One of my favourite places to visit in Kent is Rochester Cathedral.
Virtually every time we are in Rochester we drop in for another look around and no matter how many times we've been before we always seem to notice something interesting we've previously missed.
One piece of artwork that is totally unmissable, however, is the fresco painted by Russian artist Sergey Fyodorov in 2004 to mark the 1400th anniversary of the founding of the cathedral.
The upper part of the fresco depicts the baptism of Jesus in the River Jordan by John the Baptist. The dove above Jesus's head symbolises the spirit of God and the fish/sea monster represents the old pagan religions being superseded by the new religion of Christianity. Jesus is attended by angels.
Below Jesus's feet is a portrait of the Virgin Mary flanked by the two main apostles Peter and Paul and the four evangelists Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.
The lower section of the fresco depicts events of great significance to Kent (and indeed British) history.
The lower left hand side of the fresco shows the Anglo Saxon King Ethelbert being baptised by Saint Augustine in 597 AD at Canterbury.
Augustine was a Christian missionary sent to Kent from Rome by Pope Gregory I - possibly at the behest of King Ethelbert's wife Bertha (who was already a Christian and daughter of Charibert, King of the Franks).
King Ethelbert later went on to establish many churches during his reign.
The lower right hand half of the fresco depicts Bishop Justus giving communion to newly baptised Anglo Saxons emerging from the River Medway.
Justus was another missionary sent from Rome to Kent in around 601 AD. In 604 AD he became the first Bishop of Rochester and in 624 AD the fourth Archbishop of Canterbury.
The Cathedral is open daily and admission is
FREE.
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