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For some great Christmas gift ideas, visit the shop at Lincoln Cathedral.
We have sold over 17,000 Christmas Cards this year. The photograph was taken and kindly donated by Dave Walster. If you have a wintry photograph of the Cathedral why not get in touch and who knows; this time next year it could be your image on our Christmas Card.
The Cathedral library is very much a living library with people coming from all over the world to study the books and manuscripts.
The 260 medieval manuscripts range in date from the tenth to the early sixteenth century and include bibles, prayer books, commentaries on the psalms and one of the few remaining manuscript copies of Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales.
The Library has around 10,000 rare books printed before 1801. The wide range of subjects covered by these books includes history, geography, science, nature, travel, literature and medicine as well as theology.
You can ‘Adopt a Book’ starting from £25 (dated 1700-1799). To find out more please telephone 01522 561614.
The Dean’s Eye rose window, situated in the North Transept, dates back to 1220 and is one of the most important examples of medieval stained glass in Europe.
In 1980, a 16-year restoration programme was started to strengthen and repair the beautiful window. All of the work was carried out in the Cathedral Works Department by our team of experienced stained glass conservators.
Around 70% of the stained glass is still original. Come and see this fine spectacle in all its glory!
The Dean’s Eye window is high enough to fit a double decker bus through it – obviously that is not something we’d like to test!
Most of the stone for the Cathedral comes from our very own quarry, within the city boundary.
Stone which is not suitable for use around the Cathedral is offered for sale. Lincoln Cathedral Quarry Ltd can supply you with Lincoln Limestone for: walling, rockeries, landscaping stones and flooring. Stone off-cuts are also available.
All profits from the company are given back to the Cathedral to help cover the cost of repairs.
Famous across the world, Lincoln’s Imp sits high on a pillar in the Angel Choir watching everything that happens in the Cathedral.
Tall tales surrounding the imp and how he came to occupy his perch have been told for over 600 years and a recent delivery from Australia means the story has now taken an international twist!
To see the cheeky scamp head down to the east end of the Cathedral during your visit and keep your eyes peeled!
Being entertained at Lincoln Cathedral is a unique and lasting experience.
Through the Corporate Membership Scheme you are provided with a range of entertaining, hospitality, sponsorship and acknowledged benefits, tailor-made to suit your organisation, business or client base.
Lincoln Cathedral has been used as a film set for a number of films including: The Da Vinci Code and Young Victoria. Closer to home and more recently, television programmes: Antiques Roadshow, Climbing Great Buildings and Country Tracks have also been recorded here.
We’d like to apologise that this advent calendar doesn’t contain any chocolate! We do, however, have a wide selection of chocolate and other tasty treats on sale in the Cathedral Shop.
Treat yourself to a little tipple this Christmas… we have a new range of local liqueurs including: Raspberry Vodka, Lemon Gin, Caribbean Bounty and a selection of specialist Lincoln Cathedral wines.
Home to the largest number of RAF stations of any English county during World War Two, and with strong ties to the early days of military aviation, Lincolnshire has long been known as the 'Home of the Royal Air Force'.
You may be surprised to find that some very close links also exist between the RAF and Lincoln Cathedral itself, from the Airmen's Chapel and Bomber Command Memorial to some more personal ties. A beacon to local fliers for almost a century, its towers rising proud above the fog, Lincoln Cathedral has both spiritual and practical links to the Lincolnshire military flying community.
More information can be found in the book ‘A Journey from past to Present’ available from the Cathedral Shop.
During this busy time of year take a moment to stop and think. Light a candle, say a prayer or simply allow yourself 5 minutes to think about what Christmas means to you.
It is sometimes hard to remember what Christmas is about: a baby, born two thousand years ago in a non-descript sort of place who changed the course of history, and still does. The question we have put on the home page of our website, 'Who is this Jesus we keep talking about?', is as relevant now as it was then.
Tonight the Nave of Lincoln Cathedral will be lit by candles, as over 1000 people enjoy a concert of carols sung by the Cathedral Choir. The concert includes well known and favourite Christmas carols (and audience participation is encouraged!).
This event is now sold out. But worry not; you can enjoy the music on a Christmas CD, recorded for The Association of Friends at last year’s concert. On sale in the Cathedral shop for £12.50 it has 73 minutes worth of Christmas carols for you to sing-along to.
Proceeds are split between The Friends of Lincoln Cathedral and the Lincoln Cathedral Music Appeal.
The Lincoln Christmas Market started in 1982 with 11 stalls. Today there are over 250 stalls; we are expecting upwards of 150,000 people and some 600 coaches visiting the market over the four days.
Lincoln Cathedral will be open throughout for visitors to enjoy carol concerts, mulled wine, mince pies, craft stalls and demonstrations and much, much, more.
Photo courtesy of Dick MakinLast year Lincoln Cathedral launched its Turrets Restoration Campaign. Now in its second year the campaign is hotting up in its quest to raise £2.5 million over 5 years for the restoration of the two West Front turrets.
Atop the Cathedral's North West turret stands a statue of the Swineherd of Stow. A pious but poor man, the Swineherd gave his only savings to Hugh of Avalon who was rebuilding the Cathedral in the late 12th century.
Music & lyric by Tom Lane, sung by Anne IrvingReady Steady Choir was formed in 2004 jointly by Lincoln Minister School and Lincoln Cathedral for children from any school who enjoy singing and are aged 5 to 13.
Sponsored through the government's outreach scheme, Ready Steady Choir! Sings each year at the Christmas Market. Come along and listen to them performing today at 11.30am.
Today, just as it would have been hundreds of years ago, Lincoln Cathedral is used very much as a community venue. With a seating capacity of 2,000 in the Nave, it is one of the largest venues in Lincolnshire.
This year there have been in the region of 200 events, including: 48 services, 40 concerts, 15 weddings, 13 graduations, numerous baptisms, 11 dinners, 10 exhibitions, lots of bell ringing, 8 lectures, 4 prize giving ceremonies and a whole host of other events as well.
Massive oak reading desks; part of a 15th century chained library and a stunning book-lined gallery created by Sir Christopher Wren – this is the fascinating world that awaits you at the top of the Library stairs.
This year the Library was visited by over 10,000 people, including readers, researchers, school children, local history groups and members of the general public.
The Library is open to readers on Mondays and Tuesdays (10am – 12.30pm and 2 – 4pm) and to the public throughout the year for tours by appointment. It’s well worth a visit!
We don’t need Christmas trees, but we do need OAK trees.
Lincoln Cathedral’s massive roof structure is built around a timber skeleton, which sustains the weight of the Cathedral’s impossibly heavy lead roof. The oldest beams still in the building were 400 years old when they were felled and installed in the 12th century.
Lincoln Cathedral couldn’t function without the support of over 500 volunteers. There is hardly any aspect of what we do that is not done at least in part by people who give their time and skill for no payment in money.
There is whole range of volunteer roles and with them comes a wonderful sense of companionship and community.
So, what can you do and what is the first step? Some of the main areas of volunteering include: Stewards, Servers, Guides, Library, Needlework, Bell ringer, Vergers’ Assistants, Welcomers, Shop.
With a rich and prominent musical tradition spanning nearly a thousand years, Lincoln Cathedral is a magnificent home for world class music. The Cathedral Choir is made up of fifty-two voices: twenty boys, twenty girls and a back row of twelve adults (called lay vicars and choral scholars at Lincoln).
The choir demands a very high level of commitment from all concerned, especially the children, their parents and instructors. There are eight choral services each week (including Choral Evensong) on top of various rehearsals, performances and concerts both within the Cathedral and beyond. To support the high quality choral tradition for which Lincoln Cathedral is famous, we need to meet annual running costs of £350,000.
700 years ago today Lincoln Cathedral surpassed the height of the Great Pyramid of Giza, and became the tallest building in the world.
It stood some 524ft high, until the collapse of the central spire during a storm in 1549. Today the Cathedral stands at a much more modest height of 272ft!
In the winter we open at 7.15 am and close at 6.00pm. Everyone is free to enter and gaze at the glory of the nave; you can sit in the peace of the Morning Chapel or visit the shop. If you want to explore further, we do ask you to pay.
Adults £6, Concessions £4.75, Children £1 and Lincoln students are FREE. (If you Gift Aid your payment, this then entitles you to entry with no further payment for 12 months).
Why do we ask you to pay? Well, we’d be happier if we didn’t have to. The truth is that the very beauty of this place has a cost attached. The money you pay helps us to meet our annual running costs of £3 million and we are very grateful for it. Most of our spending is on the building and the wages of our crafts men and women, including apprentices and those learning traditional craft skills. We look forward to welcoming you.
As I walk through our magnificent Cathedral I marvel at the sight of its architecture, feel uplifted by the beautiful music which fills its space, and I am grateful that this holy place is accessible to all who come here. On this most holy festival, I would like to take the opportunity to wish you, your family, friends and neighbours a very Happy Christmas and peaceful New Year.
By giving to the Cathedral, whether time, money or even a ‘re-tweet’, you are helping to support this magnificent building and I offer you my personal thanks. In caring for Lincoln Cathedral, we are protecting and preserving it for the future.
May God bless you all with the generous love he has shown us in the birth of his Son Jesus Christ.
- The Very Revd Philip Buckler
More information about Lincoln Cathedral can be found in the book ‘A Journey from past to Present’ available from the Cathedral Shop.Lincoln is one of the few Cathedrals to have its own dedicated works team of craftsmen and women who work on the building.
They include stonemasons, plumbers, joiners, glaziers and conservators. Come and see some of these crafts demonstrated today at the Christmas Market.
To date, the Adopt a Stone appeal has raised more than £250,000 towards essential restoration work needed to maintain the Cathedral’s beautiful stonework.
You can Adopt a Stone from £25. They make an ideal Christmas present: each stone comes with an attractive certificate and an architectural drawing, showing the location of the specific stone on the Cathedral’s magnificent West Front.
