Carved Pinnacle

Stock No 2335 

An English late Medieval style piece of fixed woodwork, reputed to have been part of the Bishop’s Throne at Gloucester Cathedral.  It is of tri-form construction with outer crocketed beams, within which are the remains of fine probably 16th Century pierced tracery panels.  The front element of the tracery has been cusped on both sides whereas the two sections that would have backed onto the wall have front cusping only.   The quality of carving to the crocketing of the leading edge beam is also worthy of note insomuch as it is of significantly higher quality, and deeply undercut, compared to the two side beams which would have been to the rear.  This is demonstrated by the deep under-cutting of the crockets, and by the higher relief carving of the foliate elements.  There are significant traces of gilding and brown paint, which are probably 18th Century which is also most likely to be the period when this was put in as a replacement for a predecessor section.  The base and top Finial are later to preserve the stability of these rare fragments. 

Provenance: The Choir stalls at the Cathedral were installed between 1360 and 1370, and were then restored in 1873 by Scott, when the Bishop’s Throne was removed.  The woodwork taken out during this restoration, including this Pinnacle, was then stored for over a Century in the Tribune Gallery Chapel until the Cathedral eventually put it into Auction.

Dimensions:  Height 162 centimetres, Maximum width 79 centimetres

Price: £3950