Liturgical features of Rochester Cathedral, 13th-20th century
Rochester Cathedral features several original liturgical features from the C12th and C13th and a fine collection of C19th liturgical furnishings.
Rochester Cathedral architectural history, 604-2020
The architecture, history and collections of Rochester Cathedral can now be explored online in 3D. Sections of the Virtual Tour are numbered according to the chapters of the Audio Tour, with the tour narrated by Jools Holland.
Available at: rochestercathedral.org/virtual
Mural memorials of Rochester Cathedral, 16th-21st centuries
The nave of Rochester Cathedral features a large collection of civilian and military memorials from the 17th to the 19th centuries, including a memorial to Dame Anne Henniker d.1792 featuring statues cast in Coade Stone, A C17th mural memorial to William Streaton moved to the exterior of the chapel is the earliest in the cathedral.
Excavations at Rochester Cathedral, 2015-2020
In a typical year, several excavations take place in and around the precinct of Rochester Cathedral.
Stone Water Basin, Donorlan Park, possibly 17th century
A historic stone basin water feature in Dunorlan Park has been restored. ‘It was described in 1832 as a spring which ‘rises rapidly into a stone basin, placed in the centre of a circular excavation, about ten feet in diameter and six or eight feet deep, which is bricked round, and with the remains of stone steps leading down to the basin at the bottom’.
Mesolithic Quartzite Pebble Hammer, c.8000-4000 BCE
This stone tool was found in ploughsoil in Kent, England. Quartzite pebble hammers with cental hourglass perforations date from the Mesolithic (c.8000-4000 cal BC). The perforation on this example was made by pecking and was subsequently ground smooth.
Darnley Mausoleum, Cobham, 1808
The Darnley Mausoleum, or Cobham Mausoleum as it is often now referred to, is a Grade I Listed building, now owned by the National Trust and situated in Cobham Woods, Kent (OS grid ref: TQ694684).
War Memorial, The Great Lines, Chatham
The Commonwealth War Graves Commission. Chatham Naval Memorial features a large obelisk situated in the town of Chatham, Kent, which is in the Medway Towns. The memorial is a feature of the Great Lines Heritage Park.
Medieval tombs of Rochester Cathedral
Rochester Cathedral features twelve intact medieval coffin-tombs spaced around the east end of the building in proximity to the high altar. They were the final resting place of bishops of priors.
Medieval brass casements at Rochester Cathedral
Brasses were a medieval form of memorialisation, originally limited to members of the cathedral clergy or to the wealthy and powerful. After the English Reformaton many of the brasses were ripped from the floor and sold off to metal markets, leaving only their casements remaining. In the 19th century most of the surviving casements at Rochester Cathedral were gathered and relaid in the North Quire Aisle.
St Thomas Becket ampulla pilgrim souvenir, 13th century
This large ampulla is one of the many kinds of pilgrim souvenirs associated with the cult of St Thomas Becket. It was made to carry a liquid known as Becket’s water.
Becket on a Peacock pilgrim badge, c.1250 - 1350
This lead alloy pilgrim souvenir shows St Thomas Becket riding a peacock; the figure is headless but the peacock still has a frontal hook, possibly for the suspension of a small Canterbury bell.
Becket on Horseback pilgrim badge-mould
This fifteenth-century stone mould fragment was made to cast openwork lead alloy badges, which were sold to pilgrims as souvenirs at the shrine of St Thomas Becket.
Becket murder Weapon pilgrim badge, late Middle Ages
This badge represents the sheath of the sword-point relic displayed at the site of Thomas Becket’s martyrdom. It would have originally included a model sword.
Decorative Floor Tile, 14th century
A 14th century Encaustic (2-colour) tile from the Randall Manor Dig, Kent, England. It was found in demolition deposits at the Manor, not in situ.
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