Cosmati Pavement

Four sites related to royal coronations in London – 3. Westminster Abbey…

by exploringlondon

Westminster Abbey has been centre-stage at coronations since at least the Norman Conquest.

William the Conqueror set the precedent for coronations at the abbey when he decided not to get crowned at Winchester Cathedral (where Edward the Confessor had been crowned) and instead chose to be crowned at the minster built by Edward the Confessor (there is some suggestion King Harold Godwinson, the last Saxon King, was crowned at Westminster Abbey before the Conquest but no documentary evidence exists for this).

William the Conqueror’s coronation was held on Christmas Day, 1066, and since then some 39 coronations have been carried out (King Charles III’s will be the 40th).

A view of the pulpit and to the right the Cosmati Pavement and behind it the High Altar inside Westminster Abbey. PICTURE: PJ photography/Shutterstock

Arrangements for the coronation ceremony are the responsibility of the Earl Marshal and the coronation committee but the abbey’s dean acts as a liaison with the sovereign and assists the Archbishop of Canterbury who is usually the bishop who crowns the monarch.

Since the late 14th century, the service has largely followed that laid down in the Liber Regalis (Royal Book), an illuminated manuscript created in around 1390.

Since 1308, the heart of the coronation service has taken place on the Cosmati Pavement, located just before the High Altar, in what is known as the “Coronation Theatre”.

Having processed into the abbey and been acclaimed or “recognised” as sovereign by those present, the monarch then makes promises to God and the people they rule in what is known as the Oath, before being presented with a Bible.

Then, seated in the Coronation Chair, the monarch is anointed with holy oil while a canopy is held over them to shield this most sacred part of the ceremony from the eyes of those gathered.

Still seated, the monarch is then invested with the coronation regalia, including the Sovereign’s Ring, the Sovereign’s Orb, the Sceptre with Cross and the Sceptre with Dove, before St Edward’s Crown is brought from the altar and placed on the monarch’s head (it’s only since that coronation of King James I in 1603 that both the anointing and the crowning are carried out while the monarch is seated on the Coronation Chair – before that, the chair was used for only one aspect of the ceremony).

The monarch then moves to a throne and receives the homage of the royal princes and senior peers. It’s at this point that the coronation of a Queen Consort typically takes place in a simpler form of the ceremony.

The monarch then retires into St Edward’s Chapel where they dress on a purple robe known as the Imperial State Robe or Robe of Estate as well as the Imperial State Crown before processing back out through the abbey.

Other elements of the coronation include music which since the Coronation of King George II has included the George Fredric Handel anthem, Zadok the Priest. The introit I was glad has been sung at every coronation since that of King Charles I in February, 1626.

The abbey is currently closed in preparation for the Coronation of King Charles III. It reopens on Monday, 8th May. The Coronation Theatre will remain in place for visitors to see until 13th May.

WHERE: Westminster Abbey, Westminster (nearest Tube station is Westminster or St James’s Park); WHEN: Open to tourists everyday except Sunday  (times vary so check the website); COST: £27 an adult/£24 for seniors (65+)/£12 a child (6-17 years); WEBSITE: www.westminster-abbey.org.

A foody feast at Kew; the Queen goes to Westminster; Morecambe & Wise remembered; and, Francis Goodman on show…

by exploringlondon

Bompas-&-Parr-with-pineapples• Kew Gardens is all about food this summer and autumn with the launch of IncrEdibles: A Festival to Feed the Imagination this Sunday. Visitors are being encouraged to take part in a range of food-related activities including taking a fruit-shaped boat on the Palm House Pond around a floating pineapple island (the Tutti Frutti Boating Lake has been designed by “culinary creators” Bompas & Parr – pictured right), checking out a ‘global gastronomic garden’ featuring more than 90 edible plants on the Great Lawn, and listening to volunteer guides in the Palm House discussing how many of our foods have their origins in the rainforest. The festival also features a range of talks, tours and tastings and you can sample some special foods at the onsite eateries. The festival runs until 3rd November. For more, see www.kew.org. PICTURE: Bompas & Parr

• A portrait of Queen Elizabeth II standing on the Cosmati pavement in Westminster Abbey will go on public display for the first time this afternoon at the abbey as part of the celebrations surrounding the 60th anniversary of the Queen’s coronation. The Coronation Theatre: Portrait of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, is the work of Australian-born, London-based artist Ralph Heimans and has been acquired by the abbey for its collection. The painting, which was officially unveiled in London for the Diamond Jubilee last year, was exhibited at the National Portrait Gallery in Canberra until the end of March. The painting can be viewed in the chapter house at the abbey from 2pm today and will remain on display until 27th September. For more, see www.westminster-abbey.org.

• A blue plaque commemorating late comic duo Eric Morecambe and Ernie Wise has been unveiled at the Teddington Studios in west London. The Heritage Foundation plaque was reportedly unveiled by Morecambe’s widow Joan and daughter Gail. Teddington’s Studio One was where the last four series of the duo’s show were produced.

• On Now: Francis Goodman: Back in Focus. This display at the National Portrait Gallery features more than 40 black and white photographs spanning the career of fashion and society photographer Francis Goodman (1913-1989), from the 1930s to the 1970s and includes portraits of the likes of artists Francis Bacon and Lucian Freud as well as writers including Noel Coward and Nancy Mitford. The exhibition runs until 3rd November. Admission is free. For more, see www.npg.org.uk.

Treasures of London – The Cosmati Pavement

by exploringlondon

Hidden underneath carpet and a layer of grime for years, this unique medieval “carpet of stone” before the High Altar of Westminster Abbey can now be seen in all its glory, thanks to two years of restoration works.

Laid down in 1268 on the orders of King Henry III who, 23 years earlier had started rebuilding the abbey in the new Gothic style, it was created by a team of workmen from Rome headed by a man called Odoricus.

The decision to create the pavement was apparently taken after the Abbot of Westminster, Richard de Ware, visited the Pope, saw a newly made pavement in His Holiness’ summer residence, and thought it would be just the ticket for the abbey.

The pavement, described by one writer as a “prayer set in stone”, takes its name from ‘Cosmati’ work which describes the type of inlaid stone decoration used in its making (Cosmati work, in turn, was named after one of the families that specialised in it).

Made from rare marbles, gemstones and even glass (with some pieces recycled from earlier projects), the design is abstract. Unlike Roman and earlier medieval mosaic work which tended to feature stones cut into squares of equal sizes, it features stones of various colors and sizes cut into a range of different shapes which create a geometric pattern and is believed to symbolise the world, the universe and the end of both.

In this regard, the pavement also features three brass inscriptions, now damaged, which refer to the end of the world and suggest that at the time of its creation, there were 19,683 years left to go. The inscriptions, which also express the date of its making in a most unusual style, are a unique feature of the pavement and are not found on other Cosmati works.

The pavement has recently undergone a two year restoration program, now completed, which has removed the dirt and stains which had covered it – this was in part caused by the thick carpets which have covered it for the most of the 150 years.

WHERE: Westminster Abbey, Westminster (nearest Tube station is Westminster or St James’s Park); WHEN: Open to tourists everyday except Sunday  (times vary so check the website); COST: £15 an adult/£12 concessions/£6 schoolchildren (11-18 years), free for children aged under 11/£36 for a family (two adults, two children); WEBSITE: www.westminster-abbey.org

PICTURE: Copyright: Dean and Chapter of Westminster.