East Alley.—On the right-hand side in this walk will be noticed a new door. This was inserted in 1874 in the wall in the same position as the former door into the monks' locutorium or parlour. The original wide opening of the doorway may be seen under the moulding of the panelling on the wall.
The passage to which the glazed door gives access "is chiefly of early Norman date, and was originally of the same length as the width of the transept against which it is built. It was entered from the cloister by a wide arch, and has a wall arcade on each side of fifteen arches on the north, but only eleven on the south, the space between the transept pilaster-buttresses admitting no more than that number. The roof is a perfectly plain barrel vault without ribs. In the south-west corner is a hollowed bracket, or cresset stone as it was called, in which a wick floating in tallow was kept to light the passage."
"It having become necessary in the fourteenth century to enlarge the vestry and library over the passage, its east end was taken down and the passage extended to double its former length. At the same time a vice, or circular stair, was built at the N.E. angle to give access to the library. To prevent, however, the new stair from encroaching too much on the apse of the chapter-house, the addition to the passage was deflected a little to the south instead of being carried on in a straight line. The vault of the added part is a simple barrel like the Early Norman work. The use of this passage was twofold. First, it was the place where talking was allowed at such times as it was forbidden in the cloister. Hence its name of locutorium, or, in English, the parlour. Secondly, it was the way for the monks to go to their cemetery. When the present cloister was built the original use of the parlour seems to have passed away, and in the new works the arch of entrance was blocked up and covered by the new panelling. Since this also cut off all access from the cloister to the library stair, a new stair was built at the west end directly accessible from the cloister. For want of room this had to be intruded into the south-west corner of the chapter-house." (Hope.)
Above the passage are two floors, one being the vestry, entered from the north-east chapel of the choir, and the upper one, the library, now restored to its original monastic use after many vicissitudes.
This east alley "was used as a passage between the church and the farmery, and the later Abbot's lodging; out of it also opened the parlour, chapter-house, and dorter door." (Hope.)
"In the third bay from the church the southern half is pierced with a door below the transom. On the cloister side of the southern half of the second bay, and of the northern half of the fourth bay, there was, in each case, built out a little cupboard or closet, now destroyed. These may have been used for keeping books in. This alley has no bench against the walls." (Hope.)
Opposite the fifth bay in this alley is the doorway, containing some good Norman work, slightly restored, leading into the chapter-house.
"The construction of the outer walls of the east walk is peculiar as to the arrangement of the buttresses and the projecting shelf of stone connected with the transoms of the windows, which was evidently meant as a protection from the weather for the lower half of the windows, at that time not glazed." (F. S. W.)
The first window in this east alley or walk, beginning at the south corner, nearest to the door into the north aisle, is one of four lights, by Hardman, to the memory of Rev. H. Burrup, a missionary, who died in Africa in 1862.
The second window (also by Hardman) is a memorial to Rev. John Plumptre, who was Dean from 1808-1825.