A five-pointed star under the starlit ceiling.
An unusual request from a recent visitor turned into a hunt for historic graffiti in Carlisle Cathedral, with fascinating discoveries.
Today, graffiti is a controversial topic and, yet, there is growing interest in historic graffiti scattered across the walls of churches with many county-wide surveys in action to record these markings. There are extraordinary examples in cathedrals and churches right across the UK, offering unique insights into the beliefs, work, hopes and fears of those who built, worshipped and visited these special places. It is particularly special to find historic graffiti at Carlisle Cathedral when the building has witnessed so much change during its lifetime, including the Great Fire of Carlisle of 1292, the storm of 1380 (and the collapse of the central tower), the demolition of five bays of the Nave, and major restorations in the 18th and 19th centuries.
The earliest record of carvings at Carlisle Cathedral is in 1880 when the Cathedral’s Clerk of Works recorded mason’s marks both inside and outside of the Cathedral and other precinct buildings.1
One of over 300 different types of mason’s marks recorded in 1880
Runes just inside the Cathedral entrance.
However, carvings were discovered even earlier: when plaster and paint were removed from the west wall of the south transept (just inside the Cathedral entrance) in 1855, an early 12th-century runic inscription was found. This reads: “Dolfin wrote these runes on this stone”.
A crowned female figure, undoubtedly depicting the Virgin Mary, on a pillar in the North Aisle.
The Agnus Dei, a lamb with one foreleg arched, with a cross standing behind it.
It is wonderful to discover such a wealth of early carvings have survived. Medieval examples tend, unsurprisingly, to be religious in nature with crosses, symbols and figures illustrating religious iconography. A cluster of such graffiti features on a single pillar in the South Aisle. A crowned female head undoubtedly depicts the Virgin Mary, to whom the Augustinian Priory founded by Henry I in 1122 was originally dedicated. Next to this graffito is a traditional drawing of the Agnes Dei: a lamb with one foreleg arched, with a cross standing behind it – very similar to examples from 9th-century Rome.2
Another early Christian symbol, but also perhaps a mason’s mark, is the pentagon: a five-pointed star – we rather like stars at Carlisle Cathedral, have you seen our famous starlight ceiling?
Post-Reformation carvings are extensive, with the wooden panelling of the medieval choir stalls (originally hidden inside box pews) displaying multiple motifs: names, initials, dates (the earliest is 1569) and house-shaped structures topped with a cross (a depiction of a church or a monument perhaps?). Some of these names coincide with names recorded in the registers of Carlisle Grammar School. Many also include merchants’ marks – symbols to identify a particular merchant, guild or family in the absence of a coat of arms. School boys and choristers left their mark in buildings around the precinct, including in the Prior Slee Gatehouse (now a private residence) and the Upper Library. In the 18th century, they left their mark on a medieval armoire now housed in the North Aisle, including the painter Sawrey Gilpin (1733-1807) who carved his name in 1747, the same year he set off from the city of his birth for London.
18th-century graffiti by school boys in the Upper Library.
The medieval choir stalls carved with late 16th-century graffiti.
School boys’ names carved into a medieval armoire.
The current lighting project being undertaken inside the Cathedral (to transform the final remaining halogen bulbs and transformers into LED technology by upcycling as much current infrastructure as possible) has taken contractors to hidden away spots high up inside the Cathedral in spaces not accessible to the public.3 It has been wonderful to hear about the historic graffiti they have found, including these interesting symbols. We will undoubtedly continue to find more, so watch out for the graffiti hunters and their torches the next time you visit!
Recently discovered graffiti high up in the Cathedral.
References
1. W.J. Thomas, ‘Masons’ Marks, from the Abbey, Carlisle’, Transactions of the Cumberland & Westmorland Antiquarian & Archaeological Society 5 (1881), pp. 132-35. Available online to download for free from the Archaeology Data Service at: https://doi.org/10.5284/1064608
2. V. Pritchard, English Medieval Graffiti (Cambridge, 1967), pp. 65-67.
3. Announced in the Advent and Christmas 2025 What’s On Guide: We…secured grants from the Church Commissioners and the Diocese of Carlisle to support the upcycling of the remaining halogen lights in the Cathedral and convert them to LED technology as part of our efforts towards Net Zero. Work will continue on the Cathedral’s lighting in 2026 and will result in over 90% energy savings.
