Winchester Cathedral, Winchester, Hampshire, England

The Choir Stalls Wood Carvings with Foliate Heads and Mythical Beasts at Winchester Cathedral

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High Medieval / English Decorated Gothic Period (c. 1308, early 14th century)

Intricately carved English heartwood oak misericords and stall canopy framework from Winchester Cathedral's monastic choir, executed by master carpenter William Lingwode around 1308. Human faces emerge from the woodgrain with hair and mouths seamlessly transforming into sprawling lobed oak and vine leaves, while companion niches display scaly winged mythical beasts framed by architectural ogees — hidden iconography visible only to the monastic community in the private space of the choir.