Whether the Norman nave had only been projected, but never completed—only the west wall with its doorway and windows and the south doorway being erected—or whether the nave had been finished and afterwards destroyed, it is impossible to say. It is, however, evident that the Norman work in the choir and in the western and south doorways must have preceded the Transition work in the choir and nave by a considerable amount of time. The styles in both cases are quite distinct, and there is evidently a considerable hiatus between them. They do not follow one another by gradual development.
The nave is 129 feet in length and 27½ feet in breadth in the central aisle, and measures about 57 feet in width internally over the aisles.
It is divided into nine bays, each of which ([Fig. 368]) comprises a main arch resting on clustered piers, a triforium with one round arch containing two pointed arches, and a clerestory forming a continuous arcade, with four pointed arches in each bay. The main clustered piers contain ([Fig. 369]) four principal shafts at the angles and four intermediate shafts between them. The former are brought to a point on the face, the latter are flatter. The caps are simple and of an ordinary transitional
Fig. 367.—Jedburgh Abbey. South Side of Choir and Crossing.
Fig. 368.—Jedburgh Abbey. The Nave, looking West.