Wells Cathedral.
"Gilpin, who viewed all objects in nature and art with an eye to the
picturesque, in his " Observations on the Western Parts of England," says,
" Our approach to Wells, from the natural and incidental beauties of the
scene, was uncommonly picturesque. It was a hazy evening, and the sun
declining low was hid behind a deep purple cloud, which covered half the
hemisphere, but did not reach the western horizon: its lower skirts were gilt
with dazzling splendour, which spreading downwards, not in diverging rays,
but in one uniform ruddy glow, and uniting at the bottom with the mistiness
of the air, formed a rich yet modest tint; with which Durcote Hill, projecting
boldly on the left, the towers of Wells beyond it, and all the objects of the
distance were tinged; whilst the foreground, seen against so bright a piece
of scenery, was overspread with the darkest shades of evening. The whole
together invited the pencil without soliciting the imagination: but it was a
transitory scene. As we stood gazing on it, the sun sunk below the cloud,
and, being stripped of all its splendour by the haziness of the atmosphere,
fell like a ball of fire into the horizon; and the whole radiant vision faded
away."
Extract from "The History and antiquities of the cathedral church of Wells" (Open Library)
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