My favourite part of the cathedral is the quire where the fifteenth century choir stalls are housed. The carvings range from an owl to a green man. The owl is the emblem of the Savile family and it was placed here when Thomas Savile commissioned the stalls in celebration of his marriage to Margaret Bosworth in 1482. The green man is more problematic. The motif first appeared in England in the twelfth century in the form we recognise him today with foliage and tendrils of hawthorn or oak sprouting from his mouth. However, it was a common motif in Europe before this period and has its roots in a pagan past. It was replicated down the centuries and as well as the medieval example there are some clean cut Victorian interpretations on display. Other carvings on the misericords – the hinged seats on the stalls to ease tired legs during long church services – include a Victorian pelican which symbolises charity and a cheeky medieval acrobat showing us his bottom although decorum is maintained as a leaf covers his dignity.
It’s odd to think that many of these carvings were made at a time when England was in the throes of a bloody civil war. Perhaps it was with some relief that the craftsman who created the misericord depicting the tudor rose completed his work.