THE legend of St Frideswide is 1,400 years old but at Christ Church Cathedral a new yarn has been spun about Oxford’s patron saint.

Textile artist Rachel Williamson, 44, has created an exhibition of hand-dyed yarns that stretch from St Frideswide’s shrine to the Watching Loft, which may have been used for guarding gifts and offerings in the Middle Ages.

The yarns are died blue and yellow – popular colours during the Medieval period, with the blue traditionally representing Celtic tribes.

Mrs Williamson, who is studying a Master’s degree in Fine Art at Buckingham New University, said: “The only thing we know about St Frideswide is that she existed. It gives us quite a lot to make people think about when they come to look at the exhibition, which I have designed to spotlight two features in the cathedral which we don’t know much about.

“The exhibition is trying to portray that legends are still relevant in the 21st century. Many people still want to find out about them and I hope my art helps them to do that.”

The exhibition runs daily until August 31.

 

  • Do you want alerts delivered straight to your phone via our WhatsApp service? Text NEWS or SPORT or NEWS AND SPORT, depending on which services you want, and your full name to 07767 417704. Save our number into your phone’s contacts as Oxford Mail WhatsApp and ensure you have WhatsApp installed.



Our top stories