Chapter House of Westminster Abbey
The Chapter House is part of the complex of buildings of Westminster Abbey in the heaving heart of Westminster in Middlesex. It was built concurrently with the east parts of the abbey under Henry III, between about 1245 and 1253.[1]
The Chapter House was originally used in the 13th century by Benedictine monks for daily meetings. It later became a meeting place of the King's Great Council and the Commons, predecessors of Parliament.
Built by Henry III, it was restored by Sir George Gilbert Scott in 1872, following on from his work on the new Palace of Westminster. The entrance is approached from the east cloister walk and includes a double doorway with a large tympanum above.[1]
This is a beautiful octagonal building, with a vaulted ceiling and delicate central column, it offers rarely seen examples of mediæval sculpture, an original floor of glazed tiles and spectacular wall paintings.
Inner and outer vestibules lead to the octagonal chapter house, which is of exceptional architectural purity. It is built in a Geometrical Gothic style with an octagonal crypt below. A pier of eight shafts carries the vaulted ceiling. To the sides are blind arcading, remains of 14th-century paintings and numerous stone benches above which are innovatory large four-light quatre-foiled windows.[1] These are virtually contemporary with the Sainte-Chapelle, Paris.[1]
The chapter house has an original mid-13th-century tiled pavement. A door within the vestibule dates from around 1050, which may make it the oldest door in Britain. The exterior includes flying buttresses added in the 14th century and a leaded tent-lantern roof on an iron frame designed by Scott. The Chapter house was originally used in the 13th century by Benedictine monks for daily meetings. It later became a meeting place of the King's Great Council and the Commons, predecessors of Parliament.
The Pyx Chamber
The Pyx Chamber lies beneath the main chamber of the chapter house: it was the undercroft of the monks' dormitory.
The chamber dates to the late 11th century and was used as a monastic and royal treasury. The outer walls and circular piers are of 11th-century date, several of the capitals were enriched in the 12th century and the stone altar added in the 13th century.
The Pyx Chamber today retains a mediæval tiled floor and even a 13th-century stone altar, which survived the Reformation.
The term name pyx refers to the boxwood chest in which coins were held and presented to a jury during the Trial of the Pyx, in which newly minted coins were presented to ensure they conformed to the required standards.
Today
The chapter house and Pyx Chamber at Westminster Abbey are in the guardianship of English Heritage, but under the care and management of the Dean and Chapter of Westminster.
English Heritage have funded a major programme of work on the chapter house, comprising repairs to the roof, gutters, stonework on the elevations and flying buttresses as well as repairs to the lead light.
Outside links
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("Wikimedia Commons" has material about Chapter House of Westminster Abbey) |
- Chapter House and Pyx Chamber – English Heritage
