Wills Walkers: Rest Day in Hereford

How wonderful to wake up this morning and not have to put on those muddy boots and gaiters. My toes are really happy. Breakfast was leisurely and I have to report that Graham is a failure when it comes to resisting temptation. He had resolved, before beginning our walk, that he wasn't going to eat a cooked breakfast every morning. So far he is nine out of nine cooked breakfasts! Hereford is a lovely town filled with history, quaint buildings,

typical streets and laneways wandering in different directions, several little town squares dotted around and of course Hereford Cathedral. A most impressive structure with lovely gardens tucked in around every corner of the building.

Inside we saw three ladies arranging flowers.

I counted seven large urns but kept seeing more, even a huge one sitting outside the main entrance. In one of the garden areas I was talking to an older lady who was pruning some tulips. She told me she works with 11 others every Friday keeping the gardens neat and then at 11 o'clock they meet for coffee. She said 'We love it'. I asked her if it was the fellowship of working together that she loved and she said 'Most definitely!' Allan was talking to another volunteer who told him that The Cathedral has over 400 volunteers. Hereford Cathedral houses two very famous treasures. The Chained Library has over 1000 early printed books. 227 books are hand written. Each book is chained to the bookshelves, which were first made in 1611.

A whole section is filled with very old bibles. Wycliffe's original translation is there.

None of these books are allowed to be opened. We had to be content with photographs of their interiors. Most of the books were large and thick because what they are written on is either cow hine or hand made paper which was much thicker than modern day paper. Also printing machines weren't common, probably not even invented. This library was absolutely interesting with a very well informed volunteer eager to show us everything.

The Mappa Mundi is the largest surviving medieval world map which has Jerusalem at the centre of the world. First photo is the original map, which is in amazing condition.

There is speculation that the map was made in Hereford, even if it wasn't Hereford it was certainly made somewhere in England. Joseph's barns (the pyramids where he stored the grain) are drawn as English barns. An interesting little detail. Our guide had so many stories. One of the deans of Hereford Cathedral found the map hanging in the Cathedral many years ago and wondered what it was and if it was worth anything so he took it down out of the frame it was stored in and had it appraised by Christies, the auctioneers. Christies told the dean that the map was priceless, exceptionally rare and that it needed preserving. The national trust helped by building a tower to store it in and now the church cares for this precious ancient map that tells a great story of the world all those years ago. This is the frame it was kept in