and of the tower arches, is visible and in good condition. The
beginning of the turret stair in the South-West tower is exposed, but
the basement of the house unfortunately occupies the lower part of the
northern one. The exterior of this is however easily accessible from
an enclosure known as the Wood Yard, the much decayed spreading plinth
and a few feet of walling above it not having been destroyed. Above
this, grievous damage has been perpetrated by the casing and complete
obliteration of the mouldings and arcading which remained. The towers
were placed outside the line of the aisles as at Wells, the total
width of the West front, 145 feet, being nearly the same in both
cases. There are still indications of the position of the great west
door, but the height of the inner plinth shows that there was always a
descent of several steps into the church. At the south transept where
was "the Minster durra that openeth to the Trinite Churchyarde," the
descent must have been considerable. The remains show that the nave
dated from the first half of the thirteenth century, while fragments
of wall near the site of the transept with indications of lancet
window openings are probably a little earlier than the west end.

[Illustration: REMAINS OF THE N.W. TOWER (IN THE EIGHTEENTH CENTURY).]

Whether the church of Leofric and Godiva, dedicated in 1043, had
survived wholly or in part until this time cannot be known, but,
judging from the history of most other great monastic churches and
from the known wealth of the monastery, it may almost be taken for
granted that the Norman bishops and priors rebuilt much if not all.
Some relics of Norman work have been found but the covering of the
site with roads, graves and houses precludes the systematic
exploration and survey which alone could solve this question and make
clear the outlines of the plan of the whole establishment.