There was a lot to delight and excite me about Christchurch Priory (I don’t get out much) and so my two loyal blog readers can look forward to a heap more posts.
Anyway, this is a beautiful Norman arch which was built in around 1140 and served as the Prior’s entrance to the church.
It’s really not in bad shape, but it was sealed in 1539 following the Dissolution of the Monasteries. The cloisters came down and this door into the Priory wasn’t needed and it remained sealed until 1981. The general wear and pollution to the stonework shows that this door was subject to the elements for some centuries, but it is now protected.
The lighting was more challenging to get a photo in this direction, but this is standing inside the church looking out to the new extension. I can’t find anything online about the project to reopen this door in the 1980s, but it seems like a marvellous undertaking.