Entrance to the chapel, Tor Abbey ([1830?])

Blewitt, Octavian. The Panorama of Torquay, a Descriptive and Historical Sketch of the District Between the Dart and Teign.. London: Simpkin and Marshall. Torquay: Cockrem, 1832. pp. 214-215 We have much pleasure in presenting the reader with two Plates [sc3343 and sc3344] illustrative of these Ruins, which have been incorrectly lettered by the Artist 'ruins of the Chapel.' The handsome massive doorway, with its semicircular arches formed the entrance to the Chapter-house. These arches are richly worked, the shafts of the Purbeck columns are full of animal remains; and many capitals of different pillars are seen in different parts of the ruins. […]. The lower steps of the Tower still remain, and a fine vest of ivy spreads itself over the walls. The refectory was converted into a handsome chapel by George Cary, Esq. the imposing appearance of the massive masonry, particularly of the arch of the Abbey-Church must strike the attention of every beholder. It is pleasing to see even these scanty ruins regarded with such religious reverence, and we trust that they are forever safe from the improving hands of modern desolation. […] Within two years, a fresh piece of ground, attached to the gardens and adjoining the ruins, has been opened. It was evidently a part of the burial-place; for immense quantities of human bones and almost perfect skeletons have been exposed. Many of them are in an excellent state of preservation; particularly the teeth, which are also beautifully white and regular. The ordinary habits of life in these establishments will perhaps account for this fact, and the sense of taste in those days was not so vitiated by the sweets of the West as that of modern times. It is not unworthy of remark that almost all these relics indicate considerable size and power. No coins, we believe, have ever been found here.[Text may be taken from a different source or edition than that listed as the source by Somers Cocks.]

Lithograph

78x107mm