloisters in medieval times were an essential part of monastic way of life. They provided a means for introspection and study. There is a more obvious reason for this at Truro. The cathedral has been built so close to the town centre that it almost hugs it. The builders had no space to build a cloister. There is no large open space in front of and around the cathedral, as we have in Wells or Exeter. Often, when wandering around town, the cathedral’s spires and towers can be seen framed by narrow streets and shop facades of varying styles. In a way, the cathedral belongs closely to the people and keeps a watch over the town. We do not feel that the cathedral is an entity separate from the town, as was the case with Bury St Edmunds in the 14th century.
Part1 | Part2 | Part3 | Part4 | Part5 | Part6 | Part7 | Part8 | Part9
