By C. H. Talbot. 



17 



Close to this doorway, and at the east end of the south walk of 

 the cloister, we found a large Early English doorway, which formed 

 the entrance to the staircase 1 to the dormitory. It opens into a 

 little groined vestibule, from which the stairs started. The greater 

 part of the staircase was built up solid in the sixteenth century, but, 

 as that filling has since been disturbed, 2 some of the steps may be 

 seen, and one of the original steps under the doorway remains, worn 

 down by the feet of the nuns. It would appear that, originally, there 

 was no direct communication from the dormitory staircase to the 

 Church. It was necessary to pass through the cloister, but, at a 

 later date, probably in the fifteenth century, a passage was made 

 through from the vestibule of the staircase to the Church. That 

 alteration appears to have been the cause of a settlement, which has 

 got worse of late years, and we have therefore built the passage up 

 solid, for security. It had no architectural character, and was not 

 of exceptional interest. 



We have found a two-light window, which lit the staircase from 

 the cloister, originally Early English and shafted internally, but, 

 on account of its rising too high for the second cloister, converted 

 into Perpendicular externally. 



The great arch of the Early English lavatory, in the north walk 

 of the cloister, I discovered, many years ago, being led to examine 

 that part of the wall on account of the occurrence there of a corbel 

 instead of a vaulting shaft. I then supposed that the builders of 

 the Perpendicular cloister had entirely walled up the recessed 

 lavatory, and substituted a projecting one. It was, however, 

 suggested to me, lately, that such would not be the case, but that 

 there would still be a recessed lavatory in the fifteenth century. A 

 partial unblocking of the work last year (1894) confirmed that 

 view. The lavatory was re-modelled in the fifteenth century, and 



1 I anticipated {Wilts Arch. Mag., vol. xii., p. 224) that the staircase would 

 be found in that situation. 



2 Probably in 1828, when access was obtained by a square-headed doorway, of 

 which a small portion is still visible, from the site of the Abbey Church. The 

 doorway has a rebate on that side, but there was a door on the other side with 

 a bar to it, and the socket for receiving the bar was sheathed with wood. 



VOL. XXIX. — NO. LXXXVI. C 



