Lincoln Cathedral

Seen one, seen 'em all?  Maybe a little for Cooper.  And certainly the initial shock of being in a building so big and so old and so majestic has worn off a bit for Alan and I.  But holy moly.  These places are amazing.  The sheer size is just overwhelming.  And the level of craftsmanship is unbelievable, particularly given the age of these places.

This is the cathedral in Lincoln.  It towers over the city---we could see it from the highway as we were driving in.

Portions of this side of the cathedral (below) date back to the 11th Century, but much of the cathedral was rebuilt in 1186 after fire and an earthquake destroyed it.

You can also notice the change in architectural styles as the cathedral was expanded.  The round arches in the center of the building are traditional Norman style.  But the pointed arches on the right and left sides are typical Gothic style, dating from 1200-1400.

Inside the main part of the cathedral.

This cathedral, like the others we've seen, has several smaller chapels throughout, as well as regular church service things (like a lectern, choir loft, altar, and hymnals), in addition to a scattering of tombs.

This is the front door of the cathedral:

An example of some of the ornate stone carving:

This cathedral, like many others I assume, is incredibly expensive to maintain.  Through the cathedral, there were these signs (along with financial support information):

Alan was impressed with the annual fabric budget.  (Roughly, about $1.6 million.)