The Choir and Presbytery differ in no way from the architecture of the nave. The east end is beautifully designed. At the base of the reredos are three arches, and above five arches, with cinquefoil headings, and above these a triplet window. The roof is painted with an interesting series of designs, which are modern reproductions of thirteenth-century work. First there are series of Old Testament saints, the Forerunner of our Lord being ranked with the prophets. Then come the Apostles, with the figures of our Lord and the Evangelists; and further east are representations of the months, which are curious and interesting. January is represented by a man warming his hands; February, a man drinking wine; March, digging; April, sowing; May, hawking; June, flowers; July, reaping; August, threshing; September, gathering fruit; October, brewing; November, timber-felling; December, killing a pig.
The Choir Stalls are a patchwork composition. There is some old Perpendicular work; some of the work is by Wren. Happily Wyatt's productions have been removed. The reredos is modern, is a very elaborate piece of work. All the other fittings of the choir are new. In the choir are the chantries of Bishop Audley (1524), a fine piece of Late Perpendicular work, which has a fan-vault and some traces of colour, and of Walter, Lord Hungerford (1429), removed here from the nave, and made into a family pew by Lord Radnor. The iron-work is good, and such chapels are rare, the Chantry of Edward IV. at Windsor being the finest of its kind.
In the North Choir Aisle and Transept there are two monuments of the memento mori type, the large tomb of a thirteenth-century bishop, either Bingham or Scammel, Bishop Wyvill (1375), Gheast (1576), and Jewell (1571), and the curious brass of Bishop Wyvill, who recovered for the see Sherborne Castle and the Bere Chase, seized by Stephen, and granted by Edward III. to the Earl of Salisbury. To decide the right the wager of battle was resorted to, and both bishop and earl chose a champion. The king, however, caused the matter to be settled amicably. The bishop is here shown in his castle, praying for his champion, and below are the hares and rabbits representing the chase. In this north-east transept is a fine Early Perpendicular lavatory, which is evidently not in its original position, part of an Early English screen, removed by Wyatt, and a curious aumbrey. In the aisle toward the east we see an effigy, said to be that of Bishop Poore, the founder of the Cathedral, and at the east end is the monument of Sir Thomas Gorges and his lady, who was a maid of honour to Queen Elizabeth. It is a cumbrous piece of work.
The Retro-Choir or processional path has beautiful clustered shafts and fine vault, and forms a graceful entrance to the Lady Chapel, a most perfect piece of Early English building, and the oldest part of the church. At the east end is a triple lancet, with another lancet on each side, filled with modern glass. There is a new altar here, and modern colouring adorns the walls and ceiling. The canopies of the niches under the windows on the north and south were brought here from the Beauchamp Chapel destroyed by Wyatt. Here in former days stood the shrine of St. Osmund, the second Norman bishop, the saintly man to whom the diocese and the English Church owe much. His tomb remains here, but his shrine was plundered and destroyed at the Reformation. At the east end of the south choir aisle is the stately tomb of the unhappy Earl of Hertford (1621), who married Catherine, the sister of Lady Jane Grey, and thus incurred Queen Elizabeth's resentment, and was imprisoned. The poor lady, when released from the Tower, was separated from her husband, and died of grief. He survived her sixty years. Near here are the modern tombs of Bishops Moberly and Hamilton, and the Perpendicular tomb of William Wilton, Chancellor of Sarum (1506-1523). The old sacristy, now the vestry, is on the south of this transept; above this is the muniment room, the ancient treasury. In the transept is the remarkable monument of Bishop Giles de Bridport (1262), under whose rule the church was finished. It is the most interesting tomb in the church. The carvings in the spandrels record the chief events in the bishop's life—his birth, confirmation, education, and possibly his first preferment, his homage, a procession (probably referring to the dedication of this church), his death, and the presentation of his soul for judgment. Here are monuments also of Canon Bowles (1850); Bishop Burgess (1837); Bishop Seth Ward (1689), Hooker, the famous divine; Young, the father of the poet; Isaak Walton, the son of the angler; Bishop Davenant (1641); Mrs. Wordsworth, the wife of the bishop; and a brass to Canon Liddon's memory. Further on are the monuments of Bishop Salcot (1557), and Sir Richard Mompesson and his wife (1627). Notice the inverted strengthening arches in both choir transepts.
Passing through the south transept we enter the Cloisters, which are considered to be "among the finest in England," and without doubt they can lay claim to be a great and beautiful architectural triumph. They are a little later than the Cathedral, having been begun directly after its completion, and finished during the rule of Bishop Wyvill, about 1340. The windows are finely constructed, and consist of double-arched openings, each arch having two sub-arches, while in the head is a large six-foiled opening. On the wall side is a blind arcade of graceful arches. An unfortunate restoration in 1854 did not improve the appearance of the cloisters. On the north side, between the cloister and the church, is the plumbery. The monuments here do not possess much interest. The Library, over part of the east walk, was built by Bishop Jewell, and contains about 5000 volumes, and a valuable collection of MSS. One of the most interesting is a Gallican version of the Psalter (969 A.D.), Geoffrey of Monmouth's Chronicles (twelfth century), a copy of Magna Charter (now in muniment room), and many others of much value and importance. The Chapter-House was built early in the reign of Edward I. It is a noble octagonal building, and can scarcely be surpassed by any other. The roof is modern. There is a central pillar, from which the vaulting springs. On each side there is a large window, resembling in tracery those in the cloisters. Below the windows is an arcade, and beneath this a stone bench, and at the east end a raised seat for the bishop and his officials. There is a remarkable series of sculptures above the arcade, which are extremely interesting and merit close study. The following are the subjects represented:—
| West Bay | 33. | The Angel touching Jacob's Thigh. | |
| 1. | Description of Chaos. | 34. | Meeting of Jacob and Esau. |
| 2. | Creation of the Firmament. | ||
| South-East Bay | |||
| North-West Bay | |||
| 35. | Joseph's Dream. | ||
| 3. | Creation of the Earth. | 36. | Joseph relating his Dream. |
| 4. | Creation of the Sun and Moon. | 37. | Joseph being placed in a Well. |
| 5. | Creation of the Birds and Fishes. | 38. | Joseph sold into Egypt. |
| 6. | Creation of Adam and Eve. | 39. | Joseph's Coat brought to Jacob. |
| 7. | The Sabbath. | 40. | Joseph brought to Potiphar. |
| 8. | The Institution of Marriage. | 41. | Joseph tempted by Potiphar's Wife. |
| 9. | The Temptation. | 42. | Joseph accused before Potiphar. |
| 10. | The Hiding in the Garden. | ||
| North Bay | South Bay | ||
| 11. | The Expulsion. | 43. | Joseph placed in Prison. |
| 12. | Adam tilling the Ground. | 44. | The fate of Pharaoh's Baker and |
| 13. | Cain and Abel's Offering. | Butler. | |
| 14. | Murder of Abel. | 45. | Pharaoh's Dream. |
| 15. | God sentencing Cain. | 46. | Pharaoh's Perplexity. |
| 16. | God commanding Noah to build | 47. | Joseph taken from Prison, and |
| the Ark. | interpreting the Dream. | ||
| 17. | The Ark. | 48. | Joseph ruling in Egypt. |
| 18. | Noah's Vineyard. | 49. | The Brethren journeying into |
| Egypt. | |||
| North-East Bay | 50. | The Cup placed in Benjamin's | |
| Sack. | |||
| 19. | The Drunkenness of Noah. | ||
| 20. | Building of the Tower of Babel. | ||
| 21. | The Angels appearing to Abraham. | South-West Bay | |
| 22. | Abraham entertaining Angels. | ||
| 23. | Destruction of Sodom and | 51. | The Discovery of the Cup. |
| Gomorrah. | 52. | The Brethren pleading before Joseph. | |
| 24. | The Escape of Lot. | 53. | Jacob and Family journeying to |
| 25. | Abraham and Isaac journeying to | Egypt. | |
| the Mount. | 54. | The Brethren pleading before | |
| 26. | The Sacrifice of Isaac. | Joseph after the Death of Jacob. | |
| East Bay | 55. | Joseph assuring his Brethren of | |
| his Protection. | |||
| 27. | Isaac blessing Jacob. | 56. | Moses in the Presence of God. |
| 28. | Blessing of Esau. | 57. | The Passage of the Red Sea. |
| 29. | Rebecca sending Jacob to | 58. | Destruction of the Egyptians. |
| Padanaram. | |||
| 30. | Meeting of Jacob and Rachel. | ||
| 31. | Rachel introducing Jacob to Laban. | West Bay | |
| 32. | Jacob wrestling with the Angel, | 59. | Moses striking the Rock. |
| and Jacob's Dream. | 60. | The Declaring of the Law. |
In the vestibule the doorway is remarkable for its great beauty. In the voussoirs of the arch is another series of sculptures representing moralities, the triumph of virtue over vice. We see Concordia trampling on Discordia, Temperantia pouring liquor down the throat of Drunkenness, Bravery trampling on Cowardice, Faith on Infidelity, Virtue covering Vice with a cloak, while Vice embraces her knee with one hand and stabs her with the other. Truth pulls out the tongue of Falsehood, Modesty scourges Lust, and Charity pours coin into the throat of Avarice. These sculptures are of the very highest class of art, and are among the most interesting remains of Early Gothic carving in the world. All the glass in the chapter-house is modern, and also the tiling. A fine old specimen of fourteenth-century furniture is seen in the ancient table preserved here.
Dimensions
| Total length | 473 ft. |
| Length of nave | 229 ft. |
| Width | 82 ft. |
| Height | 84 ft. |
| Height of spire | 404 ft. |
Principal Building Dates