Salisbury Cathedral employees have given the last tours of the works area on the exterior of the Cathedral before the scaffolding comes down later this month.

Once removed, it will be the first time in 37 years that there has been no scaffolding on the exterior of the medieval structure.

Some of the last people brought up on Thursday, September 7 were donors who helped finance the restoration and members of the press.

Through the years, masons have put their own personal touches on the bosses that adorn gables and other features in the upper reaches of the cathedral.

Designs such as a dragon and gecko by mason Alan Spittle, a female mason and others that are invisible from the ground will likely not be seen again for hundreds of years. Just as the current masons have uncovered evidence of their forebears in the form of oyster shells, eaten for lunch and used to pack spaces between stones, so future masons carrying out restoration work centuries from now will discover the quirky stone carvings.

@salisburyjournal This can't be seen again for hundreds of years. #Salisbury #SalisburyJournal #SalisburyCathedral #Cathedral #Christian #christiantiktok ♬ Sky Aesthetic - Tollan Kim

Later on that day, Canon Kenneth Padley, Canon Treasurer of Salisbury Cathedral climbed to the top of the scaffold on the East End of the Cathedral to bless the cross that sits high above the Trinity Chapel for the ‘topping out’ blessing, marking a significant milestone in the massive feat of restoration and repair that began in 1986.

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Topping Out is an age-old tradition in the building trade and has been adopted by the Cathedral as a way of marking the end of each phase of restoration. This latest phase at the East End has seen around 1,100 stones replaced.

Another feature that would regularly feature in the works yard tour was the 18th-century glazing workshop, which was created in 1781 as a workshop for employees working on the installation of the Moses window. The room, which remained in use until the 1980s, will still be accessible, but will require traversing through parts of the cathedral’s roof rather than simply climbing the scaffold.

Gary Price, clerk of works, said: “It has been a great honour and a privilege to have been able to work on this incredible building since the start of our modern repair programme, and by mid-November all traces of the scaffolding that has made its way around the building for the last 37 years will be gone and the Cathedral will stand in glory as it did in the 14th century after Spire was added.

"I feel a bit sad about not being able to look at the amazing carvings done by our team but incredibly proud of and humbled by what they have achieved.”