Sculptures in St Paul’s Lecture
27th June 2023Dr Christine Booth
Life is often a series of unintended consequences, which leads to something magical. On this occasion, it started when the invitation to attend the church service at St Paul’s to mark the 300th anniversary of Sir Christopher Wren’s death arrived while I was traveling in Asia and had tunnel vision on my work. I dithered (worked) just long enough to miss the opportunity to sit under the dome in an assigned seat. Therefore I arrived over 30 minutes before the doors opened to ensure a seat as close as possible to the dome. Being first in line, I made a beeline towards the front and a lovely seat next to a volunteer who had clearly marked out a perfect position for listening as well as viewing. Undeterred by the reason why the ushers were not welcoming me with the warmth reserved for Masters who had replied promptly to their invitation, this resourceful matriarch spoke with her friend, the lead St Paul’s usher, who promptly interceded on my behalf to the Livery usher, resulting in a seat change, which placed me between members of the Surveyors and a Pavior.
Dr Christine Booth’s husband, David is a Pavior and is descended from the sculptures who designed and made the magnificent statues that were now literally above me. Christine was putting the finishing touches on a Lecture that she was presenting to the Paviors at Plaisterers’ Hall before lunch. Very conveniently, I was scheduled to dine at Plaisterers’ Hall!
Having begged my way into the alcove, Christine’s lecture was brilliant- no surprise given that she is a Professor at Oxford University. However the personal relationship, discussing David’s ancestors, certainly enhanced the explanations and made us all feel a personal connection. Christine peppered her presentation with photographs of the recent renovations. Having literally signed their lives away, David and Christine were able to walk the planks and view these magnificent works up close. The thought of it made me shiver - both good and bad, as being that close to the dome’s sculptures and paintings would have made me breathless and my fear of heights would have given me concrete shoes! Regardless meeting Christine and David as well as the very friendly and helpful Surveyors brought Wren 300 to life for me!