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Fountains Abbey: History
Fountains Abbey: Buildings
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The monks’ dormitory at Fountains occupied the first floor of the eastern range, which was the customary location for this room. It extended over fifty metres in length and could have accommodated about 120 monks.(58) During the day, the monks accessed the dormitory by a staircase from the cloister. At night, when they left the dormitory to celebrate the office of Vigils in the church, they used a separate staircase that provided a covered passage to their choir. Light shone into the dormitory through a series of windows on either side, but one or two lanterns would have burned at all times to prevent misconduct. These lanterns were placed in such a way to illuminate the monks’ toilet block (reredorters), which was situated at the far end of the dormitory. |
