When Archbishop Thomas Becket was murdered in 1170 by four knights it was probably the gruesome way it happened – and within the sanctity of the Cathedral itself – that created such enormous outrage across European Christendom. And then the pilgrimages started … much encouraged by reports of miracles in and around the murder site.

On a sunny Sunday in March 2010 Chris and I did our very own pilgrimage. Due to pay homage to Thomas later, our first stop was naturally morning coffee! The big appeal was having it the Cathedral Gate Coffee House modelled by Hazle Ceramics, next door to Christchurch Gate. Plus we were in the company of Hazle, guide Carla and other collectors.

Starbucks on the ground floor has been sympathetically converted, with old brick and stone walls exposed as above. Formerly part of The Sun Inn, this was the only pilgrims’ hostelry with Cathedral views – at the back. Charles Dickens is said to have stayed here. While we ate and drank, guide Carla on Hazle’s right, talked about the murder’s impact.

Then it was back out to The Buttermarket to view the other two main pilgrims’ lodgings, where several shared a room or even a bed. This triangular space is still a honeypot for tourists today. The Steamer Trading Cookshop above was once The Bull Inn. It is still similar to medieval times, especially the middle beamed floor and small window panes.

We saw remains of the third Chequer of Hope inn including old beer cellars in Debenhams, then set off for nearby Palace Street with three more Hazle buildings – all commissioned by the same owners in 2009. Dated 1250, the Priest’s House at No 8 has gargoyles on its 1888 front to ward off evil spirits! Balthazar’s Baubles is the first piece in the 2009 Christmas Set.

Dated c1100 with a Tudor front, Conquest House is said to be where Henry II’s knights lodged before the murder. No 17 is ideal for the Palace Street Poulterer, second Christmas Set theme, as it was one once. Long wanting to portray the old custom of hanging meat outside, Hazle created the hand-pressed poultry add-ons and painted all the pieces herself.

Far right Hazle snaps our group at No 28, dated 1647 and former shop of The King’s School. We visited this lovely, light bookstore which sells Hazle’s Palace Street models. Upstairs we saw the chimney door that caused the 1800s lean, stabilised in the 1980s. The Christmas Set’s Daily Star aptly combines a Church Shop with a local newspaper on the top floors.

Hazle is in the doorway. Above a quote from Dickens’ David Copperfield, partly set here, is of “a very old house bulging out over the road …”. The first UK image of a US Indian may be above right. In London 1623, The Mayflower was broken up for timber. With the ship’s original owner from Canterbury, might some of the wood been used for this “masthead”?!

Next on our route was 50 St Peter Street which when modelled by Hazle in 1995 was Saunders bakery and confectionery with two side doors, as it had been for over 100 years. An 1899 sepia postcard and the early 1900s photo below inspired the colours and main window. Only one final colourway was intended but collectors at the event voted for both!

Saunders served lunches and teas and this Confectioner’s & Tearooms by F D Bedford shows how it may have looked at the turn of the 20th century. Its triticumina bread from malted wheatflour was noted in the 1893 British Medical Journal for the highly soluble carbohydrate! Saunders also photographed and mono-printed local scenes onto postcards.

Then it was time for the Cathedral. The Martyrdom is where Thomas died after defying King Henry II. In contrast to the soaring 12th century choir at the top of the page,  this is a place for quiet meditation – with seating provided. The modern sculpture integrates The Crucifixion with the three swords that struck Thomas according to eyewitness accounts.

In just three years Thomas was made a saint. Everyone wanted “bits of Becket” as bone or cloth. This amazing gold enamelled panel is from a Limoges Chasse for such relics. Of the 50 still existing, this one in The Louvre is a two-knight version. As the Cathedral once had a similar casket on display, painter Iona put one in The Canterbury Tales piece below.

Afterwards our group gathered in the Cathedral Gift Shop on Burgate, off The Buttermarket. We then went our separate ways for a short time before meeting up for tea. This beautiful store includes work from local craftspeople. It is nice to think that the sale of Hazle Ceramics here helps towards the £12,000 weekly cost to keep the Cathedral going.

Two event pieces were based on local attractions. The Rupert Bear Museum in Stour Street marks the city as home of creator Mary Tourtel. The Rupert ceramic is by Hazle and Carol. Iona’s added frieze in The Canterbury Tales Study Centre shows story characters, with the real Visitor Centre in St Margaret Street’s former church having talking tableaux.

While Iona depicted people in the tales of Chaucer’s vivid portrayal of medieval life, Ezra Winter’s glorious 1939 mural at the Congress Library in Washington shows many pilgrims on horseback. From the front, this section illustrates the Knight, his son the young Squire, a Yeoman and the Doctor of Physic, with Chaucer turned away talking to the Lawyer.

Around 4pm our pilgrims met again in the same building we started in, but now in the hotel above. A sort of Upstairs, Downstairs affair! The left window shows the Cathedral from the hotel’s Reception. If you want to picture how the city looked to previous travellers, displays in the Canterbury Museum trace the history right back to Roman times …

High Tea, inside the right bay window above, helped satisfy our hunger. Our walking tour with Carla might not have taken in all Canterbury’s sights but it did do justice to Hazle’s work here. Whether seeing, visiting, shopping or eating and drinking in the actual buildings, living and breathing the ceramics doesn’t get much closer – or better – than this!

Ceramics featured on this page:

	Cathedral Gate Hotel		Priest’s House		Balthazar’s Baubles
	Palace St Poulterer		Daily Star		Saunders Bakery
	Saunders (Green & Gold)		Canterbury Tales		Rupert Bear