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The Choir Stalls

Our abbey church has sixty-four choir stalls. Their current lay out dates back to 1865, when the choir was built. Twenty-four of them date from the second half of the 16th century. They were originally in the nave, in front of the transept: ten on either side and four at right angles facing the altar. At that time, the busts of the various figures they depict were arranged in two rows, one above the other.

These figures depict Christ's ancestors, starting from Jesse, the father of David. A stem arises from Jesse and weaves its way from bust to bust before reaching the Virgin Mary carrying the child Jesus. This is the rod of Jesse, which Isaiah prophesied would give birth to the Messiah (Is 11: 1). Our choir stalls feature all of Christ's ancestors mentioned in the genealogies of Matthew's (Mt 1: 1-17) and Luke's (Lk: 23-38) Gospels. The first genealogy is depicted on the left side of the choir, while the other is on the right.